Don't Call me an "Environmentalist"

I am a big advocate of alternative energy, and I plan on installing solar panels and/or a backyard wind turbine as soon as I buy a home. I drive a hybrid car, and bike or walk instead whenever practical. I mow my lawn with a push reel mower, and I use bar soap, bar laundry detergent and a reusable water bottle to minimize plastic consumption. But please, don’t call me an environmentalist.

The term “environmentalist” made more sense back when we didn’t know for sure that the behaviors of the average person were destroying the planet. In a world where cutting down trees to build homes only affects the aesthetics of an area, with no negative environmental impacts, there could be two groups of people: those who prefer homes, and those who prefer trees. In this case, both sides are rational thoughts, and coming up with a term for those who prefer trees is fair. Unfortunately, this is not how the world works.

Today, we know of the impact humans have had on the environment, and it is a serious, serious issue. Assigning a name to people who want to protect the environment makes it seem as if that is some deviation from the norm. This is a dangerous notion, because in order to for us to not completely destroy our own home, we need the norm to be caring about the environment. And not just “caring” in the sense that you say “yeah, we should protect the environment”, but “caring” in the sense that you actually take whatever steps you can in your own life to protect the environment. It’d be better to come up with a word for people who don’t care about the environment. Or maybe, in the spirit of this article, we could recycle instead! Some possibilities: short-sighted, ignorant, inconsiderate, egocentric, lazy, …

Do we have a word for people who turn their oven off when they leave their house, or who hit the brakes when they see that they’re about to collide with the car in front of them on the highway? No, because those are exactly what a sensible person should do. We don’t need a word for someone who wants to not destroy their own home, or someone who doesn’t want to die if they can help it.

Except, apparently, if that home destruction or death is due to pollution, deforestation, etc.

Because then we call them “environmentalists”.