Mainstreaming Environmentalism
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Around the globe, we have news outlets that create headlines that evoke fear and shock to spark interest. Entire careers are now dedicated to strategically catch your eye, no matter what the material. If we are not careful, the environment will be nothing but another tool for fearmongering.
When the environment does get airtime, it’s often doomsday material, once again part of the system of attracting onlookers everywhere with dread or fear. Folks can go to popular booksellers and pick up a book named Extreme Encounters, where there are stories of people mauled by grizzlies, impaled by falling trees, or even attacked by piranhas. There is even a section focused on contracting Ebola virus. I do believe the readers are going to stay right at home on their couch. Here are three things you can do to remove the taboo and demystify environmentalism.
1. Educate Yourself (News Outlets)
First, we must remove our own bias, which means listening to the other side. If you’re outrageously opposed to something, ask yourself why. Here is a great source for choosing news outlets: https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/center/
Mongabay.com should be on the top of an environmentalist’s news list. It is a purely environmental news site that is the international spearhead of reporting news. Started up by one man, Rhett Butler, it has exploded into a worldwide community of reports and commentaries. It has kept entire nations accountable for their impacts.
2. Educate Yourself (Books)
Just like Extreme Encounters, there are countless other books and literary pieces out there that entice you with extreme circumstances. Remind yourself that nature, to the human attention span, is quite slow and calm, mostly. It is only the extreme and insane instances that the media uses to represent entire ecosystems. For this reason, take a step back and pick up books like Adventures of a Young Naturalist- David Attenborough. (See video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1F65aHzcCj8) Autobiographies are the best demystifying tools for people interested in environmentalism. Picket signs with harsh words will never do as much as educating the people around you with calm, positive affirmations. What is going right? Let people know how far we’ve come.
3. Facilitate conversation
I grew up with loud Italian family members telling me the reasons the world was wrong. Luckily, I also inherited stubbornness, which I’ve used to maintain optimism towards my career in Environmental Education. In all those years of teaching, I have learned two tips in facilitating calm conversation that ACTUALLY gives way to progress. 1. Patiently letting people rant. The calmer one that takes more beats to think and ponder promotes both sides to converse in a healthy manner. 2. Giving ground. Agree with them on some points, because people will stonewall your opinions if they feel unheard. Agree, then critique, then agree again. Stubborn folk require nurturing.
Anyways, what did I miss? Do you disagree? What do you agree with? I definitely could have missed the boat on some things, let me know! The only way to a brighter future is through understanding each other.
Written By-
Anthony Porter- Environmental Educator
