This week’s discussion was on land conservation in the Ithaca and in upstate regions of New York. Ithaca has really beautiful scenic landscapes that are invaluable to the area. I think I take these for granted sometimes because I assume that they will always be there when I want to go visit, however a lot of work goes into making sure these unique lands are preserved. It is so easy to alter something such as land, someone builds an apartment complex and cuts down a large portion of the trees to make a parking lot or puts a pool and a playground in a community center. Once all of these changes have been made, which may take a few months to build, the characteristics of that land will be altered forever. The gorges, waterfalls, and mountains took years to develop yet they can be ruined overnight if we do not take care of them. I think the biggest takeaway from this lecture is that we can not get back the land once we have destroyed it so the best way is to preserve the marvels that we have so that we can ensure their continuity. Personally, my favorite landscapes are beaches and rough waterfalls that have a powerful presence reminding us that nature is beautiful and unable to be replicated. I hope that conservationists continue to secure the future of unique lands throughout New York, but also throughout the world because there are places all over the globe that have unique ecosystems and wildlife that may be endangered if the land on which they live on is altered or destroyed. This will require collaboration across multiple countries and governments, however I think it is something that is worth doing. As humans we are responsible for changing most of the land on Earth therefore it is also our responsibility to preserve some of the land that is irreplaceable.