Taxes and Land — Observing Value, Change, and Human Effort By Jonathan Olvera November 8, 2025

 

Taxes and Land — Observing Value, Change, and Human Effort

By Jonathan Olvera
November 8, 2025

I’ve been observing the land — not just as soil or property, but as a living system that absorbs the movement of seeds, air, labor, and intention. Every change in the environment, from the way the wind shifts to the way people cultivate or abandon space, becomes part of a larger equation: how we measure, modify, and value what we call the land.

The composition of land is never static. It’s defined by a finite equivalence of matter that constantly changes state — from solid to flowing, from fertile to arid, from untouched to industrial. These transformations remind us that land is both material and symbolic. It holds the weight of our economies and our imaginations.

When we speak of taxes, we often mean the financial rate applied to ownership. But in truth, the concept of tax extends far beyond that — it becomes a measure of participation in the ongoing process of land’s transformation. Taxes represent our collective agreement to sustain the systems that allow for exchange, infrastructure, and progress. They are a way of keeping track of how much we take from and contribute to the environment and society around us.

At the same time, the rate of efficacy — how efficiently we use, cultivate, or restore land — becomes another form of balance. It’s not only an economic function but a moral and ecological one. Observing how these forces interact helps reveal how social hierarchies and market values are formed, and how they can evolve when people start to see land as a shared project rather than a static possession.

Mapping and graphing locations, tracing how land use changes over time, and identifying new circuits of work and habitation can be exciting. These acts of observation give us insight into the daily functions that sustain life — how people adapt to new pressures, seek new opportunities, and continue to build even in scarcity.

Ultimately, the land is a record of human and natural cooperation. It holds the evidence of labor, of growth, and of endurance. Every act of cultivation, taxation, or preservation contributes to that ongoing story — one in which every grain of soil and every act of work carries both a cost and a promise.