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The lives and legacies of three influential environmental thinkers. |
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Environmentalism is often likened to religion. To its followers it has its indisputable truths, its holy books and its saints and prophets. In this series of 3 programmes Julian Pettifer looks at three very different gurus of the Green movement and assesses their influence both on activists and on society as a whole.
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| Jack Loeffler, friend of Ed Abbey with Julian Pettifer |
1. EF Schumacher
Julian starts by investigating the legacy of radical economist EF Schumacher. When his catchily titled book 'Small is Beautiful' came out in 1973, it was a huge best seller. He was courted by both politicians and the media. Schumacher's message was that conventional economics had failed us. In headlong pursuit of greater consumption, we had lost our humanity. We needed to get back to basics, he argued, and embrace small scale production and 'economics as if people mattered'. Schumacher believed passionately that the poor of the Third World were perhaps the greatest victims of modern capitalism. He set up an institute to design 'appropriate' technologies for the Third World that would not rely on Western manufacturers. Nearly thirty years on, how have Schumacher's ideas endured? In a world dominated by global corporations has 'Small is Beautiful' been trounced by 'Big is Best'?
 Listen again to Programme 1
2. Petra Kelly
Programme two looks at the legacy of Petra Kelly. The German elections are on Sept 22nd and Die GrΓΌnen are anticipating strengthening their hold on power. But Kelly would probably have disapproved. Dubbed 'the Princess Di of The Greens', she is credited with having brought Die GrΓΌnen into mainstream politics. But her fundamentalist views led to her falling out with her party and with realists like Joschka Fischer, the current German Foreign Minister. Kelly remains a powerful icon for green political aspirations. Her mysterious death, apparently murdered by her lover, perhaps heightens her allure. What did her public life achieve and can Green parties now look forward to a more influential role in the European political arena?
Listen again to Programme 2
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| Julian interviews Ruckus Society activists about 'monkeywrenching' |
3. Edward Abbey
In the final programme Julian visits the American South West to explore the world of the cult writer Edward Abbey. His underground classic 'The Monkey Wrench Gang' inspired a generation of eco-activists who sought to emulate the book's fictional heroes - a gang of oddball eco-terrorists. Abbey wrote the book as satire, yet 'monkeywrenching' became a standard tactic for green campaingers across the globe. Road protesters in the UK soon caught the bug. Emerging from his dugout, grungy green hero Swampy responded to press questions about why he had done it by declaring: 'Would you have come if I had just written to my MP?'
Julian talks to Abbey's co-campaigners about their fight to save the fragile environment of the American desert, and meets the founder of Earth First! Dave Foreman. Direct action may guarantee headlines, but will it really save the wilderness?
Listen again to Programme 3
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| Julian with Earth First! founder, Dave Foreman, near Albuquerque |
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RELATED Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ LINKS |
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1. EF Schumacher
2. Petra Kelly
3. Ed Abbey
The Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ is not responsible for the content of external websites
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