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Point of View by DON CHEN
 Within the ELP community, the future of the environmental movement is a hot topic. For insights into emerging challenges, I sometimes turn to the opposition. This month's anti-environmental cause cÈlËbre are farmers in Klamath Falls, Oregon, where severe drought conditions have forced federal officials to withhold irrigation water to prevent further decline of the endangered sucker fish and the coho salmon.
In protest, the farmers have organized bucket brigades, monkey wrench missions to open irrigation lines, and a massive blitz of billboard publicity with slogans like "Who are the real suckers?" Meanwhile, environmentalists have kept a low profile, occasionally discussing legal precedent and defending the Endangered Species Act.
The dispute is still unresolved, but one thing is clear: the farmers appear to be winning the public relations battle. They have captured the public's imagination, portraying themselves as hard-working people driven to ruin by an uncaring government that prioritizes fish over people. In most of the media coverage, federal officials come off as detached defenders of abstract ideals.
If history repeats itself, the movement will be defined by this leading edge of conflict, as environmental values start bumping up against other interests. Tomorrow's most urgent crises-such as climate change, dwindling biodiversity, growing environmental inequities-appear far more daunting than previous challenges. Since the 1970s, we've devoted most of our efforts to regulating big industrial facilities and corporate practices. Emerging challenges now require us to also deal with anyone who drives, buys a new house, or turns a faucet.
That's what's happening in Klamath Falls. There appears to be a conflict in basic values: people vs. fish, property rights vs. the Endangered Species Act, freedom vs. tyranny. No longer are we the Erin Brockoviches of the world, fighting against bad guy polluters who value profits over people. We ourselves are the problem, our day-to-day activities collectively impact the environment far more than any corporation ever did.
So what's the solution? It's really a matter of how to appeal to peoples' values. Conservative commentators like Rush Limbaugh are making great sport of Klamath Falls by telling the story repeatedly and making resounding declarations of principle. They're instilling anti-environmental values, and they're faring pretty well.
Environmentalists should take note. Storytelling is a powerful way to teach, inspire, and the communicate values. From the Tao te Ching to The Children's Book of Virtues, collections of stories-fairy tales, mythology, legends, folk tales-have enabled people to entertain, educate, and pass traditions on to younger generations for centuries. Such stories form the common culture of societies; they help us understand how the world works, what we believe in, and why we bond with each other.
I won't pretend to know what's best for environmentalists in Klamath Falls. But I am convinced that their portrayal in the media reflects many familiar shortcomings in the way we environmentalists communicate: an over-reliance on data-analysis and sound bites. This is the currency of the mainstream environmental movement-a reflection of our first opportunities for change: science-based policy making. But as we confront the environmental challenges generated by ordinary day=to=day living, we should consider dispensing with the usual charts and tables, and instead turn to narrative, drama, and values as tools for change. This is standard operating procedure for a whole range of social-change activists, from missionaries to labor organizers. We can learn a lot from them.
I love to tell the story of the Sheridan Expressway in New York City. A number of environmental justice groups want authorities to tear down the 1.25-mile highway and replace it with a park, complete with greenways and public waterfront access. State highway officials have proposed spending $420 million to refurbish the roadway, but activists have made the proposal look ridiculous. Last year, they gathered a bunch of people and staged a sit-in. On the highway. During rush hour. A photo of them sitting on the deserted asphalt-no cars in sight-made the front page of The New York Post.
There are countless stories like these in the environmental movement-the human destruction of the Everglades, the mutation of endocrine systems in amphibians, the resurrection of the Dudley Street neighborhood in Boston-stories that have complexity, clear cause and effect, and a heavy dose of drama. They can make statistics and factoids come alive, and they should be part of our common culture as environmentalists-lessons and morals we can carry with us and share with anyone who will listen.
At ELP retreats, I've heard historian Bill Cronon describe himself by simply saying, "I tell stories." Fellow Marsha Weisiger talked about using history lessons to inform today's policy making. Pablo Padilla has described the power of the Navajo oral tradition, and how it has shaped values for generations. The future of the environmental movement lies in the stories we tell, and through them, the values we can pass on. Then we can live happily ever after.
DON CHEN is director of Smart Growth America, a national advocacy coalition promoting a better way to grow. He is co-chair of the ELP Board of Trustees.
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