I recently read an article from a Canadian news organization titled “The Future of Exploration.” In it, author Kate Harris examines how traditional exploration’s complicated past makes it difficult to reconcile with modern values of justice and sustainability. From Marco Polo to Lewis and Clark, most famous expeditions have been glorified in western culture while simultaneously masking the legacies of colonialism, exploitation, and patriarchy left in their wake. Harris dives into the issue as a woman disillusioned with the romanticized version of exploration. She asks, “Does an enterprise with such a troubled past deserve a future?”
Harris’ attitude is a compelling one. She goes on to discuss how exploration historically was centered around the extraction of resources and the prestige of being “first,” how these explorers “‘discovered’ lands that existed quite vividly for those already living in them.” This point gets to the root of the issue–that exploration is only validated by society if done by the “right” people, frequently at the expense of indigenous inhabitants and the environment. And yet Harris offers a way forward to a new kind of exploration that is rooted in kinship, “stripping the enterprise of its ego, its colonial cruelties… stripping it of everything but a sense of wonder.” I agree with her: exploration must be redefined, making it accessible to all and transcending the legacy of injustice and exploitation.
In my view, the purpose of exploration is to develop an understanding of ourselves, the natural world, and our place in it. The outcomes of this new focus will not be fame, but kinship; not exploitation, but connection. Redefining exploration will create a new legacy of inclusion and stewardship, driving societal change towards a more sustainable and just future. This shift will take all of us. As author Robin Wall Kimmerer states, “Transformation is not accomplished by tentative wading at the edge.”
