SAMPLE/AVAILABLE ENVIRONMENTAL TALKS BY RIVERKEEPER, FRED TUTMAN
• Guess who is not coming to the tree hugging rally?
A quick look around any gathering of environmentalists and you will likely see the stark absence of three particular interest groups: people of faith, the working class and those of color. Three groups hardest hit by environmental disparities and yet the “green” movement has failed to attract, engage or even build a strong base of support among these underserved stakeholders. Why has the untapped potential of a fully inclusive movement eluded the “green” movement and what must we do in order to assure that the work of protecting the planet is diverse and reflective as the rest of our society?
Riverkeeper Fred Tutman draws on anecdotes, humor and impassioned oratory to show how environmentalism has become a social movement artificially delinked from social justice, and he argues that the reconciliation of this crucial linkage offers the best hope for a compassionate cause movement that can capture the willpower of the majority. (inspiring, challenging and thought provoking)
• Why did the environmentalist cross the road?
At the heart of quite a lot of environmental advocacy is generally a strong sense of science, education and outreach. Sometimes it is pretty dry stuff and about as engaging as a pop science quiz. As a movement of educators and naturalists we tend to anchor our efforts on behalf of the planet within the zeal of spreading the word to others about biodiversity, habitat, endangered species, climate change and more. But has our love of nature for its own sake, blinded us to the very human, ironic and fallible aspects of the world and the people who inhabit it? Why for example is there so little environmental humor? Has the allure of well-funded messaging campaigns strangled the grassroots soul of environmentalist? Perhaps our goals for the planet while serious and with high stakes have made is less accessible and harder to interact with. Fred Tutman is an environmentalist on the front lines of ecoadvocacy who uses humor, anecdotes, a deeply inspirational view of the world to postulate an environmental movement that can capture both people’s hearts and their minds. (funny, warm and affirming)
• Waterkeepers: How the fastest growing movement in the world is fighting and winning battles other groups don’t know exist.
Senegal, India, Hungary, throughout Latin America and much of the continental United States. Citizen advocates are fighting for clean water and strong communties. For the past three years Fred Tutman has been a member of the Board of Directors for Waterkeeper Alliance, the world’s fastest growing environmental movement. It is a movement born on the Hudson and closely identified with environmental lawyer Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. The advocacy model has ties to a medieval notion of citizen watchdogs (keepers) who protect the commons. There are now almost 200 Waterkeepers on 5 continents working to protect their individual waterways by helping to uphold the local environmental laws and rally citizens to action. Waterkeepers have an internal culture that flies in the face of the usual conventions about strong environmental movements. The groups are funded by the communities they serve and are often at odds with establishment power, while usually fighting monied vested interests.
The Waterkeeper movement is populated by heroic true believers from all walks who share a single goal: Clean Water and Healthy Communities. What makes this relatively young movement tick? What is the history and internal culture of this movement of citizens taking back their waterways from the likes of government indifference, regulatory sloth and public apathy? (a call to arms, galvanizing, inspiring)
See an on line interview with Fred Tutman: http://www.vimeo.com/24462813
Download an electronic press kit Fred Electronic Press Kit
Send an email to inquire about having Fred give a talk/speech (Ftutman@gmail.com)
