In late 2004, Adam Werbach proclaimed that environmentalism was dead due to the movement's unwillingness to connect with ordinary working people and its inability to effectively grapple with the most profound problem the earth has ever faced, climate change. His diagnosis was clear: In order to build the next liberal majority in this country, environmentalists must create bold new "frames" that will unite us with our working-class brothers and sisters around "shared values."
Werbach argued that to win we must begin by challenging our most basic assumptions. "What if we stopped defining global warming as an environmental problem and instead spoke of the economic opportunities it will create?" he asked. It's this kind of out-of-the-box thinking that has landed Werbach a new gig in Big-Box Land.
Yes, Adam Werbach, founder of the Sierra Student Coalition, youngest president of the Sierra Club, author, filmmaker, and self-proclaimed progressive-big-think guy, is going to be a consultant for Wal-Mart. Will he be working with the planet's largest retailer to cut its carbon footprint by 50 percent, source its products locally from sustainable suppliers, or make fundamental changes to its labor practices? No. Werbach has been brought on to teach Wal-Mart's "associates" how to live a less consumptive existence in their everyday lives, how to eat healthy food and buy compact fluorescent light bulbs on their meager wages.
Wal-Mart's line is that this new "Environmental Health and Wellness Program" was created as a direct response to requests from its employees. Oddly they have not responded to employee requests for a living wage, affordable health care, or unscheduled bathroom breaks. The Wal-Mart Workers Association in Tampa, Fla., sent Werbach a letter respectfully asking him not to lend Wal-Mart his name or environmental credentials. They insightfully point out that greenwashing for Wal-Mart is woefully out of step with the views expressed in his 1997 book Act Now, Apologize Later, in which he compares the retail giant to a "virus, infecting and destroying American culture."
Let's be really blunt: there is no such thing as a green big box that is full of exploited workers selling you cheap disposable stuff made in sweatshops on the other side of the planet. Whenever environmentalists help Wal-Mart score easy "corporate responsibility" points in The New York Times, they set back the efforts of working people in their battle with Wal-Mart, and simply reinforce the flaws of the old environmentalism which Werbach and others declared dead over a year ago.
We've got a multi-issue movement to build, a country to take back, and a planet to save. So get back to work, Adam!
Another coal plant bites the dust
Comments
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sunflower Posted 7:25 am
19 Jul 2006
The enemy of my enemy is my friend
I wonder how Wal-Mart feels about a carbon tax applied on imports made with Chinese coal power. And how they feel about a carbon tax on gasoline.
Adam Werbach will be in a position to know.
I am happy to hear about these developments at Wal-Mart.
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rh Posted 5:12 am
20 Jul 2006
Werbach makes an honest attempt at doing something that could actually make a difference and it doesn't take a week for someone to tear it down.
Way to go, Team Left!
rh
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kcmobirdie Posted 5:15 am
20 Jul 2006
There are many different perspectives on what are the best methods to use to achieve environmental goals, and they are often presented in
opposition: work within the system (in this case a system the size of a small country) or, oppose the system on principles, compromising
nothing. What if instead of opposition, we allow each to work within their own framework and accomplish what they can within their own
perspectives. In other words, work within the system, AND continue to challenge the system from the outside (being its conscience or
voice of integrity). It's time for to use the word "and" rather than "or". Every perspective has a piece of the truth, places of effectiveness and places of limitation. In the end - using many approaches, from many perspectives, working together, will get us the environmental results we all want.
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wideye Posted 6:40 am
24 Jul 2006
there is no doubt that wal-mart has no love for giving its workers the type of voice that can only come through collective bargaining, so its disheartening to see what appears to be an abandonment of a call made only a few years ago.
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Aaron Ostrovsky Posted 4:14 am
28 Jul 2006
Although Dudley and Sellers might seem cynical, they are giving Werbach a treatment right out of his own book and I think he deserves it. (I would encourage the doubting commentators to read or re-read Werbach's speech, it's great.) As Werbach himself said, this movement can no longer be green - it is about progressive policy, secular humanism, and improving life generally for all on this planet. Werbach himself acknowledged that all things are connected - he is doing no good at Wal-Mart if he is "selling" green light bulbs to people who can't afford health-care. But I bet he is being well compensated.
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Catmoves Posted 4:46 am
02 Aug 2006
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farnishk Posted 6:04 am
02 Aug 2006
So who is right? Well, in fact all of them are to a certain extent. As long as positive change is being achieved, and I mean change that doesn't come at the expense of other parts of the natural environment, or is simply "greenwash", then it should be supported. Each of us may have our own favoured niche, but we all need to look inwards for a minute and consider whether we are being too insular and that there are other, equally valid ways, of making a difference.
Keith Farnish
http://www.theearthblog.org
http://www.reduce3.com
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South Park Diva Posted 12:59 am
26 Aug 2007
Mr. Werbach is first trying to reach the people who work for Wal-Mart and then the people who shop there. How many people is that? Across how many states?
This is a bold move he has made and only time will tell whether it has a real impact. He is reaching out to those who live paycheck to paycheck and giving them reasons to change. Reasons that will have a positive impact on their daily lives.
Perhaps he will fail. Perhaps he will succeed. Again - only time will tell.
I am looking forward to following his work in the coming years and pray that he has the positive impact he envisions.
Best of luck Adam!
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Kimberly Glass Posted 12:50 pm
31 Jan 2008
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