Dave: Environmentalist or Conservationist?

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11/01/09 - Next April 22 will mark the 40th anniversary of Earth Day -- an event in which the term "environmentalist" went mainstream.  But it's a term many in the land, water  and wildlife protection community are trying to shed. So what would you call yourself if you had to choose -- an environmentalist or a conservationist?

Back in the early 70s, environmentalists and environmentalism were positives to most Americans. Public opinion polls showed most citizens thought of environmentalists as positive, public-spirited people concerned about protecting our collective future. But in the years since, "environmentalist" has increasingly been associated with self-righteousness, (to some) extremism, special interest politics and the derisive term "tree-hugger," implying that those so dubbed prefer trees and animals to people. Also, unfairly, opponents of environmental protection have to some extent succeeded in tarnishing environmentalists for their own political ends.

Conservation, however, reaches back to an earlier time. Conservation is regarded as the work of trying to make room for both protection and use.  Teddy Roosevelt was one of the fathers of American conservation. He set aside huge swaths of federal land as national monuments and forests, but also advocated timber harvest, construction of dams and other human uses of natural resources. "Conservationist" is today a term friendlier to the American public, implying someone who loves the outdoors and wants to achieve a balance between natural and human worlds.



Minnesota conservationist Darby Nelson, president of the board of Conservation Minnesota.

Perhaps the negatives associated with "environmentalism" are the reason for a poll earlier this year showing only 41% of Americans view protecting the environment as a top national priority.

In truth, the divide between the two camps is less than it appears. Members of both appreciate the joys, beauty and mysteries of the natural world and both want to pass these on to future generations -- and both want to assure there are future human generations to appreciate them too.

The biggest problem with environmentalism may be the root word "environment," which originally meant "the circumstances, objects, or conditions by which one is surrounded." The word suggests a divide between human and natural worlds, with humans at the center. It makes more sense to think of humans as part of nature, whose survival as well as quality of life depends on protecting the entire web of life to which we belong.

So call me a conservationist. But call yourself whatever you choose, as long as you care deeply about air, land, water and all living things.

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