History of Wildlands and Woodlands
The Wildlands and Woodlands Vision was developed by a group of Harvard Forest scientists who shared a belief that the New England landscape was being transformed by residential and commercial development at a rate that threatened critical ecological and economic values of forests. Rather than just document this process and its impact, the scientists developed a bold vision for the region's future that highlighted the necessity and practicality of conserving more forests in advance of development.
New England and much of the Eastern United States is at a historic crossroads and is presented with a remarkable conservation opportunity. As a result of natural reforestation following the regional abandonment of farmland in the 19th and 20th centuries, many of the states east of the Mississippi River now support more forest cover than at any time in the last 200 years. But in the past few decades, this reforestation has peaked in New England, and the region has entered a second wave of deforestation as a result of fragmentation and relentless land conversion .
The Wildlands and Woodlands (W&W) Vision and the W&W Partnership recognize that history has provided us with a second chance to determine the fate of our forests and our landscape. The first time around, colonial settlers cleared the forests and created an agrarian landscape. This was a "soft" deforestation, as the crop fields and pastures rapidly grew back to forest when abandoned.
Today we are witnessing a "hard" deforestation in which forests are replaced with asphalt and buildings that will be more permanent on the land.
Wildlands and Woodlands articulates a rationale and means by which private landowners, groups, towns and organizations can work individually and collectively to seize this historical opportunity to create a landscape that supports both nature and people.
Come to this page in the future to access an on-line library of articles and papers on topics central to Wildlands and Woodlands.