Environmentalism is a philosophy which is based on the concept of conserving the natural environment through addressing issues the concern various human activities. Most of the activities which are addressed by environmentalism involve the pollution of the environment through industrial activities. This philosophy works towards the establishment of means through which these issues concerning the conservation of the environment are discussed and viable solutions for the environmental problems caused by human activity can be found. It can further be said that this philosophy deals with the preservation, the development, and the return of the natural environment to the state in which it was previously.
While many environmentalist groups profess to fight for the conservation of the environment; many of them tend to defeat their own purpose for doing so. This is due to the fact that they often oppose those projects whose final goal is to ensure that the environment is conserved. The example of the experiment that was to be conducted off the islands of Hawaii sponsored by various gas companies and governments. This project was to determine the rate of carbon monoxide dissolution in water so that steps could be taken to reduce such rates. However, certain environmentalist groups were opposed to this move stating that there was a possibility that the initiative was going to not only change the quality of the seawater, but it would also damage the marine life of the area. It can therefore be seen that while many environmentalist groups claim to fight for the conservation of the natural environment, when initiatives are made to study how the environment can be conserved, it is these very same groups which come to oppose them. A further example, this time in Pennsylvania where there was an initiative to construct wind turbines which would not only be able to provide a cheap source of energy, but this form of energy would be clean, ensuring that there was little damage to the environment. Local environmentalist groups again rose in opposition to the idea, citing that the turbines were going to destroy the immaculate forests of the area and endanger the bird life. It can therefore be said that while many environmentalist groups fight for the conservation of the environment, they have to adapt to the initiatives which are aimed at achieving the same purpose, otherwise, their objectives are likely to be defeated.
Free market environmentalism is not an initiative meant to conserve the environment, but one which has been developed to ensure that the real environmentalist movement is frustrated in its efforts. Many of the initiatives carried out by corporations in the name of environmental conservation are nothing more than propaganda designed to play down the true nature of their impact on the environment. The power of these corporations is so great that they can afford to hire public relation firms whose sole purpose is to ensure that the message from environmentalist groups is avoided, limited, or reinterpreted to suit the needs of these corporations. There is a conspiracy of interested groups which are bent on distorting the environmentalist cause because if any of the recommendations made by the various environmentalist groups are implemented, then there is a likelihood that they are going to lose a lot of profit. While there are some free market environmentalists who genuinely believe in the conservation of the environment through market mechanisms, a majority can be termed as being anti environmentalists. These tend to portray themselves as being environmentalists yet they are often the first to resist or go against any form of action or legislation that is meant to make the conservation of the environment a reality. It is these people who, using the massive resources that are available to them, something which many environmentalist groups cannot afford, have sought to hijack the environmentalist cause for their own gain. They have come to work for massive corporations with the aim of ensuring that any environmental legislation that is passed is all but effective. Environmentalist groups should not label all free market environmentalists as being anti environmentalist because there are some who are genuine in their purpose of conserving the environment. If the environmentalists keep labeling them as anti environmentalists, then there is a high risk that they will be alienated, and this would be detrimental to the cause of environmentalism.
In conclusion, it can be said that the idea that countries are sovereign in matters dealing with the environment have come to be challenged since at present, actors other than governments have come to be key players in the environmental issue. There has been a shift from having mega-conference diplomacy meetings to implementation of initiatives that are localized and formation of partnerships in order to be able to combat the remedies environmental problems that affect various countries. The time has come when governments have opted to shift their strategies to involve those tactics which are able to enhance the prospects that will implement effective management of the environment starting from the local level of the society.
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