INTRODUCTION Yosemite National Park Calif Digital Vision Getty Images
INTRODUCTION N owadays it is common for people to live green meaning they act in ways meant to protect the environment This has not always been the case Long before recycling sustainable energy and other green concepts were popular in mainstream society there was a much smaller group of dedicated individuals who made living in harmony with nature and preserving Earth s precious resources a top priority Through their words and actions they encouraged others to lead environmentally friendly lives as well These green pioneers are the subject of this book Protecting the environment for its own sake was not necessarily the main goal of some pioneering individuals A man of sci ence Charles Darwin studied nature in an attempt to understand the origins of life Although Darwin did not set out to find a reason to protect the environment envi ronmentalists have used his findings to support their cause ever since Henry David Thoreau wrote about the joys to be found in the wilderness yet he was an individual ist long before he became a naturalist As president Theodore Roosevelt set aside great stretches of land for the benefit 9
PIONEERS OF THE GREEN MOVEMENT ENVIRONMENTAL SOLUTIONS of the public over private commercial inter ests Two dedicated naturalists John Muir and Gifford Pinchot were heavily involved in Roosevelt s conservation efforts During a hiking trip with Roosevelt through what is now Yosemite National Park Muir who was the founder of the Sierra Club convinced the president that the federal government should take action to save wilderness areas such as Yosemite Subsequently Roosevelt declared millions of acres of land as national forests He also urged Congress to cre ate the national Forest Service to protect the land and appointed conservationist Pinchot head of the new agency Other politicians have been notable champions of the environment as well Stewart Lee Udall helped establish sev eral national parks and 50 wildlife refuges during his time as interior secretary under Presidents John F Kennedy and Lyndon B Johnson His brother Congressman Morris King Mo Udall passed legislation that regulated strip mining and prevented oil drilling in an Alaskan wildlife refuge More recently former vice president Al Gore has become a leader in the fight against climate change and global warming IO
INTRODUCTION Some green pioneers made their mark by focusing on a particular aspect of the envi ronment Sir Peter Markham Scott Dian Fossey and Jane Goodall concentrated their efforts on waterfowl mountain gorillas and chimpanzees respectively Others follow ing in the tradition of Thoreau and Muir raised awareness of the cause by writing about environmental concerns Biologist Rachel Carson's Silent Spring 1962 is considered a groundbreaking book that helped usher in the modern green move ment Journalist Ken Saro Wiwa's activism included writing articles and books detail ing how land in his native Nigeria was destroyed by oil drilling Whatever the reason for their involve ment their particular method or special cause the pioneers of the green movement have one thing in common a concern for the natural world that urged them to take action Their work lives on in the millions of people worldwide who today and in the future choose to live green II
