ISSUE XVII • FALL 2015
Borders and Edges: The How, Where and Why of everyday gandhis by cynthia travis
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ave you ever noticed that wounds heal from the outside towards the center? Think of a cut, a scab or a bruise: the outside edges heal first and then the healing moves slowly toward the center. The natural world repairs itself in a similar way, and so do human communities.
the edges where different ecosystems meet (riverbanks, edges of fields and forests, ocean and shore) are more fertile and have higher concentrations and diversity of plant and animal species than other areas. Did you know that crops planted in fields at the edge of a forest or a river are dramatically more productive than those planted in other areas?
We saw during the recent Ebola epidemic that the central government failed completely to meet the problem. In particular, people in border towns and marginal neighborhoods had to fend for themselves - and they did. In the face of government and institutional failure, many brave individuals and communities - including medical personnel who risked their lives - came up with creative ways to care for themselves and their families. Thanks to them, the rest of the world was spared.
When a forest has been clear cut, or a pasture has been overgrazed, certain species of grasses and other plants (often considered to be ‘weeds’) arrive first to repopulate the barren soil. Some of these seeds may have been lying dormant in the soil. Birds and bats may have carried some in. Others arrive from the wind. These plants are called ‘pioneer species’ because they are the first to arrive to resettle a devastated landscape. They are Nature’s emergency ‘first responders’. These plants have multiple functions: the ability to capture nitrogen from the air and pull it into the soil through their roots; to host microbes and insects necessary to rebuild healthy soil; and to entice birds, insects and other pollinators to return and bring additional seeds and nutrients with them. Eventually, leaves and brush cover the bare ground and, as they decay, they nour-
In Nature as in human society, the edges are where the action is. People who live at the margins of society have to improvise in order to get their needs met. People who solve difficult problems are able to think ‘outside the box’ – beyond the edges of conventional ideas. In Nature,
community members gather during a peace council in voinjama. photo by andre lambertson
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