There's no difference between a pessimist who says, "Oh it's hopeless, so don't bother doing anything." and an optimist who says, "Don't bother doing anything, it's going to turn out fine anyways. Either way, nothing happens."
Yvon ChouinardRead
You have a whole life in the outdoors, you realize you have a sense of responsibility to protect these wild places.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Experiencing the outdoors fosters a sense of duty to safeguard the environment.
This quote reflects the idea that spending time in nature can lead to a profound understanding of our connection to the earth. When we immerse ourselves in the beauty and wildness of natural landscapes, it cultivates a sense of responsibility within us to take care of these precious places, ensuring they remain preserved for future generations.
Themes
NatureOutdoorsResponsibilityEnvironmentConservation
In practice
Example use cases
During an environmental awareness event, one might quote this to inspire responsibility in conservation efforts.
More from Yvon Chouinard
All quotes βI think risk is important. I don't care if it's a great financial risk or a physical risk. You only get out of something what you put into it and the fact that you are willing to risk something means that you are going to get a lot more out of it.
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The solution may be for a lot of the world's problems is to turn around and take a forward step. You can't just keep trying to make a flawed system work.
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We're a part of nature. As we destroy nature, we destroy ourselves. It's a selfish thing to want to protect nature.
Yvon ChouinardRead
Evil doesnβt have to be an overt act; it can be merely the absence of good. If you have the ability, the resources, and the opportunity to do good and you do nothing, that can be evil.
Yvon ChouinardRead
The future of Yosemite climbing lies not in Yosemite, but in using the new techniques in the great granite ranges of the world.
Yvon ChouinardRead
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The earth will not continue to offer its harvest, except with faithful stewardship. We cannot say we love the land and then take steps to destroy it for use by future generations.
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The birds I heard today, which, fortunately, did not come within the scope of my science, sang as freshly as if it had been the first morning of creation.
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The reason to preserve wilderness is that we need it. We need wilderness of all kinds, large and small, public and private. Wee need to go now and again into places where our work is disallowed, where our hopes and plans have no standing. We need to come into the presence of the unqualified and mysterious formality of Creation.
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Healthy feet can feel the very heart of Mother Earth.
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O wild West Wind, thou breath of Autumn's being. Thou, from whose unseen presence the leaves dead Are driven, like ghosts from an enchanter fleeing.
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The world is too much with us; late and soon, Getting and spending, we lay waste our powers: Little we see in Nature that is ours; We have given our hearts away, a sordid boon! The Sea that bares her bosom to the moon; The winds that will be howling at all hours, And are up-gathered now like sleeping flowers; For this, for everything, we are out of tune.
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