Environmental Problems II-Attitudes & Values

Presented by Nicole Machuca & Kelly Grant Purvis

Question:

What is environmentalism?

The Beginnings of Environmentalism…Andrew Light• “Conservation wave” [Romantic thought] at the beginning of the 20th

century was led by Theodore Roosevelt, John Muir, Gifford Pinchot, and Aldo Leopold– Environmental groups created, like the Wilderness Society and National Park

Service– Roles of these groups in ecological and park preservation and conservation

began to be defined and investigated, e.g. places of solitude, moving to a “natural” state, etc.

• Second wave began with Earth Day, April 22, 1970– Greater role of government in water, air, and ecological protection and health.

• 23 Acts passed, including Clean Water Act (1965) and Endangered Species Act (1973)

– Environmental problem origins and solutions began to be discussed and debated.

• Third wave [Beltway Environmentalism] resulted from fears of law reversal and lack of governmental support in 1980’s– Big 10 environmental groups switched from controversial issues, e.g. industry

regulation, to more appealing issues, e.g. popular animal protection.

The Beginnings of the Environmental Crisis…

Lynn White, Jr.• ~ 1850 a “marriage” between

science and technology occurred, and thus “technological power of nature”

• This relationship began much earlier, e.g. water power, the mechanical clock, arms, etc.

• ~ 1873 ecology entered the English language

• During the last 1/3 of the 20th century concern for the state of the environment began

Michael F. Maniates• ~1980’s shift in

environmental responsibility from government and corporation to the individual

• 1980-1990s Environmental organizations avoided government confrontation and began to support consumer-based behaviors in their messages

Lingering Questions:• How has environmentalism changed over

time?• Is the class’ definition similar or

different to what it was over 150 years ago?

• What is the role of environmentalism now to ecological conservation and preservation?

Main points…White• Human changes unintentionally affect their environment• Ever since populous society humans have began to affect their

environment• Christianity perpetuates the notion that man should dominate

nature in Western culture• In the west, science and religion [Christianity] were once

parallel – modern science is the product of that relationship• Crises results from our democratic culture, modern technology,

and belief that we should dominate nature, which originates from religion

• Problems can first be solved by stopping change, but this will not mend the current situation

• Science and technology cannot help crisis until religion changes

Main Points…Andrew Light• Environmentalism needs to

change if it is going to make long lasting and integral impacts

• Feelings of “place” are important to connections between community and nature

• 4th wave – role of new environmentalism to connect communities to “nature” ; question wilderness and nature

Dale Jamieson• Gap between US and global,

environmental attitudes• An American Paradox exists –

contradiction between thought and action

• Facts and values are linked– Environmentalism is fact-based– Different regions believe in

different facts

• Solutions?– US/individual needs standards

of success – Creating a unified psychology

Main Points…Michael F. Maniates• Current “air” of environmentalism:

– The choice to make change is that of the individual, and thus non-confrontational and apolitical, e.g. recycling, buying “green”

– Individualism overshadows creativity– The best solutions are “fuzzy, mysterious, messy, and ‘idealistic’”– Corporations have mastered their ability to adapt to current environmentalism

• Current fork-in-the-road:– > Easy, citizen education on individual action, privatization env. crisis,

business-as-usual– > Difficult, collective citizen-action, creativity in solutions, challenges the

dominant view

• Recommendations– Individuals need to unite in the democratic process– IWAC (as a guide, not a direct solution)

Main Points…Shellenberger & Nordhaus• The arrogance of the founding fathers of the environmental movement

laid the roots of failure – Disagreement about the root causes of problems– Members of the environmental movement have become politically less powerful – As an environmental community we are hurting our own cause with a narrow

vision and “group think” mentality – Also prevents alliance building and success

• Current predicament (40 years in the making)– Define problem, apply technology, force the technical solution to be accepted by

the masses– Our solutions lack links between the environment and technology, and other

institutions, like politics & economics

• Environmentalists need to…– Create a compelling vision for the future– Develop a broader scope of environmental problems– Align their interests with “core values” of greater society [which tend to be

conservative] – like labor, health, religion, etc.

Lingering Questions:• Is there a problem with the following

model? Particularly the R for recycling?

• Is government the problem or does the blame fall on the individual?

• Who had the better perspective future solutions: White [religion], Light [community engagement], Maniates [shift from ind. action to community action], S&H [environmentalist], or Jamieson [paradox]?

Activity Time!• Divide into 2 groups • Develop a rank-ordered list of solutions to

the environmental crisis• Aim for 10

Lingering Questions…• Environmentalism is dynamic. Is there a

“right” type of environmentalism or is this frequent shift healthy?

• What is environmentalism missing in its current state?

• “Sustainability involves a three tiered approach: environmental, social, and economic.” – Jeff. If these are components of sustainability, what will be the mechanisms of change so that the movement is successful. Or is sustainability unattainable?

Lingering Questions…• If children are our future, how will we change

their attitudes and values, assuming ours are already tainted? (Inspired by Lauren)

• Who has the most responsibility to the environmental crisis: environmental agencies, government, children, religion individual citizens, communities, economists, or some other stakeholder?

• Is it that our values as Americans are too selfish to make environmental impacts, or is it the “system” that has failed citizens? (Inspired by Adam)