Nature vs. culture. Wild vs. civilized. Country vs. city. These binaries, time and again, have been shown to be false dichotomies. But many groups and organizations still consider protected areas, for example, to be one without people in it. But counter-examples are starting to find their way into the streets and the public view.
“The streets in midsummer. There they lie! The sun beating down upon them all day long, until the stones are individually as hot as frying pans; and the gratings, as you inadvertently set your foot upon them, appear to be of the proper temperature to repeat the martyrdom of St. Lawrence on an unfortunate victim.” (The New York Daily Times, […]
In Amazonian Peru, Nigel Pitman was responsible for “Science Saturdays,” when he would try to impart some worldly knowledge to the children of the village near where he was living. He tells the story of one Science Saturday in particular that was especially enlightening for him.
Arrival back into the United States has snapped me back to “reality” – academic e-mails, air-conditioning, over-priced metros, costly produce – aspects of the “developed” world that I did not miss in Peru. Face-to-face conversations, dung-fire warmed homes, three sole taxi rides and free, organic potatoes are all relics of the summer which already seems so far away. Thank goodness […]
The third and final stop on our study tour of Rwanda brought us to the northwestern corner of the country, where a chain of dramatic volcanic peaks divides Rwanda from Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo. On the slopes of these volcanoes, over half (480 of 880 total) of the world’s remaining mountain gorillas make their home. Back in […]
David Johnson returns to his childhood home in Arkansas to see what fracking has changed (and what it hasn’t).
One of my colleagues told me that my time in Iraq was just the right amount to make me feel weird about leaving, and he was right. I’ve been here long enough not to feel like a tourist anymore, but just shy of feeling like a true resident. I’m finally getting used to the place and starting to live like […]
It was still dark at 6 a.m. when I gathered my things for the day and headed out shivering into the Cochabamba morning, bare toes waiting for the warmth of the sun. I met Jaime on the corner and we climbed in to the red, white, and blue “micro” bus, that would take us south to the main market, la cancha, that was […]
Hiking the Appalachian Trail has traditionally been viewed as an escape from modern society. But with a new generation of hikers bringing technology into the woods, trail culture is rapidly evolving. Do these changes reflect a more social and accessible trail, or do they threaten the age-old benefits of experiencing the outdoors?
Over the past three months, I had the privilege to meet and interview over 300 people in Patagonia. From backpackers in hostels to families on winter vacation, from French to English to Spanish to Portuguese, each complemented my interview with his or her own story and words of advice. Among these 300 I found friends, a family, and a network […]