Photo: Dry bed of the Yellow River, & erosion of the Loess Plateau, northwest of Xi'an, China. Copyright 2007 Delena Norris-Tull
Ecosystems Health
The goal of the management of ecosystems, such as that being done in weed management, will have to pay attention to the overall health of the entire ecosystem. When I began this project of examining how various State, local, and Federal Agencies were responding to the management of invasive plants, I had hopes that I would find a well-coordinated system. But the more I have examined the issues around managing invasive plants, the more I see disconnected and fragmented processes. While many agencies recognize the value of paying attention to ecosystems as a whole, poor funding usually results in a reductionist approach. For example, much of the funding at State and County levels is focused on herbicide applications, with little effort and funding going to replacing invasive plants with native plants, or paying attention to the impact that killing weeds has on the remaining ecosystem.
For example, while many States have one office, typically within the State Department of Agriculture, devoted to management of invasive plants, funding to assist in coordinating County and local agencies within the State is often minimal. And funding for coordination between State and Federal Agencies is also minimal, sometimes resulting in a lack of adequate coordination. Many Federal Agencies have an office that is responsible for managing weeds, and again, coordination between those agencies is minimal. The result is a reductionist approach to management, with the focus on eradication of individual species of plants, with little attention to the interactions between invasive species and between invasive species and native plants, and the effects of management practices, which often consists of little more than simply spraying herbicides, on the ecosystem as a whole.
“Health and the phenomenon of healing have meant different things in different ages… What is meant by health depends on one’s view of a living organism and its relation to its environment. As this view changes from one culture to another, and from one era to another, the notions of health also change. The broad concept of health that will be needed for our cultural transformation - a concept that includes individual, social, and ecological dimensions - will require a systems view of living organisms and, correspondingly, a systems view of health… In modern scientific terms we could say that the healing process represents the coordinated response of the integrated organism to stressful environmental influences” (Capra, 1982, p. 124-125).
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Ecosystems Health
The goal of the management of ecosystems, such as that being done in weed management, will have to pay attention to the overall health of the entire ecosystem. When I began this project of examining how various State, local, and Federal Agencies were responding to the management of invasive plants, I had hopes that I would find a well-coordinated system. But the more I have examined the issues around managing invasive plants, the more I see disconnected and fragmented processes. While many agencies recognize the value of paying attention to ecosystems as a whole, poor funding usually results in a reductionist approach. For example, much of the funding at State and County levels is focused on herbicide applications, with little effort and funding going to replacing invasive plants with native plants, or paying attention to the impact that killing weeds has on the remaining ecosystem.
For example, while many States have one office, typically within the State Department of Agriculture, devoted to management of invasive plants, funding to assist in coordinating County and local agencies within the State is often minimal. And funding for coordination between State and Federal Agencies is also minimal, sometimes resulting in a lack of adequate coordination. Many Federal Agencies have an office that is responsible for managing weeds, and again, coordination between those agencies is minimal. The result is a reductionist approach to management, with the focus on eradication of individual species of plants, with little attention to the interactions between invasive species and between invasive species and native plants, and the effects of management practices, which often consists of little more than simply spraying herbicides, on the ecosystem as a whole.
“Health and the phenomenon of healing have meant different things in different ages… What is meant by health depends on one’s view of a living organism and its relation to its environment. As this view changes from one culture to another, and from one era to another, the notions of health also change. The broad concept of health that will be needed for our cultural transformation - a concept that includes individual, social, and ecological dimensions - will require a systems view of living organisms and, correspondingly, a systems view of health… In modern scientific terms we could say that the healing process represents the coordinated response of the integrated organism to stressful environmental influences” (Capra, 1982, p. 124-125).
Reference:
- Capra, F. (1982). The Turning Point: Science, Society, and the Rising Culture. New York: Bantam Books.
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