The Most Common Good

The Adirondacks are important to us because others have made them important. Simply, meaning is given to places and things because humans like them. It takes a certain type of person to genuinely appreciate more difficult environments. This rings true historically with attempts to settle, or "people the park"(Godine). Oftentimes, the scientific majesty or environmental concerns of a region can overshadow the cultural influence of the individuals who actually make the region into one of genuine human interest. Not to veer too far into an anthropocentric understanding of nature, but humans are essentially social creatures. It is our relationships with others that define how our histories play out. From trapping to mining to hiking to vacationing, humans of the Adirondack region have found very unique ways of maintaining closeness in an oftentimes scary environment.

Godine writes about the ways in which immigrant workers at the turn of the century were able to influence the cultural makeup of the region deeply by maintaining certain aspects of their heritage in a new space. She goes on to discuss how certain cultural elements such as food, religion, and language was brought into the region by the new workforce, sometimes specifically to "entertain the natives with their Old World ways" (Godine). She also references the period when many of the immigrants were new as one of very tense divisions based on ethnic background, amplified by the paternalism of the big employers in the region. It was not until the realities of the new region set in and communities began to develop based on need rather than shared background. Unions sprang up, multilingualism became the norm, and street brawling slowly stopped. While sometimes human interaction with the environment has worked to divide people based on familiarity, it is easier to point out the times where tough times have truly united people.

The idea of a common goal has been lost in the general public in recent generations and as a result, the Millenial generation is frequently described as selfish. However, when you look at the number of civil rights and other political movements springing up, it is easy to argue otherwise. This is particularly true in terms of the environmental movement. A quick Google search shows that in increasingly large numbers around the world, young people are stepping up to address some of the most serious environmental concerns of the day. This cultural shift is an echo of the era Godine writes about. In spite of cultural differences, large groups of our generation are rising to the task of preserving the most common good: the environment.

The natural world has a strange, almost indescribable ability to bring otherwise diverse communities together. As there has been  increasingly fewer corners of the natural world to explore, places like the Adirondacks have become all the more valuable in terms of maintaining a deeper understanding between diverse groups of people.

Works Cited
Godine, Amy. The Hidden History. Adirondack Life. Hamilton College Burke Library.  24 September 2015.