Unsung Heroes

Those that have worked to protect our environment deserve a lot more respect than they receive. If you want to think on how things might be without our history of environmental activism, consider that right here in the U.S. the Cuyahoga River was so polluted in 1969 that it actually burned. For a less epic but closer to home example, those of us old enough to remember the brilliant PSA with the Indian crying over the littered landscape, also remember the littered landscapes.

The fact is that environmentalists are heroes. They have worked to clean up rivers and the landscape, to protect important habitats from development, to get the word out about global warming, and to stop us from from polluting with DDT and CFC’s. They looked around at the destruction we are wreaking on the world and correctly noted that it has to stop. And these heroes did something about it.

I grew up here in Frederick. I know that a big chunk of our population assumes all of these so called heroes are skanky tree huggers who never had to work for a living, and sometimes they’d be right. They’ll also be quick to challenge the tactics of "eco-terrorists," which is a fair point of discussion.

I also went to business school. I know that business types will want to argue that these actions I praise harmed our economy. That also is a fair point of discussion – we have to have an economy that produces jobs.

These fair points of discussion miss the point of this discussion.

A river caught on fire. How much worse can it get than our water burning? What would this world be like right now if no one stepped up and did something about it? I don’t want to know.

So in lieu of a “Hug a Tree Hugger Day”, what can we do to thank these heroes?

Here’s a good way to appreciate the hard work of environmental heroes – enjoy nature! That’s what they want, that’s why they did what they did. You might also think kindly on environmentalists when you hear someone disparage them and maybe speak up with a moderating comment. Maybe you can take some time in your day to learn about how you might live more sustainably, and then do it.

Or best yet, take up the torch. Get active.