Social Psychology assignment
Name
Course
Institution
Question two
A group of environmental activists are planning a series of actions to draw attention to their cause. They have contacted you for advice about what forms of action (e.g. protest, illegal activities) they should take in order to be most effective.
Introduction
The Earth is home to all living and non-living things. Human beings make up the highest number of living things dwelling on the plant, followed closely by animals and plants. The planet might be inhabitable in the coming centuries due to increased human activities that have damaged and continue to affect Earth. Despite the numerous hints of what is at stake, the people have not taken time to reflect on what is required to avert the looming catastrophe. For this reason, the young and old alike are putting more effort into fighting to save the planet through environmental activism.
An environmental activist is any individual regardless of the age, gender, and educational background who is aware of the impact that human actions have on the planet and its inhabitants. For this reason, they advocate and champion the implementation of environmentally sound, sustainable, and geared towards improving the current environmental state (Renger & Reese, 2017). Environmental activism, therefore, encompasses the coming together of individuals or groups of people and organizations with common interests in social, political, and conservation realms with the sole purpose of addressing environmental concerns in their community or state.
The uniting principle for diverse individuals interested in environmental activism is protecting and preserving the environment. They all share a common ideology to find solutions to environmental problems, as witnessed by all. Environmental activism, as any other form of activism, plays a critical role in enhancing a given state’s environment. One crucial role that environmental activism plays is regarding the creation of awareness on environmental stability. Through activism, individuals are made aware of the need to safeguard the environment and the contribution they make towards its instability hence finding ways to do what is necessary.
It also influences how the legislature enacts laws, most specifically those related to the environment. Such activists could be members of the government or lobby groups that work to influence laws that protect the environment. Environmental activism also helps educate the masses on the devastating effects of environmental pollution as well as means to conserve the environment (Schmitt et, 2019). Besides, it helps push most companies towards Green and Lean manufacturing. Also, as a result of environmental activism, more people will be more inclined to use alternative forms of energy that enhance environmental protection instead of those that increase greenhouse gas availability in the air. Most cities and towns today practice and advocate for recycling non-biodegradable materials as a way of conserving the environment due to widespread activism.
As mentioned earlier in the discussion, environmental activism plays a critical role in conserving the environment and safeguarding our natural habitat. However, due to bureaucracy, there is a need for activists to capture the people’s attention and legislatures to ensure everyone is doing the necessary when it comes to protecting the environment. For this reason, the form of activism chosen upon by a given group of individuals is vital in passing the message across and getting the desired outcomes. There are various types of environmental activism forms that organizations and individuals could choose to advocate for their rights. They are majorly divided into solution driven activism, change-focused activism, and revolutionary activism.
Solution-driven activism refers to activism forms where the concerned individuals are after finding solutions for a specific problem. It also includes creating necessary steps that ensure the successful implementation of the solution to the problem. Similarly, change-focused activism also seeks to find solutions to environment-related issues but on a larger scale than the solution-driven method (Matsuba, Alisat & Pratt, 2017). In this case, activists advocate for the implementation of a new alternative system that will help in realizing the set goal as far as conserving the environment is concerned. Even though this method is slow in realizing results, it is the best as the solution offered to the problem is permanent.
On the other hand, revolutionary activism encompasses direct actions that seek to accomplish immediate and significant changes at ago. Instead of the activists going to court to stop a specific activity that is detrimental to the environment, they take it upon themselves to ensure they do the right thing.
Several specific methods of action that environmental activists could use to draw the public’s attention to their cause. One of the ways is through volunteering as an individual or with an organization that deals with advocating for environmental conservation in the society. There are numerous groups whose mission is to help threatened species and habitats to avoid extinction of the same (Binder & Blankenberg, 2016). Even though it is a passive form of activism, volunteering creates the necessary attention needed to address any country’s environmental concerns.
Grassroots activism is the other method that environmental activists could utilize in addressing their goals. The method entails joining a group of people, most especially those dealing with a similar cause on environmental concern. One can print literature material regarding the main cause and issuing them at social events. If given a chance, one member of the group can give a talk during the gatherings on the importance of environmental conservation. The advantage of this method is that it increases publicity and support for the main goal. Taking part in several social events helps increase the number of interested people in advocating for change from the government. Therefore, grassroots activism will shed light on the mission of an organization and increase membership that will give more voice to the minority.
The other method that an organization can use is through writing letters and petitions to the relevant authorities. The environmental activists can draft and send letters to heads of institutions they would like to address the environmental concern. For instance, if a certain manufacturing company goes against the environmental regulations by disposing of waste materials in the open, they can send letters to the managing director and the head of the department dealing with safety concerns in the company. Bulk emails can also be sent to the relevant people in organizations (Dexter, 2020). However, they are less effective compared to letters as some institutions can treat the emails as spam hence ignored. On the contrary, the letters will elicit a given form response, which is attention to the argument’s point.
Direct lobbying could also be used as an activism action to get the attention of the intended audience. Lobbying is a form of democracy that every citizen has a right to in a free democratic nation. The environmental activists can decide to visit any governmental office and request a sit down with the mayor or any official representative to channel their issues. It is a simple method that bears fruits almost immediately as one gets to know whether their cause has support from government officials or not.
Demonstrations and protests are also part of activism methods that environmentalists can use in their quest for conserving the environment. Most scholars term demonstrations as the fundamental methods of expression of activism. In most cases, the environment’s degradation occurs as a result of intensified human activities on the limited natural spaces. Thus, environmental activists can organize protests against companies and organizations that engage in activities that increase environmental degradation in the community.
Environmental activists have to ensure that the demonstrations occur at the organization headquarters or other related facilities for them to be considered serious and meaningful. The protests can take place in the form of marches, strikes, sit-ins, and sleep-ins, but to mention a few. However, there is a need to take caution when organizing demonstrations to ensure that criticism is not the only point of attention. Instead of calling for the total lockdown of the facilities, the demonstrations can advocate for change among the employees to put an end to the organization’s destructive activities (Hasler, Walters & White, 2020). Thus, instead of using emotion during demonstrations, the reason should prevail as it is more successful than the latter.
The other tactic the environmental activists could in making their agenda known to the public is through civil disobedience or illegal activities. Some scholars refer to them as “monkey wrenching” for they go against the laws of order in the community (Dow, 2018). Unlike demonstrations, civil disobedience enables the activist groups to intervene in a situation, thus directly yielding immediate results. The method is also dangerous and could lead to injuries or death of the participants in cases where they go out of control. They include blockading the construction of new roads, bridges, dams, or pipelines in areas that could harm the environment. For instance, an environmental group can blockade by disabling bulldozers or other machinery used to construct a pipeline near a water source for fear of water pollution.
In the case of a manufacturing industry that disregards health measures in its disposal of harmful wastes, the activists can lock down the facility’s access roads. It is illegal to do such but an effective way of passing across the intended message. When the organizing group is relentless, the manufacturing company will first ensure they use effective waste disposal methods before they can access their institution. Hanging of banners stating the unethical deeds of various organizations also amounts to civil disobedience and a valid activism method. The organization in question will have no choice but to reconsider their way of doing things, which helps in conserving the environment.
Conclusion
Environmental activism helps in challenging the existing ways of doing things, which affects the natural habitat that both animals and humans depend on. Activism varies according to the intended audience and aim. However, from the different methods discussed, an environmental activist group can choose one or a combination of different methods that suits their needs. The bottom line is to ensure they are successful in their mission of conserving the environment.
References
Binder, M., & Blankenberg, A. K. (2016). Environmental concerns, volunteering, and subjective well-being: Antecedents and outcomes of environmental activism in Germany. Ecological Economics, 124, 1-16.
Dexter, E., & Dexter, L. (2020). Environmental Activism.
Dow, J. M. (2018). Environmental civil disobedience. In The Palgrave Handbook of Philosophy and Public Policy (pp. 795-807). Palgrave Macmillan, Cham.
Hasler, O., Walters, R., & White, R. (2020). In and against the state: The dynamics of environmental activism. Critical Criminology, 28(3), 517-531.
Matsuba, M. K., Alisat, S., & Pratt, M. W. (2017). Environmental activism in emerging adulthood. Emerging adulthood series. Flourishing in emerging adulthood: Positive development during the third decade of life, 175-201.
Renger, D., & Reese, G. (2017). From equality‐based respect to environmental activism: Antecedents and consequences of global identity. Political Psychology, 38(5), 867-879.
Schmitt, M. T., Mackay, C. M., Droogendyk, L. M., & Payne, D. (2019). What predicts environmental activism? The roles of identification with nature and politicized environmental identity. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 61, 20-29.