Week Two Discussion Topic

 

  

For our week two discussion we'll be focusing on the topics of habitat fragmentation and biodiversity, mirroring the second module's lecture content. 

Several of you mentioned urban/suburban development as a major ecological issue facing your hometown or region. This border zone where housing reaches or intermingles with wilderness is often referred to as the 'wildland-urban interfaceLinks to an external site.' and is becoming more common throughout the US. What are some of the challenges present in managing shared urban-wild spaces? If you were a manager, how might you try to solve one or some of these problems?

And let's dig in further... many of us have traveled around Wisconsin and enjoyed outdoor recreation in natural areas - I for one love spending my summers fishing in the Driftless area or relaxing in a cabin in the Northwoods. How should we pair our desires to be among wilderness and natural resources with the requirements for protecting habitats? Is it possible to do both, have our cake and eat it, too? Disclaimer: this is a challenging issue--one that I personally don't view as having a "right" or a "wrong" side--but still a challenge that warrants discussion.