When gas prices rise, people become less inclined to simply go for a drive that doesn’t have a specific purpose other than its own delight. But one kind of drive that doesn’t serve any practical purposes that people regularly take (each fall) is a trip to see autumn foliage.
People from suburbs and cities alike will venture into the country to view the spectacle of fall leaves. Alas, the beauty of our nearby outdoor areas contribute to our well-being. While we have some of these elements in cities, there is something freeing, perhaps even sublime, about the seemingly endless supply of brilliant colors when you go to an area more populated by trees than people.
These brief thoughts serve as a summary from an article on the WBUR site, written by David George Haskell. He further adds that “human power and population is vastly increased, threatening forests and human wellbeing.” Perhaps, this could be an additional argument for trying to lessen (and reverse) the consequences of climate change: an aesthetic argument!
You can read this entire short article here.