The idea that the landscape of the New World was uninhabited and unchanged by those groups that did inhabit it was fundamental to the justifications of colonialism .
Historical ecology challenges the very notion of a pristine landscape , such as virgin rainforests .
The idea that the landscape of the New World was uninhabited and unchanged by those groups that did inhabit ecology was fundamental to the justifications of colonialism .
Historical ecology challenges the very notion of a pristine landscape , such as virgin rainforests .