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This page begins a set of mock "interview" questions I put together for a nephew's school project years ago, and felt they were still relevant enough today to include here.

Please note that I have also created a somewhat extensive list of green living resource links, available via the Resources button above.

Interview With A Green: What Is A Green??
 

Question:    There is a lot of talk these days about being green, with varying opinions as to what that means.  What does it mean to you??

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Most people think of the environment and ecology when the word “green” is used.  It actually goes far beyond that, but let’s begin our discussion there.  The word “ecology” was first coined by a German biologist, Ernest Haeckel, in 1870, and it wasn’t until the 1930s that ecology assumed full professional status – the last of the sciences to do so.  The word was derived from the Greek words oikos, meaning ‘house’, and logos, meaning ‘understanding’.  Thus, ecology is the means by which we understand our home, planet Earth.  Interest in learning how nature and our ecosystem works has been an important aspect of human inquiry for thousands of years, and our knowledge of it has increasingly revealed the fact that the web of life hangs in a very delicate and complex balance.  This has led many to the realization that mankind has the capability of destroying this balance, that it often leads to bad results for our species when we do, and that we therefore have a huge stake in seeing to it that we make careful and thoughtful decisions in regards to our actions so that we preserve it as much as possible.  The term “green” that is used to describe those who promote this sense of urgency originated with the activist movement in Europe, and the formal constitution of the German political party, die Grünen (The Greens).

 As I said though, the green movement goes well beyond simple environmental concerns, and indeed its origins were based on social and political objectives as well.  Just as the youth movement in this country began splintering into many dozens of single-issue organizations during the late 1970s, European environmentalists and peace activists were also divided into many diverse action groups at this time.  Opposition to pollution, NATO military action, and certain aspects of industrialized society were all agenda items for these various green movements.  In 1979 a coalition of these groups united to develop a common manifesto for the upcoming 1984 election, and plan joint actions.  This led to the idea of actually running candidates on a green ticket, and the following year die Grünen was born – with debate over nuclear power and the deployment of Pershing II IRBMs and nuclear-tipped cruise missiles by the U.S. and NATO on West German soil serving as a huge catalyst.  By 1983, they had won 27 seats in the Bundestag, and 5.6% of the vote...giving them legislative voice and firmly establishing green politics as a serious alternative.  Eventually there were also Green Parties in Belgium, France, Ireland, Sweden, Austria, Luxemburg, Switzerland, Holland, the UK (in 1986 the Ecology Party here changed its name to the Green Party), and here in America...with more on the horizon.

As an organization, the Greens remained a rather loose dichotomy of both activist and political factions – with both ends of the spectrum not always being in agreement.  Often the Green Party was accused of giving away the farm with the compromises necessary to become or stay elected.  And vice versa, the green movement was tagged as being “too radical” in their approach to things.  But the irony is, this circumstance – or strategy if you like – may indeed have actually been one of most important factors contributing to their longevity!!  The truth is that sometimes compromise is called for, whereas at other times pulling up in front of the State House with a wagon of manure and a sign that says “this crap stinks” is not only more appropriate, but much more effective in getting the point across!!

Jonathon Porritt summarized the Green perspective much better than I can when he provided this list of values in his 1984 book, Seeing Green:

                   a reverence for the Earth and all its creatures

                   a willingness to share the world’s wealth among all its peoples

                   prosperity to be achieved through sustainable alternatives to the rat race of

economic growth

                   lasting security to be achieved through non-nuclear defense strategies and

considerably reduced arms spending

                   a rejection of materialism and the destructive values of industrialism

                   a recognition of the rights of future generations in our use of all resources

                   an emphasis on socially useful, personally rewarding work, enhanced by

human-scale technology

                   protection of the environment as a precondition of a healthy society

                   an emphasis on personal growth and spiritual development

                   open, participatory democracy at every level of society

                   recognition of the crucial importance of significant reductions in

population levels

                   harmony between people of every race, color and creed

                   a non-nuclear, low-energy strategy, based on conservation, greater efficiency,

and renewable sources

                   an emphasis on self-reliance and decentralized communities

I would add to this list an emphasis toward non-violence in both personal and national situations.

From the above, one can perhaps see more clearly that being green involves much more than recycling a few cans.  In fact, it becomes obvious that not all environmentalists are green.   Personally, I view being green more as a way of life.

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“We are all people of the old world trying to create a new one.  We must constantly be asking ourselves whether we now want to continue to support the status quo, seeking to cope with crises after the event by using outdated and ineffectual methods of crisis management, or whether we should be aiming for a completely different kind of politics and conflict resolution.  It becomes increasingly important to commit oneself to what one feels to be right, to refuse to be forced into choosing the so-called ‘lesser’ evil.”

“Opposition to this dominant world view cannot possibly be articulated through any of the major parties, for they and their ideologies are part of the problem.”

          -- Jonathon Porritt

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This page was last updated on February 12, 2023

Always remember to "Think Green" because good planets are hard to find!!  

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