With apologies to "green" and "enviro," there's no doubt "eco" is the supreme prefix of the environmental movement.
Photo: iStockphoto
According to the Oxford English Dictionary -- the Bible of the English language, only with fewer lepers and begettings -- "eco" detached from "ecology" as early as 1969, when examples of "eco-activist," "eco-catastrophe," and "ecocide" can be found. The OED also has subentries for "eco-art," "ecodoom," "ecofreak," "eco-label," "eco-nut," "eco-raider," "eco-terrorism," and "eco-warrior," but of course, these are just the tip of the eco-berg. Grist has been the home of many others, including "eco-troubadour," "eco-spasm," "eco-sin," "mega-eco-economics," and "not-so-eco-doodad."
Mostly, the proliferation of these words can be considered a good thing. If people weren't increasingly eco-friendly, they wouldn't dream up eco-museums, eco-villages, and eco-bras while worrying about eco-concerns and eco-nightmares. Even the existence of slurs such as "eco-obsessive," "eco-Nazi," and "eco-fundamentalism" can be considered a good sign in this sense: eco-worriers have got eco-hostiles pretty worried too.
Many of these words will make jaded linguists reach for the brain bleach and an ear funnel. Yet word diversity -- while not quite as crucial as species diversity -- is similarly valuable. After all, not every species is an adorable, skittering chinchilla or noble, spear-wielding chimp, but where would we be without gazillions of sea slug species?
Though the following words range from barely tolerable to gloriously pointless, they must be preserved for future generations. Love 'em or loathe 'em, these are some of the most preposterous, distasteful, entertaining -- and, in all cases, real -- uses of the eco- prefix.
eco-porn
Don't worry, this is safe for work. "Eco-porn" is a cousin of metaphorical expressions like "wedding porn," "electoral porn," "wine porn," "gastro-porn," and "9-11 popcorn porn." Paul McFedries' Word Spy defines eco-porn as "A corporate advertisement that extols the company's environmental record or policies," usually with lush natural images -- and most likely a boatload of hypocrisy as well.
Ecobot
The first Ecobot was a seemingly harmless, battery-free, sugar-eating creation of British scientists that looked kind of like a fire alarm (the bot, not the Brits). Ecobot 2, their second unholy creation, had a pseudo-stomach that fed on dead flies and rotten apples. Both Ecobots were able to perform phototaxis -- "moving toward the light" -- which is what I fear we may all be doing soon if these fly-eating toasters continue to evolve. (I've clearly watched too much Battlestar Galactica.)
eco-whistleblower
In good news for the snitched-upon, ratted-out, and stool-pigeoned, tattletales are now compostable. Well, sort of. This word became necessary after the Bush administration (in September 2006) reversed precedent and took away whistleblower rights from the Clean Air Act. So if an EPA employee eco-snitches on the government, that employee could be fired and, the way things are going, probably waterboarded without a trial.
ecosynergy
There's not a fouler corporate buzzword than "synergy." I once had a co-worker who used the word with such frequent, punishing regularity that I suspect he was raised on PowerPoint presentations and cappuccinos rather than Dr. Seuss and mother's milk. Everything he, I, or my uncle did created synergy. Meetings had synergy. Lunch had synergy. Paper clips had synergy. Taken literally, ecosynergy is likely a fine thing, but if I see this or another variation of synergy (What's next? Franken-synergy? Choco-synergy?) one more time I fear my self-inflicted lobotomy will have little synergy.
eco-mafia
If you cross the eco-mafia, you'll just wish you were sleeping with the fishes: you're more likely to nap with the hazardous ooze. As previously discussed in Grist, the enviro-mafioso forgo wholesome, traditional revenue sources like gambling and prostitution in favor of dumping and illegal construction. Their slogan: Take the cannoli, leave the toxic waste.
eco-elves
In London, the Recycle Western Riverside group's eco-elves talk about recycling door-to-door, on the tube, and at malls. Though the eco-elves are doing the world a solid, I don't look forward to future Christmases that may bring eco-reindeer, eco-eggnog, or an eco-Christ child.
econolomics
Here's a word with a noble purpose and a less-than-musical sound. Econolomics is defined on Word Spy as "Sustainable living through environmentally friendly business practices." Who could argue with that? Like ecosynergy, econolomics is beneficial. But can't we find a name for it that isn't so reminiscent of high colonics?
ecosexual
If the word "metrosexual" makes you want to remove your own eyeballs with a spork, you'd better hide the silverware. Ecosexuals, apparently, are hip young urbanites who care about recycling as much as hair products. Instead of man-hands and eating peas one at a time, their deal-breakers are non-recyclers and anti-eco-deodorant. Did the world really need another smarmy buzzword?
Eco-kill me now.
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Comments
View as Flat
Tom Turner Posted 3:43 am
19 Jun 2007
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caniscandida Posted 3:54 am
19 Jun 2007
Of course, one still needs a bit of context to figure out what the new combinations mean. E.g., watching that lively fellow with the scruffy chin and the cheery smile enjoy his "eco-porn" turns out to be not nearly so interesting a prospect as one might have thought originally.
But "not-so-eco-doodad" is a gem. And to think, a Grist writer came up with it!
On the other hand, "econolomics" is monstrous. Is that supposed to be a shuffling of "ecology" and "economics"? Well, let us hope that that chimera has a very short life.
On another note, in the blurb on eco-elves, what is "doing the world a solid" supposed to mean?
As for "eco-Christ Child," some of us would say that that is a bit redundant, seeing how he invented the whole idea in the first place.
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Delay And Deny Posted 10:27 am
19 Jun 2007
Echo and Bunnymen tour back in 2001.
Totally green, if you count the number of underage cocktail drinkers puking in the alley.
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landmark Posted 2:59 am
25 Jun 2007
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In the spirit of such environmentally enlightening hits as AN INCONVENIENT TRUTH and RIVERS AND TIDES, MANUFACTURED LANDSCAPES powerfully shifts our consciousness about the world and the way we live in it, without simplistic judgments or reductive resolutions.
JULY 6-12
NUART THEATRE
11272 Santa Monica Boulevard
just west of the 405 Freeway
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Showtimes 7/6-12: Fri-Sun at 12:00, 2:30, 5:00, 7:30, 10:00;
Mon-Thu at 5:00, 7:30, 10:00
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A Zeitgeist Films Release
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CyberBrook Posted 2:29 am
27 Jun 2007
hey, what about eco-eating?
(http://www.brook.com/veg/)
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katesisco Posted 7:46 am
28 Jun 2007
In the past 12 months, the global corn price has doubled.
Because corn is the most common animal feed, this affects the price of milk, cheese, eggs, meat, as well as corn-based sweeteners and cereals.
In the U.S., milk prices have nearly doubled.
Butter prices in Europe have spiked by 40%.
Pork prices in China are up 20%.
In Mexico there have been riots in response to a 60% rise in the cost of tortillas.
In six of the past seven years, global grain consumption has exceeded production. As a result world grain reserves have dwindled to 57 days. This is the lowest level of grain reserves in 34 years.
While the UN lists 34 countries as needing food aid, 30% of next year's grain harvest in the U.S. will be converted to ethanol to fuel cars.
Well, what that says to me is that this is yet another devious method of the US to force the rest of the underdeveloped world to "choose" GM foods provided by the US in preference to their own or ungeneticly modified food.
Current reading lead us to believe that many areas are and will continue to face water scaricity. Leading to growing food shortages. More crises in war among populated starving countries. And what we are offering the same GM modified rice, corn, etc that was turned down in a previous African famine.
There is no sufficient reason for the US gov to provide subsidises for ethnol/corn when the most provident approach to alternative fuels would be to use a grass/prenennial grain, ect.
Sadly, after reading Zbignew B book on our "Second Chance" it seems to me that we had had our second and third chance.
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eniko Posted 12:51 am
29 Jun 2007
http://www.oberkleinberg.com/
A community that is exploring answers which are important and relevant today.
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baranoff Posted 2:08 am
29 Jun 2007
Envomentalism in a way that the polticians on either side of the polical spectrum are involved.
One where the remove rules that prevent energy indepenence and true encourage it with the enviroment in mind.
Like letting me and anyone else who want to improve thier energy effiency in an enviromentally sound way do without goverment or homeowner interference.
See these two items...
http://baranoff.typepad.com/cheaper_electric/2007/06/will ...
http://baranoff.typepad.com/cheaper_electric/2007/05/comm ...
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hosro Posted 1:22 am
03 Jul 2007
They use recycled materials, including tires, to provide planting
units of three depths, a special developed "soil" and specially selected and grown plants suitable for dry conditions expected on urban roof tops.
Chicago recently mandated flat roofs to become "green." Apples
main store recently added a GreenGrid system.
I have not been able to contact anyone with experience with the
products and firm. It seems like a good idea and I have a flat roof.
Payback seem good as roof temperatures are much lower, UV and IR rays that shorten rooftop life are reduced. Areas not covered by plant modules are covered by pavers made of recycled tires. Oxygen in the urban scape is also cited as a benefit and reduction of heating and cooling loads of a cooler/warmer roof than a roof without the GreenGrid.
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lajollabub Posted 10:12 am
04 Jul 2007
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Shagagapewi Posted 5:07 pm
22 Jul 2007
The aspects of Global warming being masked by Global dimming seems a paradox of near Biblical proportions or at least prophetic in nature. However, the thought or method is now more lucid and it appears that as we suck up and burn the fossil fuels or oils left behind by our organism friends of eons past, it would seem that the characterisic of adipose is for insulation and stored energy for for endotherms at least.
Could it be that the skinny person gets colder than the larger one? It would seem that as we in the Gaia proposal-which -by the way is true-yuk yuk-then it would seem that the combined effects of our seeming climatic changes of late are similar to the ones that caused the great drought and famines in Ethiopia several years ago and these same changes, or at least very similar ones, are now being caused from China's industrial boom as we had in the 6o's. These seem to indicate etiologies for the climatic changes just pointed to?
Additionally, the possibility of the liposuction of the earth, as I referred to it in a simple experiment this past spring, about the hypothetical questioning of the vast removal of the hydrocarbons as in an analogous liposuctioning from the earth that leaves the Earth with less insulation and abilities to maintain the core temperature of our host with the possible effect of it cooling faster and losing heat from it via the crust and its heat being released into the atmosphere as well perhaps causing El ninos etc.
Is a skinny earth such a good thing?
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bmadden714 Posted 6:08 am
19 Oct 2007
And then there's the issue of when to use the "-" and when to leave it out. It's times like this when I think, "WWS&WD?" (What would Strunk and White do?) I err on the side of always hyphenated. It's a moral eco-dilemma for sticklers, I tell you.
Thanks for writing on this pressing eco-language issue. It was an eco-illuminating. I'm glad I'm not the only one who's eco-struggling with this particular eco-issue.
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