time . So , no matter how the differing concepts are viewed , misunderstanding is sure to prevail when initial dialogues are attempted . In particular , DeLoria points out that the North American use of time and history — as basic social and cultural organizing suppositions — allows exploitation to become a means of achievement . But the Native American tradition of holding their lands — space and place — has taught , instead , the sacredness of the lands .
As an example of how these two divergent perspectives often conflict , DeLoria cites the example of a United States Supreme Court decision . The 1972 case of Sierra Club vs Morton case , had the Sierra Club representing the Mineral King Valley adjacent to the Sequoia National Forest in northern California , and Morton representing the Disney Corporation who wished to build an extensive ski resort . The corporate side , not surprisingly , won . But Justice William O . Douglas disagreed with the majority and wrote a dissenting opinion . DeLoria points out that Douglas “ wrote what may come to be regarded in later years as the first major effort in the history of American jurisprudence to incorporate a contemporary understanding of nature into law .”
Douglas argued against the accepted definition of standing . Rather than only recognizing individuals who have been demonstrably injured to have the right to bring suit to a court of law , he argued a case for an expansion of the concept of standing to include inanimate objects in nature . This would effectively redefine how humans relate to nature . He stated : “ The critical question of “ standing ” would be simplified and also be put neatly in focus if we fashioned a federal rule that allowed environmental issues to be litigated before federal agencies or federal courts in the name of the inanimate object about to be despoiled , defaced or invaded by roads and bulldozers and where injury is the subject of public outrage .” The term “ inanimate object ,” such as a valley , would , by default , encompass all of the living inhabitants including wildlife and the biological support system .
As part of his dissent , Douglas pointed out inanimate objects such as corporations are sometimes parties in litigation . He explained “ the corporation soul — a creature of ecclesiastical law is an acceptable adversary and large fortunes ride on its cases .” He therefore maintained : “ So it should be as respects valleys , alpine meadows , rivers , lakes , estuaries , beaches , ridges , groves of tree , swampland , or even air that feels the destructive pressures of modern technology and modern life .”
Of course , all of this was a failure of sorts on all sides ; the Disney Corporation , as the selected developers of Mineral King by the U . S . Forest Service , eventually lost interest due to reassessment of potential profits . As a result , Mineral King eventually became part of the Sequoia National Forest . But the ruling of standing continues as an obstacle to effective environmental conservation . At the same time , this supposed failure in conserving the environment has also defined a useful path forward . Douglas ’ s dissent crafted a foothold for further use by this generation .
But the law will be insufficient unless we also have practice . We cannot simply rely on eminent judges such as William Douglas , or gifted biologists such as E . O . Wilson who continue to remind us that what we as humans are doing in terms of preservation , biodiversity , and climate change is not enough . Nor is it sufficient to hand it off to the thousands of dedicated environmentalists who keep working against the odds . In addition to these stalwart people , we also need a collective change of heart as a society , a change that helps us to understand that individual endeavor which results in the reduction of nature and lands to economic rubble is not a way to live . In other words , we need to begin moving from the current ways of unconscious exploitation of land as a commodity to be bought and sold , to a more harmonious way of living .
One way to begin is to listen deeply to the of voice people who have an authentic and direct experience of this more collective and sacred approach . Vine DeLoria tells us the “ lands wait for those who can discern their rhythms .” Indigenous people around the world , Native Americans in North America , and interestingly enough , the Yavapai Nation in the lands that surround Sedona , all have this history and experience and have guarded it as best they could . For the Yavapai , they do not have a migration story of how they came to these lands . They simply have the knowledge that their people originated here , from the Red Rocks that surround Sedona . And who better to begin a discussion with than with those who have remained faithful to the sacred nature of the land ? Once begun , hopefully we can then move together on new paths that will begin to energize the diverse connectedness and caring that our planet demands of us .
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