This morning I read an article celebrating 130 years of “stewardship” connected to the Dow Jones Industrial Average.
The headline caught my attention because stewardship is a word I use often myself.
The article focused on protecting and maintaining a financial system over time — preserving continuity, trust, and institutional stability. There is certainly value in that.
But as I read it, I found myself pondering a deeper question:
Stewardship of what?
Modern society has become remarkably skilled at measuring financial performance. We track markets constantly. We celebrate growth, efficiency, and economic expansion.
But what about stewardship of:
- soil,
- water,
- wildlife,
- local communities,
- public trust,
- or the long-term health of the natural systems upon which all economies ultimately depend?
A stock index can tell us much about financial conditions. But it cannot fully tell us about the condition of a community, a wetland, a forest, or the emotional well-being of the people who live there.
Perhaps one of the great challenges of our time is not whether we practice stewardship, but what we choose to steward.
That seems worth pondering. Deeper thoughts are forthcoming in Conservation Lifestyles. 