Beyond the Edge and in Between: (Re)conceptualizing the Rural-Urban Interface as Meaning-Model-Metaphor

As examinations of the rural-urban interface move beyond a focus on the rural or urban fringe as a location and move toward examining the patterns and processes that both divide and link rural and urban places, a broader (re)conceptualization of the rural-urban interface becomes increasingly important. Thus far the question of boundaries and interfaces between so-called urban and rural locales has mostly revolved around where and when such boundaries occur (including significant coverage of the differences and conflicts between urban vs. rural people), rather than asking what physical or social functions are being served by the rural-urban interface itself. In response, I (re)frame the rural-urban interface not only as a boundary between two distinct spaces but also as a conduit, a place of exchange, and a flux point between them. Using a particular case of contested ecologies in the exurban Sierra Nevada foothills of California, I (re)conceptualize the rural-urban interface as meaning, model, and metaphor (MMM), situating contrasting people and places in an ongoing negotiation of place and environmental meaning along the (ex)urbanizing edge. Although the differences between rural and urban are increasingly unclear, the division continues to be compelling from environmental and sociopolitical standpoints. I argue that (perceived) boundaries are instrumental in understanding physical-material change and for mitigating social conflicts occurring across them. As such, attention to the patterns, processes, and flows that connect or separate rural and urban areas is critical to forging effective and long-lasting solutions to contemporary social, economic, and environmental problems.