ABSTRACT
Efforts to protect the land and create a sustainable human society in the Sky Islands region will come to naught without understanding these wounds and their underlying causes and then attempting to heal them. The human history of the Sky Islands region is a litany of anthropogenic wounds to the terrestrial and aquatic communities. With the arrival of Europeans in the Sky Islands region less than 200 years ago (300 years ago for the Santa Cruz Valley), the land again suffered deep and debilitating wounds. Healing the wounds is also a powerful metaphor that can move conservationists to action and can inspire the public. However, while the goals and objectives of a conservation plan should be bold, even audacious, they should also be achievable. Healing ecological wounds can change the people from conquerors to plain citizens of the land community.
