Addressing the State of the Movement: Three perspectives on our 'Environmentalism is Dead' package

By In These Times Staff August 15, 2005

In These Times' July 11 issue, "Environmentalism is Dead. What's Next?" generated a number of passionate replies from a variety of different perspectives. To expand the debate, we've highlighted three responses, below. The first, "Where's the Race?" from a set of environmental justice activists, argues that the "ecomorticians" ignore both the relationship of environmental issues to race and the contribution that groups devoted to addressing this issue have made to expanding environmental initiatives. The second, "Youthful Hubris," by In These Times contributor and freelance writer Kelly Kleiman, suggests that progressives are ill-served by generational politics. And the third, by feminist writer and activist Amy Richards, "Show us the Solutions," suggests that younger activists are more motivated by tangible problem-solving than ideology.

In These Times invites open dialogue on our discussion boards; we hope that these responses from informed and impassioned readers will motivate you to join the debate.
Where's the Race?

In These Times' cover story on Michael Shellenberger and Ted Nordhaus' essay "The Death of Environmentalism-Global Warming Politics in a Post-Environmental World" reflected little of the extensive debate that's gone on since the release of the commentary. Adam Werbach's interview with Shellenberger and Nordhaus was no exception.

While Nordhaus and Shellenberger call for a multi-issue, inclusive movement, they don't look past their own agenda to acknowledge a collaborative movement that has its roots in communities of color and has been growing since the early '70s-the Environmental Justice (EJ) movement. EJ addresses the relationship between poverty; discrimination; varying access to food, clothing and shelter; and the disproportionate environmental degradation and pollution in low-income communities and communities of color. The movement has demonstrated that such communities bear a greater burden of environmental risk and has successfully lobbied and litigated against such discriminatory practices.

The systems approach Nordhaus and Shellenberger advocate is supported by the idea that structure creates behavior. Yet in his interview, Werbach limited the dialogue by restricting his inquiry to the lessons social movements can learn from corporations, ignoring domestic social movements like the multiracial, environmental justice movement, and multiple international movements that have achieved greater success over the last several decades. It is ironic that Nordhaus, Shellenberger and Werbach direct social movements to corporations for models of success, while corporations are monitoring the success of and collaborating with the environmental organizations the authors denounce. The interview, and the commentary it lauds, incorrectly pretends that the environmental movement is not shaped by a legacy of race and class relations.

This historical amnesia and race blindness extends beyond the environmental movement. Shellenberger says, "All the liberal single-issue movements need to challenge their basic assumptions about what the problem is that they're trying to address, and develop a relevant vision for America and the world." This is not new information. The critique parrots the focus of people of color in almost every social justice movement, from domestic violence to labor, transportation, foreign policy and criminal justice. Yet Nordhaus and Shellenberger don't acknowledge this or place "their" solution in any historical context. When Shellenberger asks if abortion is the central reproductive issue facing the country, he seems completely unaware that women of color have had the very same struggle with disproportionately white women's groups such as N.O.W., and were, in large part, responsible for ensuring that the March for Women's Lives in April 2004 was inclusive and not solely focused on choice.

The "Death" discussions of expansive approaches to achieving environmental ends--which focus almost solely on the new Apollo Alliance (a group co-founded by Shellenberger)--ignores numerous innovative and successful efforts led by people of color and a few progressive white allies to engage in dialogues and affect change across populations and issues. For example, Smart Growth America--a coalition of national, state and local organizations working to improve the urban development, preserve natural areas, and reduce sprawl and auto-dependency--focuses on the issues people actually care about: being able to get to work without too much traffic, living in areas that are affordable and naturally beautiful, having access to safe footpaths so their kids can walk to school. The organization has redeveloped land, advocated for an increase in conservation funding and spearheaded the Small Business Liability Relief and Brownfields Revitalization Act (H.R. 2869), a major federal legislative victory for smart growth. Union groups such as The Coalition of Black Trade Unionists, United Farm Workers and Farm Labor Organizing Committee have helped workers secure health benefits and collective bargaining agreements. And EJ groups, ranging from Alternatives for Community and Environment in Boston to the Environmental Health Coalition in San Diego, have protected coastal wetlands, developed cost-efficient and effective pollution prevention initiatives, and worked directly with community residents to advocate for cleaner fuel alternatives.

"Death" completely ignores such success and saves its praise for their Apollo Alliance: an organization that has generated significant media attention, editorials, and Capitol Hill rhetoric, yet no tangible results.

A better-reasoned report than "Death" would not only better capture the values and issues surrounding the current crises in our country, but would address the reasons for social and environmental inequity, including questions of accountability and access to housing, health care, and jobs, as well as the legacy of American apartheid. If the authors believe, as they say, that "a Darwinian, dog-eat-dog economy begets dog-eat-dog, survival-oriented values," then their oversight is not only short-sighted, it is irresponsible.

An approach without an explicitly anti-racist analysis that seeks to dismantle the racist framework of laws and attitudes that underpin declining American public and private institutions is not viable. Clearly, if such institutional problems were caused by white supremacy and the apartheid system it generated, an approach that does not take into account racial justice will not bring about needed change-despite any claims to the contrary. We are left to wonder: Do Nordhaus, Shellenberger and Werbach truly believe in the Heritage Foundation and Dinesh D'Souza's race-blind approach to social change?

We are also moved to ask-do the authors have a search engine that brings up the principles and strategies of people of color, but strips them of their sources? If the eco-morticians think our ideas are good, why don't they cite us and a host of colleagues, that we have repeatedly discussed with them? If the authors and their funders are interested in solutions, why don't they examine or fund organizations that add a diversity of opinion to this important discussion? We welcome the fact that, after months of sustained criticism (from a coalition of scholars and activists, led in part by the Executive Director of Redefining Progress, Michel Gelobter), Nordhaus and Shellenberger have begun to acknowledge some of their shortcomings. They took a big step to broadening their approach in a recent conference, co-sponsored by the California-based Greenlining Institute, called "Beyond Environmentalism." However, this interview demonstrates there is much more to be done and many more conversations to be had. We suggest the authors take their own advice, and engage in an authentic, informed and inclusive public debate.

Ludovic J. Blain III, Movement Building Consultant
Dr. Michael K. Dorsey, former Board member Sierra Club
Simran Sethi, Ethical Markets Media
Max Weintraub, Environmental Justice Health Union
Launa Wilson, Progressive Alliance for Nevada

Read more... Sphere: Related Content