Author Archives: Alex Spiegel

Lake Königssee: a Sustainable Paradise

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Located just 24km from the border of Austria, Lake Königssee sits next to Berchtesgaden. Berchtesgaden is a tiny, beautiful alpine village located in the Bavaria region of Germany, and is only a 45 minute car ride to Salzburg. The mountainous paradise surrounding Lake Königssee is called Berchtesgaden National Park; a protected UNESCO biosphere reserve. Once the hunting grounds of Prince Regent Luitpold of Bavaria, the national park was a sanctuary of quietness and tranquillity. This rule still remains in place generations later. The lake is considered the cleanest lake in Germany – the water is even drinkable – due to the measures taken by Germany’s government and the people of Berchtesgaden. Electric barges are used for transportation across the lake, taking tourists to and from the national park. Coupled with this, motorboats are not allowed in the area thanks to the decree of Prince Regent Luitpold of Bavaria: no noise on Lake Königssee.

This natural landscape has great significance, as it serves as educational example of combining, tourism, tradition, and the conservation and preservation of natural lands. The lake, national park, and town of Berchtesgaden have shown that community collaboration can create a healthy environment that connects tourists and inhabitants alike with the culture and sustainable ideas of the Bavarian region.

There are only 738 biosphere reserves across 134 countries; they all serve to promote solutions to sustainable using natural lands with a focus on the conservation of biodiversity. It is extremely important to protect biodiversity because we can reverse the issues that come along with a loss of biodiversity. As well it would lead to a great decrease in the ecosystem services that are provided to humans such as carbon sequestration, food, and clean water. Berchtesgaden National Park, when compared to other UNESCO biosphere reserves, serves as an educational center for understanding sustainable development across a variety of ecological, social, and economic contexts affecting the lives of everyone living in our home, Earth.

I find that the cultural significance coupled with Germany’s passion for preservation allowed this paradise to be created. Though the United States are not known for a traditional, collective philosophy of protecting our planet and resources, I believe that creating a similar educational example in the United States is possible. A community culture combined with a passion for sustainable development could sprout a natural area formed by community involvement and education. I think that the most suitable type of site would be a smaller national park, more accustomed to soft-tourism. I am confident that the United States can also have exemplary sites that promote sustainable development across a variety of contexts.

“Wehmut” – Joseph von Eichendorff

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Joseph Freiherr von Eichendorff (1788-1857), a German poet and novelist during the Romanticism time period, is highly regarded by many as one of the greatest German Romantic poets and lyricists in history. The popularized Romanticism Period began in the late eighteenth-century and lasted into the nineteenth-century. The Enlightenment served as a catalyst for the Romanticism Period, as it was a time for artists to combat the popularity of sciences with a deeper, unscientifically explainable connection to the world. Joseph von Eichendorff’s work contained supernatural elements that gave way to a number of fantastical works of literature, which carried a wide array of emotions interconnected with the supernatural elements.

The piece of literature I am introducing is titled “Wehmut” by Joseph von Eichendorff; the direct translation into English is “Melancholy.” The poem explores the connection of spirituality and nature, as nature induces an introspective stream of thoughts through the poet’s mind. The poem tells the tale of Eichendorff having intense melancholic emotions with seemingly no reason, despite being surrounded in the beautiful landscapes of a valley. As he continues to wander through nature, the sights and sounds connect him with an ancient spirituality existing in every aspect of nature. Though his body remains in the physical world, his mind travels distances following the paths of nature’s divinity. After the dream-like experience is completed, the poet returns to the physical world with his emotions antithesis to his emotions in the beginning: calm, tranquil, and cheerful.

Eichendorff explains that nature serves as a conduit for communication between the physical world of humans, and the spiritual world, in which nature’s ancient spirituality roams the mind. Nature’s divinity is always alive in the world, yet the commotion of daily lives distracts humans, preventing us from making meaningful connection with it’s spirituality; spending time in nature not only allows one to find solace, but too, forms a transcendental relationship with nature and it’s soul. Through the artistic views of German Romanticism, Eichendorff was able to capture the essence of nature beyond the logic of the physical world.

German Romanticism works similar to Joseph von Eichendorff’s, paved the way nature lovers and environmentalist alike to protect and find beauty in nature beyond its physical value. The works of Eichendorff, throw readers into a time where disconnection from society promoted connection to nature, rather than solitude and isolation from oneself and others. “Wehmut” is an important reminder to human’s that nature has more than scientific value as it equally importantly is an emotional conduit.

Works cited:

Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. “Joseph, baron von Eichendorff”. Encyclopedia Britannica, 6 Mar. 2023, https://www.britannica.com/biography/Joseph-Freiherr-von-Eichendorff. Accessed 23 April 2023.

Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. “Romanticism”. Encyclopedia Britannica, 30 Nov. 2022, https://www.britannica.com/art/Romanticism. Accessed 23 April 2023.

Eichendorff, Joseph Von. “Gedichte: Wehmut: Joseph Von Eichendorff.” Gedichte: Wehmut | Joseph Von Eichendorff, https://www.textlog.de/eichendorff/gedichte/wehmut-ii.