A response to Taking Action by Sierra Nelson-Liner. Sierra’s blog post talked about her ENVS 160 problem solving project where her and her group wish to address the white-centricity of environmental action. Considering the events that happened on campus last semester, I feel this topic is especially relevant to our campus.
My initial reactions to this post is, what does “environmental action” mean? I realize that they are attempting to situate their project in Oregon and or Portland; however, I think there needs to be more clarification. What if the group looked at one specific environmental issue they are passionate and write an ethnography based on those involve in that issue.
The group could also look at Environment Oregon, a group surrounded by fighting for the environment, specifically towards dilemmas in Oregon, hence the name. For instance, Environment Oregon ran the campaign to ban the bag a few years back. In fact, in my ENVS 220 class my group and I did research on this topic. Sierra and her peers could see who responded to this cause and who got involved. By looking at a campaign that already occurred, it may allow the group to get a more comprehensive understanding of the processes involved in creating and pursuing a campaign. I think a specific form of environmental action would benefit this research project a lot. I think a definition of ‘environment’ and ‘action’ are needed as well. Action could be seen as turning your lights off when you aren’t home, or turning the faucet off when brushing your teeth etc. Clarification will amplify your outcome.
That being said, I think this is a great idea and an important one as well. I look forward to seeing the final outcome!