The future Muskoka I would like to see.

In my future Muskoka, buildings are constructed to the greenest standards available, and pedestrians and cyclists rule.

By Dr. Peter Sale.

I live in Muskoka. I love Muskoka. And I have a vision of the Muskoka I would like to see in the future.

My future Muskoka is a lot like the present — small towns, a scattering of small farms, developed waterfronts providing second homes, rental properties and resorts, and all surrounded by a diverse natural environment that supports abundant wildlife.

It’s a place where it is easy to escape the noise and hustle of modern life for a tranquil world filled with the sounds of frogs, insects, songbirds and that iconic loon laughing mournfully from across the lake on a summer evening. An active place where everyone sails, paddles, pedals, hikes.

And a place with plenty of (noisier) entertainment and fun when that is your preference.

But there is an enormous difference between this future Muskoka and the present.

Residents of my future Muskoka have gone beyond the simple catch phrase, “our environment is our economy,” to recognize that we are one important part of a complex, interconnected, living entity that we will call a socio-ecological system.

We understand that this ecosystem is fragile and is being buffeted by myriad stresses mostly due to us. Some stresses are local, as when we build inappropriately, others are due to our global assault on the planet, especially our warming of it.

We recognize that we must work to sustain and enhance this ecosystem chiefly by minimizing our impacts on it.

We demand effective management of it, built on sound science and continual monitoring of its status, and we understand that when push comes to shove the needs of the ecosystem trump our individual wants.

Compared to the 2020s, we are more humble and respectful in the future.

We accept our role as members of the ecosystem rather than its masters, and we use our skills to help it weather the stresses that surround it. It’s in our self-interest to nurture this ecosystem which gives us so much.

In my future Muskoka, buildings are constructed to the greenest standards available, and our small communities are places where pedestrians and cyclists rule and it is considered bizarre to jump in a car or truck to drive three blocks to the shopping centre. Why would one do that?

We are connected by high-speed train to Barrie and Toronto — it runs down the centre of what used to be Highway 400!

A shuttle service of driverless electric cars whisks people from the train stations to their homes and cottages.

Muskoka is a net exporter of green energy, and its fibre network supports a vibrant, non-polluting economy that provides high-value jobs to our young people.

These changes have come about partly because our municipalities have required them, encouraged them and sometimes subsidized them.

But mostly they have occurred because we residents demanded them.

Muskoka is the greenest region in Ontario, and a leader in building environmental sustainability into every activity we undertake.

Our citizens take pride in knowing they are succeeding in building environmental resilience — for the betterment of people as well as the other creatures that live here.

Is my future Muskoka possible?

Yes, it is. But to get there, we have to make a profound shift in perspective: We are not the masters in charge of keeping the environment the way we want it, we are one of many components of a complex ecological system with its own needs and possibilities.

We are able to use our particular skills to encourage Muskoka to change in ways that we prefer — creating and sustaining diverse, natural environments interspersed with modern human neighbourhoods, a place that is fun to visit and wonderful to live in.

This article is one of Muskoka Watershed Council’s summer 2024 series on “Living in Our Changing Watershed” published on MuskokaRegion.com. This article was written by Dr. Peter Sale, a Bracebridge resident, retired aquatic environmental scientist, and Director and Past Chair of Muskoka Watershed Council. Series editor is Dr. Neil Hutchinson, a retired aquatic scientist, Bracebridge resident and director, Muskoka Watershed Council.