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2008 Election Candidate Forum:
The Questions
Question 9: What do you feel is the image of environmentalists in general and of the Sierra Club in particular, and how would you change or reinforce that image?
Candidate responses were limited to 150 words per question.Lane
Boldman
We suffer from several problems when it comes to our image. I work in marketing, advertising and communications, so I have a lot of thoughts on this topic.
•First, we need to take some time to reinforce what the definition of an environmentalist actually is, not what it has been stereotyped as. I believe the general public is somewhat mystified on what an actively-engaged environmentalist does. That they are not just people who recycle a lot of cans. We need to show that they are simply concerned neighbors who live down the street and are working to make their community better.
•Secondly, with regard to the Club, we need to take a step back, review, renew, and respect our history. We have a history that is a proud one, steeped in the very foundations of American history. We need to own this fact in a public manner. Joni
Bosh
Questionnaire Not Returned Clark
Buchner
I think the image of environmentalists has greatly improved since the early 90's. The Sierra brand is strong and becoming stronger. The Clorox issue, however, has not enhanced our public image, and to many inside the club it looks like a sell out. In future endorsements, we need to be much more careful in what we approve as products for a sustainable society. As an organization, we need to carefully evaluate where we are going in terms of a sustainable future, and be supportive of measures such as the sustainable agricultural movement. We are light years behind Mother Earth News, and yes, we might have to take somewhat of back seat in this arena until we improve our own learning curve on issues such as permaculture and food production so that we truly know what to support and why. Jeremy
Doochin
Environmentalists have been stereotyped as everything from hippies to tree huggers. Yet with An Inconvenient Truth and the “popularization” of climate change, the environment is gradually becoming a central issue. Often people see environmentalists as impassioned, but without an effective way to channel that passion for the planet. That is why our training programs and leadership development are so crucial in the Sierra Club. We must invest more resources into recruiting and training new activists, and providing environmentalists with a new conventional and professional appeal.
One common concern is that many people perceive the Sierra Club as a “liberal” organization. While there is a significant blend of republicans, independents, and democrats, our message must reach across party lines and empower people to join our cause. We should remain very much politically active, but maintain a professional appeal that moderates our political rhetoric.
*** Please visit www.jeremy2008.com for much more info*** Jim
Dougherty
I think that enviros are seen as principled, visionary and altruistic, yet perhaps insufficiently concerned with more basic human needs, e.g., jobs. We need to make clear that there is no separation between these issues. The jobs will shrink if we ignore environmental conservation; they will balloon if we get ahead of the environmental curve. Larry
Fahn
Questionnaire Not Returned Barbara
Frank
Environmentalists are still often viewed as ideologues, purists, dreamers, wackos, alarmists. I think that's getting better as health concerns grow, global warming threatens, and conservation/environment becomes more a mainstream issue again. The Club continues to enjoy a good public image. Credible, fairly mainstream, public watchdog, etc. David
Scott
We are respected as a credible source. An Aspen Institute survey of Congress ranked us as the most effective environmental lobbying group by far. The bad news is that polls show much of the public regards environmentalists as shrill. And even some environmentally-minded citizens reacted negatively when we rejected different ways of increasing the energy supply. We shouldn’t shed our convictions just to please critics, but we have to communicate wisely.
How can we reduce negative perceptions? First, by a commitment to accuracy: our credibility is our greatest asset. Second, by recognizing that many thoughtful Americans disagree with our positions on some issues. Americans want clean energy, but affordable energy matters, too. Americans support protecting wildlife, but protecting wilderness increasingly means working with ranchers and conservative legislators.
We have to show people why we’ve taken the positions we have. And we have to recognize that sometimes victory only comes incrementally. Jerry
Sutherland
Our Communications Department set up focus groups in 2006 to help Conservation Initiative messaging. They reported hearing environmentalists referred to as "extremists and scolders who tell other people what they should not do." They also found that the public is "hungry for a more positive, solutions-oriented message" and wants to see "opposing camps come together" rather than "language that appears to dictate and close off options." The good news, according to Bob Perkowitz, when presenting the American Environmental Value Survey to the Conservation Governance Committee later that year, was that the Sierra Club has a positive image with the public, giving us a wonderful opportunity to engage our neighbors, friends, associates, and family. One of the ways we can do this is couple positive messaging and public relations campaigns with lawsuits. Another is to find partnerships and areas of agreement wherever we can while defending what we value. Matt
Urban
See #7 above.
I do feel that the Sierra Club is generally viewed with great respect and admiration by a significant percentage of our country. This is show in the fact that we have more than 700,000 members, but we can point to over 1.3 million people as Sierra Club supporters.
A lot of it is our history, but it’s also due to the incredible work happening within chapters and groups around the country, who continue to gain respect and admiration in their local communities.
In addition to what I’ve stated in #7 above, I’d reinforce our image by continuing to support and empower our grassroots structure through funding, training, and organizing assistance. Nathan
Wyeth
Questionnaire Not Returned
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