Lowcountry Humans and Nature
The Lowcountry of South Carolina runs the length of the state’s Atlantic shoreline and includes regions of low elevation in which an extraordinary natural and cultural heritage has been shaped by the confluence of tidal flow from the east and river systems from the northwest. The Lowcountry includes nine coastal SC counties: Horry, Georgetown, Berkeley, Charleston, Dorchester, Colleton, Hampton, Beaufort, and Jasper. While centuries of hunting, fishing, farming, and shipping have left this region with a surprisingly intact ecology, the Lowcountry is currently under intense pressure from a rapidly growing population, recreational development, corporate farming, and deep-water ports, all of which threaten its cultural and natural character.
The Lowcountry Initiative of the Center for Humans and Nature looks to the biological, sociological, and philosophical principles that human beings are a part of nature—not separate from nature. That is, humans do not stand above the natural world at the top of a hierarchical structure watching non-human life from on high. Nor can we humans rightfully stand beside the natural world, sharing biological footing but claiming that our intellect confers special status on our species. Instead, the Center for Humans and Nature holds that the natural world consists of humans and all other species, each one part of a vital whole and that humans, as stewards of creation, have an ethical obligation to promote and conserve all species and their environments.
In accordance with this principle, the Center for Humans and Nature is collaborating with several South Carolina organizations and individuals to help concerned Lowcountry citizens and civic leaders consider ways of saving their unique heritage, while allowing for judicious and productive development. During the past several years, we have had meetings at Mepkin Abbey near Moncks Corner and the Penn Center on St. Helena's Island, exploring such issues as humans and nature justice; property rights and responsibilities, including African-American heirs property rights; place-based civic culture and moral responsibilities; and climate change and sea-level rise. With other groups we have co-sponsored discussions on conservation easements and on the future of the coast.
We assisted in establishing the multiple stakeholder Cooper River Forum for ongoing discussion about the historic River and succeeded through concerted efforts with other groups in conserving 40,000 acres of prime, historically and naturally significant land in Berkeley County adjacent to Mepkin Abbey.
The influence of our Lowcountry project is spreading, and we are planning further efforts to promote sensible growth which respects, protects, and enhances the region's heritage.