ConserveLand Blog

When we look at the environmental abuses of the past, we often quickly absolve the perpetrators as well as the broader society of the time: “They didn’t know any better. Times were different. No-one understood.”

Ever wonder if maybe, perhaps, some people did understand and beat their heads against the wall, trying to convince others that a major problem existed, or just as important, trying to get others to care enough to do something.

It is amazing to think that the inhabitants of Easter Island – as they built their fantastic monuments – were blind to the fact that they were destroying their ecosystem, that in cutting down every tree on their island — their world — they were destroying the potential to carry on their way of life.

It seems more likely to me, and perhaps more horrifying, that there were a bunch of Easter Islanders who were saying: “Hey, aren’t we running out of trees to build our monuments.” Or, “we should pace ourselves and plant some trees so our grandkids can build monuments too.” Or, “don’t we have enough monuments?”