"One of the paradoxes of the modern age and popular culture seems to be the more we cluster in cities and suburbs, the greater our impact on open areas; we carry our popular culture with us when we vacation in such regions..."
"Popular culture is less directly tied to the physical environment than are [local] and indigenous cultures, which is not to say that they don't have an enormous impact on the environment... Gone is the intimate assocation between people and land known by our folk ancestors. Gone, too, is our direct vulnerability to many environmental forces, although this security is more apparent than real."
-From the Human Mosaic 12th edition p. 55
When fewer people live near or in open areas like national parks the day-to-day incentive to be stewards of the natural landscape goes down. Parks are sometimes treated as something distant "over there" ex. four hours drive away that we pay to consume/use/visit once in a while, sort of like food, a toy, or entertainment, rather than a living physical space we co-inhabit.
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