Throughout “Rambunctious Garden,” Emma Marris has suggested methods to solving the issues with conservation. Some ecologists try to return to pristine natures, which Marris doesn’t agree with since she believes in the rambunctious garden. She also discussed methods such as assisted migration, rewilding, restoration, and isolating landscapes form human interaction. She states “Restoration ecologists have been trapped by the seductive vision of healing wounded nature and returning it to a stable ‘natural’ state. But there is a new current of energy at their meetings. They are beginning to see the possibilities of designing, engineering, cooking up something new”(126). This introduces the emergence of designer ecosystems.
Designer ecosystems are created to fulfill a certain purpose, whether it is saving a species, “increased biodiversity, as well as the removal of nitrogen and excess sediment” (126). In this era of Anthropocene, returning to a state that preexisted human involvement won’t help nature because we have left our mark and the majority of the human population doesn’t seem content on reversing their progress. In this way “a designer ecosystem may be better than a recreation of a historical ecosystem” (127).
We have contributed some negative consequences to the environment, with the extinction of certain species, the depletion of wildlife, pollution, and the degrading ozone layer. To remedy these issues we could instead try to create an environment that helps resolve these issues, or at least mitigate their affects and growing rate. If we were to return the earth to a pristine environment it would be difficult since we can’t completely identify what the pristine environment exactly was. Then there’s the question of why have a pristine nature when humans are the dominant force on the planet. The eventual result would be in an unpristine environment. In addition, we cannot reverse the mistakes we have made, making it impossible to return to a pristine nature.
Radical conservationists are not a viable goal at this point in time, therefore designer ecosystems cold help us achieve the conservationist goals we set out to achieve. In this way, rather than isolating the environment from humans, we can have humans and the environment working in collaboration for the betterment of the earth. In this way, we are achieving Marris’ idea of a rambunctious garden because we will be living with the environment with the idea that it is capable of helping itself. Marri’s doesn’t believe nature is as fragile as we make it and if we can make certain modifications then rely on nature to take care of itself and maintain itself then we can live with nature rather than trying to baby it.
