Although the speaker this week didn’t spend much time talking about environmental activism, I found the conversation to be incredibly interesting regardless. Farber spoke about filling up space intentionally, and looking critically at the ways that that space has been filled and formed in the past and how that informs our present. I thought that there were a lot of concepts that he introduced that could be translated easily into the realm of environmental activism and environmental justice.
The first thing that Farber discussed that I felt translated relevantly was critically evaluating every aspect of our own actions. This includes looking at the conversations that we are having, and who we are including in those conversations. It means making every effort to include every person that we can in those conversations. What really struck me about this idea is how it has been presented by everyone who has come to speak to our class about activism. Catherine Flowers and Robin Kirk talked about finding allies. Crystal Dreisbach talked about including everyone that will be affected by your project, even (and especially) those that you don’t think will be supporting the endeavor. They all talked in some way about ensuring that you include a multiplicity of voices, and that you do so in a real and meaningful way.
Another thing that Farber discussed that I felt was relevant to our class, and the projects that we have been working on, are the specific tactics to encourage engagement with projects. He talked about making sure that you give everyone something to contribute to the project, so that they know that their participation is meaningful and having an impact. He talked about the impact of giving them something tangible to walk away with, both so they will remember the conversation in the future, as well as creating additional incentives for participation. Finally, he talked about creating a space where everyone feels willing and able to participate. I found these specific strategies to be incredibly helpful when thinking about ways to adapt our tactics when planning May Three, Waste Free, and know that many people in my group felt the same way.
I am always shocked when we have these speakers come visit about the vast array of things that they talk about, and how I am able to take something away from every talk. Although they are often not quite what we expected, they always add value into our conversation about environmental activism and the projects that we are pursuing. I feel like this is just one example of the incredible ways in which all forms of activism are similar in their essential make up. We’re all trying to make the world a better place, and we all have so much to learn from each other.
