Roderick Nash
Encyclopedia
Roderick Nash is a history and environmental studies professor at the University of California Santa Barbara. Nash is the first person to descend the Tuolumne River
(using a raft).
from Harvard University
and his Ph.D.
from the University of Wisconsin–Madison
. He is the author of several book and many essays. His dissertation, done under the direction of Merle Curti
, became what has come to be seen as one of the foundational texts of the field of environmental history
. After witnessing a massive oil spill in Santa Barbara
in 1969 he and a number of other faculty members became active within the University and founded an environmental studies program there. Since the initial 12 graduates in 1972, there have been 4,000 graduates within 300 separate majors. Nash is a firm believer in environmental education and is also an avid white-water river rafter.
– in a strictly physical sense – has provided for the mass of the American economy, wilderness as a philosophical concept has provided America something to rally for and against, to harness and to allow be “untrammeled”. While wilderness has always had a love/hate relationship with civilization, Nash states that if wilderness is to survive, we must, ironically, manage wilderness – at the very least, our behavior towards the wilderness must be managed.
Nash presents America’s anthropocentric view as the main enemy to all wilderness preservation. He argues that an ecocentric view is ideal and may work in the long run, but perhaps the preservation of nature and wilderness for the sake of holding resources out for the preservation of our own species would be more salient. Yet, even this strategy is hard for people to grasp, because it requires us to reach outside the present and look to the future. Still, Nash suggests that maybe the simple preservation of the environment for the sake of our own generation’s recreation and health (oxygen sinks, etc.) could provide the impetus to stow some profiteering.
Nash also talks of how wilderness teaches us the value of humility. The problem is that humanity does not want to be humbled. Humans are a proud species who will do anything to avoid being humbled. To this end, we have ripped the wildness from the wilderness and removed all that causes any threat to our existence.
Nash, who retired to Santa Barbara, California, after a 30-year career as a professor of history and environmental studies, believes that humankind has two choices in the next 1,000 years. We can "trash the planet into a wasteland" or adopt a plan to distill the world's population in 500 "islands" while allowing wilderness to flourish around us.
Tuolumne River
The Tuolumne River is a California river that flows nearly from the central Sierra Nevada to the San Joaquin River in the Central Valley...
(using a raft).
Scholarly biography
Nash received his Bachelor of ArtsBachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
from Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
and his Ph.D.
Ph.D.
A Ph.D. is a Doctor of Philosophy, an academic degree.Ph.D. may also refer to:* Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*Piled Higher and Deeper, a web comic strip*PhD: Phantasy Degree, a Korean comic series* PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
from the University of Wisconsin–Madison
University of Wisconsin–Madison
The University of Wisconsin–Madison is a public research university located in Madison, Wisconsin, United States. Founded in 1848, UW–Madison is the flagship campus of the University of Wisconsin System. It became a land-grant institution in 1866...
. He is the author of several book and many essays. His dissertation, done under the direction of Merle Curti
Merle Curti
Merle Curti was a leading American historian. He taught a large number of PhD students at the University of Wisconsin, and was a leader in developing the fields of social history and intellectual history. As a "Progressive" historian he was deeply committed to democracy, and to the Turnerian...
, became what has come to be seen as one of the foundational texts of the field of environmental history
Environmental history
Environmental history, a branch of historiography, is the study of human interaction with the natural world over time. In contrast to other historical disciplines, it emphasizes the active role nature plays in influencing human affairs. Environmental historians study how humans both shape their...
. After witnessing a massive oil spill in Santa Barbara
Santa Barbara, California
Santa Barbara is the county seat of Santa Barbara County, California, United States. Situated on an east-west trending section of coastline, the longest such section on the West Coast of the United States, the city lies between the steeply-rising Santa Ynez Mountains and the Pacific Ocean...
in 1969 he and a number of other faculty members became active within the University and founded an environmental studies program there. Since the initial 12 graduates in 1972, there have been 4,000 graduates within 300 separate majors. Nash is a firm believer in environmental education and is also an avid white-water river rafter.
Wilderness and the American Mind
Nash's study in this book concerns the attitude of Americans' toward the idea of wilderness. He discusses the different attitudes that humans have toward nature. While wildernessWilderness
Wilderness or wildland is a natural environment on Earth that has not been significantly modified by human activity. It may also be defined as: "The most intact, undisturbed wild natural areas left on our planet—those last truly wild places that humans do not control and have not developed with...
– in a strictly physical sense – has provided for the mass of the American economy, wilderness as a philosophical concept has provided America something to rally for and against, to harness and to allow be “untrammeled”. While wilderness has always had a love/hate relationship with civilization, Nash states that if wilderness is to survive, we must, ironically, manage wilderness – at the very least, our behavior towards the wilderness must be managed.
Nash presents America’s anthropocentric view as the main enemy to all wilderness preservation. He argues that an ecocentric view is ideal and may work in the long run, but perhaps the preservation of nature and wilderness for the sake of holding resources out for the preservation of our own species would be more salient. Yet, even this strategy is hard for people to grasp, because it requires us to reach outside the present and look to the future. Still, Nash suggests that maybe the simple preservation of the environment for the sake of our own generation’s recreation and health (oxygen sinks, etc.) could provide the impetus to stow some profiteering.
Nash also talks of how wilderness teaches us the value of humility. The problem is that humanity does not want to be humbled. Humans are a proud species who will do anything to avoid being humbled. To this end, we have ripped the wildness from the wilderness and removed all that causes any threat to our existence.
Nash, who retired to Santa Barbara, California, after a 30-year career as a professor of history and environmental studies, believes that humankind has two choices in the next 1,000 years. We can "trash the planet into a wasteland" or adopt a plan to distill the world's population in 500 "islands" while allowing wilderness to flourish around us.