Environmentalism: a solution

Part 2

So the first part highlighted the struggle between vision, values and policy in modern environmentalism. Dealing with global warming should not be seen as a "special interest".There seems to be a lack of practical strategy which incorporates a vision of environmentalism. Instead we are stuck in the environmentalist's quest to overstate and exaggerate the fear tactic. When what environmentalism needs is to have its position defended in debates, to divide its opponents and to increase its political power.

And it was during 2003 when the In September the Apollo Alliance and its national coalition of labor, environmental, business, and community leaders released The New Apollo Program, a comprehensive clean energy, job-generating strategy to restore America’s economic strength. What prompted this movement was the need to forma vision first, then seek the coalition.

Industry and conservative lobbyists state that working to solve global warming would mean sacrificing jobs. Environmentalists think, ‘You’re talking to me about your job — I’m talking about saving the world!’. In so doing they simply should accepting their postulation. On the contrary, we should rebate that safeguarding the environment will increase jobs not reduce them!

As this abstract clearly argues:

Talking about the millions of jobs that will be created by accelerating our transition to a clean energy economy offers more than a good defense against industry attacks: it’s a frame that moves the environmental movement away from apocalyptic global warming scenarios that tend to create feelings of helplessness and isolation among would-be supporters. If environmentalists hope to become more than a special interest we must start framing our proposals around core American values. We must start seeing our own values as central to what motivates and guides our politics.

The solution comes into being when environmentalists stop seeing their work as a special interest. When instead, they craft proposals which benefit the industry, workers and their communities, by providing a grand vision of a post-global warming world.

Adapted from "The Death of Environmentalism" (http://www.thebreakthrough.org/images/Death_of_Environmentalism.pdf) and from "www.apolloalliance.org/"