132 The City's Challenge in Resource Use 



sound conservation policies, designed for the new age of cities, but 

 also to guide us in revising governmental structures, tax systems, and 

 other social measures. Urbanism is now a fundamental factor of our 

 life, and requires a far better foundation of knowledge for planning 

 and for action than we have. 



The second plan of action now called for is cultural and educa- 

 tional. It is right along the line which Resources for the Future and 

 others have already been pursuing, but with certain new elements 

 of emphasis. It proposes that we gather information, explore meth- 

 ods of formulation and communication, so that our rising genera- 

 tions, especially city boys and girls, may be more deeply conscious 

 of their place in nature, and morally committed to a science-based 

 conservation philosophy. 



This is not as difficult as some may think. On the scientific side 

 more research and experimentation in this spirit are required and 

 can be provided. On the cultural and educational side, remember, 

 most of our people came from lands where men loved and respected 

 the soil and its resources. Mankind has a bad record with mining, 

 especially since the runaway industrial revolution, and with the de- 

 structive grazing of goats around the Mediterranean and in the Near 

 East. But except for this, most of our ancestors lived with dikes, sus- 

 tained-yield forests, restricted grazing, terraces, fertilizers, land and 

 water use regulation and soil conservation practices, geared to the 

 flow of nature, not to its sudden exhaustion. Is there any reason why 

 we cannot build these concepts with, of course, a more scientific 

 basis, back again into our basic mores? It took less than two gener- 

 ations for the early settlers to become morally and spiritually, as 

 well as practically, committed to the words and dogmas of democ- 

 racy even in the face of conflicting self-interest. It takes but two 

 decades to fit rural children into urban, industrial, commercial, and 

 professional life. Why should it take any longer to make the respon- 

 sible use of resources a fixed principle of American life, once the 

 doctrine is adequately formulated in modern terms, and our educa- 

 tional, political, and spiritual leadership have the material with which 

 to work? A people which boasts universal education, teachers' col- 

 leges, radio and TV saturation, a free press, applied psychology, and 



