ABSTRACT
Understanding history in restoration ecology requires awareness of culturally laden ideas that make up an understanding of an ecosystem. This chapter examines the ways in which historical knowledge is used in restoration, mindful that what the authors gather as facts about the past are interpreted in the present with an eye to guiding the future. It explains the concept of historical fidelity and its role in restoration, and how rapid environmental and ecological changes are forcing a reconsideration of how historical knowledge is used in shaping restoration. The chapter also argues that in spite of rapid change, historical knowledge in its many forms will continue to be valuable in restoration science and practice, and that its value will even increase. Historical fidelity generally is the degree of correspondence between our understanding of the past and the reality of that past.
