Since the onset of the industrial revolution during the 19th century, humanity has rapidly stripped the earth of its natural resources and dumped countless byproducts into our environment. While 97% of climate scientists agree that climate change is real as well as man made (Proceedings Of The National Academy Of Sciences) there is still debate as to the validity of this in the public debate. Philanthropic individuals and organizations play an important role in influencing public opinion as well as directly conserving at risk land and species in addition to fighting projects that could have disastrous environmental impact. These individuals play a major role in providing funding for environmental groups due a general lack of available government subsidies for the issue relative to subsidies provided for many other issues. (Kimble Pg. 2) These philanthropists come from varying sectors including finance, alternative energy, high technology, broadcasting, development and real estate.
In addition to the individuals that use their wealth and influence to attempt to save the environment, there are also many individuals and organizations on the other side of the issue. These individuals and organizations are not necessarily anti-environment rather they are those who have a large stake in industries like manufacturing and fossil fuel energy or those who feel that the high initial cost of changing existing infrastructure and researching new technologies are not worth the eventual gains for the environment.
Jeremy Grantham is the founder and chief investment strategist at Grantham Mayo van Otterloo, an asset management fund that manages $106bn a year for approximately 1,000 clients. He is also a founder, along with his children, of Grant...
... middle of paper ...
... May 5, 2014, from http://www.unfoundation.org/what-we-do/issues/energy-and-climate/tackling-global-climate-challenge.html
Ted Turner. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.tedturner.com/foundations/
The Captain Planet Foundation. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://captainplanetfoundation.org/
Turner Endangered Species Fund. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.tesf.org/
United Nations Foundation - Connecting You with the United Nations. (n.d.). United Nations Foundation. Retrieved May 5, 2014, from http://www.unfoundation.org/
Wile, R. (2012, July 30). Everyone’s Talking About The Koch Brothers-Funded Study That Proves Climate Change Is Real Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/koch-brothers-funded-study-proves-climate-change-2012-7#ixzz30ssBeLyg. Business Insider. Retrieved from http://www.businessinsider.com/koch-brothers-funded-study-proves-climate-change-2012-7#!I8rla
Ehrlich, P. R., & Ehrlich, A. H. (1996). Betrayal of science and reason: How anti-environmental rhetoric threatens our future. Washington, D.C: Island Press.
I think it is agreed by all parties that it is an eyesore to see these people blockading the roads to prime tree-cutting land and bombarding our most respectable government with impractical proposals. It is not so Herculean a task to discourage these self-named “environmentalists” in their follies by paying them no heed. However, a new generation of them has sprung up. Citing how it is in fact profitable to protect the environment, they try to pull blindfolds over the public’s eyes. Therefore, whoever could find an easy and economically sound method of reclaiming these lost souls would deserve to be made the head of our nation at the very least.
Global warming has been an issue for quite some time now and only recently has it been adopted by a mass amount of people in their efforts to fight against it. However, there are people and organizations who claim that global warming does not exist or is not caused by human activities. After reading my text, Taking Sides, on the debate between members of UCS and members of the CEI, I wanted to do a little research of my own to see if the claims they were making were accurate. Even though members of the Union of Concerned Scientists and the Competitive Enterprise Institution argue two opposite sides of the global warming issue, they have much in common within their tactics to win the debate. Both organizations have credible and discreditable backgrounds and pay enormous amounts of money to those in administration to gain their support as well as donating money to other organizations for their support. The UCS and CEI also use scientists to prove their positions to be correct, and they both provide scientific evidence on both sides.
The United States has earned the reputation of a rebellious country since its birth in the revolution against Britain. Over the course of history, Americans have repeatedly confronted oppression, both foreign and national, through various wars and rights movements. Unfortunately, when it comes to environmental issues the average American has grown increasingly complacent. With a renewed urgency, government is working to combat global warming, but lacks the necessary social backing. This social support could be supplied through a new environmental movement that differs from past efforts. Throughout American history there have been three categories of environmental movements: preservation, conservation, and modern reform, all of which have failed to bring a ubiquitous social change and substantial impact on the overall environmental health.
4. Johnson, Kirk. ?Global Warming Moves From Impassioned Words to Modest Deeds.? New York Times 19 November 2000 http://www.nytimes.com/2000/11/19/science/19CLIM.html
As referenced in Al Gores ‘An Inconvenient Truth’ 97% of the peer reviewed scientific reports regarding global warming within the scientific community, determined that global warming is an undeniable fact. The majority of the world’s population is not exposed to this scientific evidence; only the media's interpretation and distortion of the facts based on the head of their organisations
It is possible to employ characteristics from both sectional and promotional interest groups as can be seen with Greenpeace. Greenpeace continually protect for several environmental issues to draw attention and heighten specific environmental concerns (Grant, 2004). Simultaneously, Greenpeace engage in conversation with government, international organisations and business demonstrating characteristics of both insider and outsider interest groups (Grant,
Hulme, Mike. "Chapter 4: The Endowment of Value; Chapter 5: The Things We Believe."Why We Disagree about Climate Change: Understanding Controversy, Inaction and Opportunity. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge UP, 2009. 109-77. Print.
...is some way so that the movement can continue despite social changes. The Environmental Movement is an impeccable representation of what all social movements should be. They have been able to maintain their position throughout 150 years and in those years America has developed extraordinary and they have managed to modify to fit modern times. Their support system varies not only in racial background, but as well in class and economic background. The campaign’s success can be measured in the steps the take to accommodate society and in their ability to promote a tremendous amount of groups. Future social movements should take notes on what the Environmental Movement has managed to accomplish that others haven’t if they want to ensure their success.
In 1989, seventy five percent of Americans identified themselves as environmentalists, and the number has continued to grow since then (Walls 1). Environmentalism is now the most popular social movement in the United States, with over five million American families donating regularly to environmental organizations (Walls 1). Environmentalists today focus on what kind of world they hope to see in the future, and largely deal with limiting pollution and changing consumption rates (Kent 1 and 9). Modern environmentalists also have much different issues than those Carson’s America faced. With climate change becoming more threatening each year, protection of the natural world is needed more than ever. Pollution has caused the warmest decade in history, the deterioration of the ozone layer, and species extinction in extreme numbers (Hunter 2). It not only threatens nature, but also human populations, who already suffer from lack of clean water and poisoning from toxic chemicals (Hunter 16). Unlike environmental actions in the 1960’s, which were mostly focused on protection, a massive increase in pollution has caused efforts to be focused on environmental restoration (Hunter 16). Like in the time of Silent Spring, environmentalists are not only concerned with one country. Protecting the environment remains a global issue, and every nation is threatened by the
Politicians have had a major influence over how the environment is treated; whether it is for the benefit or detriment of the environment. However, environmentalists mostly agree that the environment is in danger. Much of the negative effects have been coming from the fossil fuel industry. However, the essential question is: If fossil fuels are bad for the environment, then why are they not being regulated more strictly? Republicans are to blame for two reasons; one being bad talking environmentalist terms such as “global warming”, and two being their policies that are biased in favor of the fossil fuel industry. Another issue is the way companies are negatively affecting people of lower income, especially those of non-white background. Both claims work hand in
There are two perspectives we must consider and understand before we can firmly criticize governments on putting their own national interest and economic growth, before acting on environmental concerns of the global community. In reality we have environmentalist clash heads with political candidates in various governments.
The modern day environmental movement in the United States has been a significant social movement for decades. It is quite possibly one of the longest running and more complex social movements the US has seen. The fight for a clean and safe environment has been an ongoing struggle. It encompasses multiple layers including the sustainability movement, environmental justice, and conservation movement. It is not just only a social movement but also a scientific and political movement as well. While my focus is on the United States this is a movement on an international scale with support on all levels from large organizations to private citizens.
Angela Park quotes Angela Johnson Mezaros in Everybody’s Movement: Environmental Justice and Climate Change as stating the belief that most mainstream environmentalists view the environment as “…someplace over there. You get in your car and drive to it. It’s not something you’re a part of. There is little space in that definition to incorporate concerns in ways that resonate with others who define the environment differently.”1 Environment means many things depending on who
Pilkey, Orrin H., and Rob Young. "Doubt global warming? The planet won't tell a lie." USA Today n.d.: Academic Search Complete. Web. 30 June 2014.