The Serviceberry: Native American Ecology and the End of Carbon Capitalism
H. Patricia Hynes 04/28/2025 Greenfield, Mass. (Special to Informed Comment; Feature) – No one wrote more powerfully about humans’ poisoning the Earth and its consequences than biologist Rachel Carson–with a focus on one contaminant, the pesticide DDT. She traced its toxicity through the food chain of nature and the loss of beneficial insects and birds, and then warned of the ultimate destruction of the natural world. Other environmental writers of the time were perplexed by the tidal wave of impact Silent Spring had compared to their books: it was both the accuracy of her science and the powerful beauty of her science writing. The award-winning Silent Spring was translated into all the languages of the industrial world, influenced key environmental legislation and spurred the creation of the US EPA. It was a gift that kept on giving. That was 1962. In every aspect of industrial life, we are on the precipice of a much greater loss of Na...
