This is a multi-part series, see Part 1 for a snippet of background and Part 2 for a discussion of regional issues. I ended Part 2 stating that the path of the last century has preferred big – big business, big projects, big ideas – and has eroded diverse, distributed, and dynamic systems. This trend [...]

This is a multi-part series, see Part 1 for a snippet of background on the problem. I began the last part considering my regular view of the US from the air. For the most part it is unsettled or agricultural land. Villages and towns pop up all over, usually following water or rail, occasionally unprompted [...]

I often find myself flying across the US, choosing the window seat because its more comfortable and also more interesting. While this is a consequence of moving across the country, where much of my professional work remains in the Midwest and East, it provides a lot of fodder for thought about humans, settlements, natural systems, [...]