This week Bob Laughton, the head of our latest sponsor, Bushtukah, said something that really gave me pause. Commenting on our project and its goal of promoting awareness about the human place in the natural world, he pointed out that there exists two kinds of environmental proponents. First, there are those who are eager to protect the environment because they know that our health and welfare is directly linked to it. Then, you have those who like nature, because it’s a venue for the activities that they love.

Do you see the difference? Or rather, the discrepancy inherent in the difference? For me, I think that to address many environmental issues, we (humans) face an uphill battle. If that is the case, those of us on the side of the environment must be strong and united in our understanding of the problems we face. However, if Bob’s comment is true, then we don’t even have that united front.

The idea that some people are only interested in nature to the extent that it can provide them with an outdoor playground, is very troubling to me. It reinforces the disconnect that has (and continues to??) become pervasive throughout North America between humans and nature. We wouldn’t be surprised to learn that a person confined to cities are disconnected from the natural world and humanity’s place in it; we would probably expect it! However, it would be shockingly ironic that people who regularly go out hiking, biking, skiing etc., could be the ones oblivious to such issues.

Granted, this difference can only exist in regions like North America where we have a standard of living that creates the separation between work and play, and where we have time and money to pursue these kinds of outdoor recreation.

Regardless, if this is the case, I now wonder who the first target of our film should be: the totally disconnected, or the mostly oblivious.

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