STEPPING BACK FROM CIVILIZATION TO SURVIVE IT

BY DANA BENNER

Rewilding is a term that describes the idea that if given a chance, over time everything will revert to its natural, wild state. We see examples of this in nature every day.

Many parts of the country are overrun with feral hogs, the wild descendants of domestic pigs that escaped from their pens or were turned loose. We all have seen feral dogs and cats. The wild horses of the American West are the result of domesticated horses being turned loose, beginning with colonial Spanish horses.

We see rewilding in areas that were settled then abandoned by humans and later reclaimed by vegetation and trees. While total rewilding, especially among humans, will probably never happen, this article will look at the benefit of learning and using skills from our past that can serve us again, if the modern world goes into decline. I will demonstrate the importance of combining those skills with modern technology to ensure long-term survival.

Assuring food for the future: A banana tree is being planted in Hawaii. Photo courtesy of Steve Sakala

Growing your own food is a skill that many avoid. It is starting to become more common as concerns about food safety and quality increase.

IN THE PAST

In the not-so-distant past, most people lived in close contact with the land. They hunted, foraged, fished, gardened and raised livestock. Each of those tasks required an intense understanding of the natural world around them and how whatever they did would have ramifications, both good and bad, on this world.

To those living in the “civilized” urban end of the spectrum, the people in the rural realm were often viewed as “wild.” What the “civilized” people failed to realize was those who understood the patterns of life and learned to work within them were at a better position to survive whatever nature would throw at them.