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Grassroots Environmental Field Campaigns

This past weekend I attended an interview for Green Corps: A Field School For Environmental Organizing. The program is a year-long training on how to organize grassroots environmental field campaigns. For example, a student of the program may be put on assignment in a location that is anticipating a significant environmental milestone such as a legislative vote. The “organizer” would then implement a strategy such as petitioning citizens to write letters to their government representative or arranging significant media coverage around the issue in order to help ensure that the outcome is one that is favorable to the future of the environment. This idea or approach is somewhat new to me, but there was one topic of discussion about the focus of Green Corps that I am still pondering. One of the Support Staff Members indicated the Green Corps only uses a grassroots activism approach to making environmental change because of its effectiveness. He then specifically mentioned other means which they do not utilize. These are measures which they support, but do not deem as effective to accomplish significant environmental change.

The alternatives mentioned were: legal battles—such as taking a large energy corporation to court; education—such as teaching people about environmental problems and/or the importance of the environment; lifestyle changes—such as choosing to ride your bike to work or use Compact Fluorescent Light Bulbs. The reason I am still pondering this topic is because I am still not convinced that grassroots activism is the best way to accomplish significant positive environmental change. The premise of Green House Project is essentially to educate viewers about changes you can make to positively impact or less negatively impact the environment. I think education can have a profound impact in this situation. For example, if many viewers decide to install solar panels, this would not only reduce the need for additional coal-fired power plants, it would reduce the capacity of existing plants. This seems to have potential for greater impact than a grassroots effort to prevent the construction of a coal-fired plant. This is just one specific example, and I am sure more could be made on both sides of the argument. I am curious what you think. Is grassroots activism the most effective way to have positive environmental impact? Is one of the above alternatives a better approach? Is there an even better approach that has not been mentioned?