"When responsibility for environmental problems is individualized, there is little room to ponder institutions, the nature and exercise of political power, or ways of collectively changing the distribution of power and influence in society--to, in other words, "think institutionally." Instead, the serious work of confronting the threatening socio-environmental processes that The Lorax so ably illuminates falls to individuals, acting alone, usually as consumers. We are individualizing responsibility when we agonize over the "paper or plastic" choice at the checkout counter, knowing somehow that neither is right given larger institutions and social structures. We think aloud with the neighbor over the back fence about whether we should buy the new Honda or Toyota hybrid engine automobile now or wait a few years until they work the kinks out, when really what we wish for is clean, efficient, and effective public transportation of the sort we read about in science fiction novels when we were young--but which we can't vote for with our consumer dollars since, for reasons rooted in power and politics, it's not for sale. So we ponder the "energy stickers" on the ultra-efficient appliances at Sears, we diligently compost our kitchen waste, we try to ignore the high initial cost and buy a few compact-fluorescent lightbulbs. We read spirited reports in the New York Times Magazine on the pros and cons of recycling while sipping our coffee, study carefully the merits of this and that environmental group so as to properly decide upon the destination of our small annual donation, and meticulously sort our recyclables. And now an increasing number of us are confronted by opportunistic green-power providers who urge us to "save the planet" by buying their "green electricity"--while doing little to actually increase the quantity of electricity generated from renewable resources.

The Lorax is not why the individualization of responsibility dominates the contours of contemporary American environmentalism. Several forces, described later in this article, are to blame. They include the historical baggage of mainstream environmentalism, the core tenets of liberalism, the dynamic ability of capitalism to commodify dissent, and the relatively recent rise of global environmental threats to human prosperity."

Well worth reading the entire article.

Source: Maniates, Michael F., Individualization: Plant a Tree, Buy a Bike, Save the World?, Global Environmental Politics 1(3), 31-52

Dror

What's lost in the argument about individual responsibility v. institutional change is that both are needed.  We will not get institutional change so long as individuals refuse to make sacrifices and take full responsibility for their actions and decisions.  On the other hand, individuals cannot make good environmental choices where those choices do not exist.  This is not an either-or situation, folks.  People who rail against individual responsibility and sacrifice are just copping out.  But people who think that individual actions alone will solve anything are also dreaming.