View source for Ecology movement

The global '''ecology movement''' is one of several new [[social movement]]s that emerged at the end of the [[1960s|sixties]]; as a values-driven social movement, it should be distinguished from the pre-existing science of [[ecology]].  The movement's growth has been stimulated by a widespread acknowledgement of an ecological crisis of our planet. Its story has run alongside the [[natural environment|environment]]al narratives that have reached popular consciousness. From the [[conservation movement]] at the beginning of the 20th century, then with concern in the sixties about chemical [[pesticide]]s, the ecological movement was born with [[Rachel Carson]]'s ''[[Silent Spring]]''. There was a great deal of concern over [[nuclear weapon]]s and [[nuclear power]] in sixties and seventies, then there was [[acid rain]] in the eighties, [[ozone depletion]] and [[deforestation]] in the nineties, and now [[climate change]] is the biggest concern for many. As well as the bigger global issues like these and species extinction, the ecology movement also encompasses any group wishing to protect the environment.

[[Image:The Earth seen from Apollo 17.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Planet [[Earth]] as seen from [[Apollo 17]].]]
The ecology movement has evolved and branched out to different means of effecting change. There is the political branch with the [[Green party|Green parties]]. Organisations like [[Greenpeace]] were more radical, taking direct action against environmental destruction. Its views on people, behaviors, events centered around the political and lifestyle implications of the science of [[ecology]] and the idea of [[nature]] as a value in itself. "Ecology movement" is an [[umbrella term]] for different groups, [[ideologies]] and [[attitude (psychology)|attitude]]s.

==Looking under the umbrella==

Although [[Green parties]] have roots in the ecology movement, they are a separate movement. Political [[Greens]] have [[social justice]] concerns which go beyond ecology.

Today the term "ecology movement" is associated often with the more moral, more confrontational, and more rigorous stance taken by [[Greenpeace]] and other even more radical [[Non-governmental organization|NGO]]s, e.g. [[Earth First]], Earth Action, [[Sea Shepherd]], in favor of the [[Precautionary Principle]] and strong fundamental preventive measures for [[biosafety]], [[biosecurity]] and [[biodiversity]]. The methods of these groups often involve the idea of [[Direct action]].

A radical wing of the ecology movement opposes and actually sabotages or destroys [[infrastructural capital]] of what they deem to be "Earth rapist" activities.  This includes the Anarchist Golfing Association and the [[Earth Liberation Front]], which are sometimes accused of [[terrorism]]. Even though no physical harm has come to an animal or human being, they have inflicated large economic losses on many economies. Their acts include the fire-bombing of a Forestry Service installation in Erie, Pennsylvania.  Very few in the ecology movement would accept doing [[bodily harm]] by non-legal means to achieve their goals - they have no organized presence and are rejected by almost all players in the ecology movement. Some who hold property damage and [[bodily harm]] in [[moral equivalence]], may reject this distinction, e.g. the US [[FBI]] which has labelled the [[Earth Liberation Front]] as a "terrorist group" (although the [[United States Department of Defense|U.S. Department of Defense]] does not).

On the other side of the spectrum, there are individuals and groups that believe in either a more political-lobbyist or more scientific than activist approach. 

At least since the [[Rio de Janeiro]] [[Earth Summit]] in [[1992]], the discussion about [[sustainable development]] and [[sustainability]] has surfaced and partly replaced older ecological oriented ideologies. This and the establishment of a global [[anti-globalization movement]] in the late [[1990s]] can be seen as follow-ups to the ecological movement.  (See [[Rio Declaration on Environment and Development]].)

==See also==
* [[Critique of technology]]
* [[Deep ecology]]
* [[Environmental ethics]]
* [[Environmental economics]]
* [[Environmental journalism]]
* [[Environmental movement]]
* [[Environmental studies]]
* [[Gaians]]
* [[Green economists]]
* [[Green liberalism]]
* [[Green movement]]
* [[Greens]]
* [[Green syndicalism]]
* [[Simple living]]
* [[Social criticism]]
* [[Social ecology]]
* [[Sustainability]]
* [[Timeline of environmental events]]
* [[Urban ecology]]

==External links==
*[http://www.envirolink.org EnviroLink Network] - A non-profit clearinghouse of environmental news and information

[[Category:Social movements]]
[[Category:Environmentalism]]
[[Category:Simple living]]