LEADERS, ROLE MODELS,
AND SUCCESS STORIES

FOR MOST OF US WHO STRUGGLE AGAINST ECOLOGICAL DESTRUCTION, the picture is bleak. We must deal with population growth, over-consumption, toxic pollution, species extinction, climate change, marine depletion, and more—a distressing litany of degradation. Fear can be a powerful motivator for immediate bursts of response. A burning house, a car crash, or a flood demand that we react instantly for survival. Fear evoked by the threat of an impending ecological disaster can motivate us for a while, but it is difficult to sustain. Hope can carry us on for the long haul.

Two radio series that I was involved in (It’s a Matter of Survival in 1989 and From Naked Ape to Superspecies in 1999) evoked a large response. But each time, the letters, e-mails, and phone calls demanded to know what could be done. So I suggested to Holly Dressel, my coauthor, that we search for examples of attempts to get onto a sustainable path by individuals, companies, organizations, and governments. As we started to research, I said to her: “I hope there are enough examples for us to get a book.” To our amazement, within months it was clear we could have filled volumes. The book was called Good News for a Change: Hope for a Troubled Planet, and it became a number 1 best-seller in Canada and Australia. The good news is that there is a lot of good news in both rich and poor nations, from individuals to corporations and governments. The bad news is that most politicians and businesspeople seem determined to carry on with business as usual instead of recognizing the challenges and opportunities in seizing the new path that is being opened.

The stories in this section represent a few of the examples I wrote about from time to time over three decades. They hint at the possibilities that we went on to describe in greater detail and variety in Good News for a Change.