Ch. 3 Exercises

EII (International Marine Mammal Project): Freeing Willy

[Update: Keiko died on 12 December, 2003.]

Read about the efforts that were made to return Keiko, star of the "Free Willy" movies, to his natural habitat. Visit EII's International Marine Mammal Project (IMMP) and click on "Keiko" for a brief overview. Then visit Keiko.com ("the official home website of Keiko") and review Keiko's Story: The Timeline.

Questions

  • Was it a good idea for IMMP take on the project of trying to rehabilitate Keiko and release him into the wild? Why or why not?
  • How might IMMP have approached this endeavor differently and still remained true to its organizational principles and goals?

EII: Project Accomplishments

Download EII's 2004 Annual Report [PDF] and read about the Brower Youth Award Winners (pp. 7-9) and Earth Island Projects pp. 10-18).

Questions

  • What types of accomplishments do the Youth Award recipients and EII projects have to show for their efforts?
  • How significant will be the impact of their achievements?
  • What does this tell you about the ability of a few organized individuals to effect political change?

RAN: Wood Certification

Read these two newspaper articles:

Questions

  • How difficult is it to follow through on proposals and promises such as those made during RAN's Home Depot campaign (59)?
  • Given your answer, is it worth the effort of trying to effect such political change? Why or why not?

RAN: U'Wa Campaign

RAN's work with, and on behalf of, indigenous people includes efforts to help the U'wa. Explore the pages linked below (and others as needed) to find out what issues are at stake, how RAN portrays the U'wa and their plight, and how Occidental Petroleum (Oxy) describes its own corporate practices.

If you know Spanish, or if you're willing to work with a rough translation to English, you can also visit the official U'Wa website to see the group's own take on the issues. (Use Babel Fish to translate Web pages.)

Rainforest Action Network (RAN)

Occidental Petroleum (Oxy)

Questions

  • Whose story do you believe, and why?
  • Do the U'Wa need RAN's help? Why or why not?

RAN: Add-Water Campaigning

In an effort to broaden the impact of its campaigns, RAN uses its website to provide individuals with the resources and tools they need to plan and conduct their own activist activities. Browse the materials in RAN's Activist Toolbox.

Questions

  • What kind of tools does RAN make available to would-be activists?
  • Are these tools enough to insure successful activism? Why or why not?
  • Potentially, who could use these tools? What does your answer say about global civil society's "ideologically variable channels of opportunity for political involvement" (19)?

Greenpeace: Genetically Engineered Foods

Visit Greenpeace's True Food Network site. Browse the True Food Shopping List and take a look at the Do It Yourself Supermarket Campaign.

Questions

  • What genetically engineered foods do you regularly eat? Did you know this? Do you care? Why?
  • Why have some companies, such as Kellogg's, phased genetically engineered foods out of their European products but refused to do so in the United States?
  • Would you initiate or participate in a "do it yourself supermarket campaign"? What amount of effort would you be willing to invest in such an effort? What variables (e.g., number of campaign participants, particular targeted supermarket, etc.) might influence your decision? Explain your answers.

Greenpeace: Cyberactivist Community

Browse the Greenpeace Cyberactivist Community, making sure to include a visit to the "about us" page.

Questions

  • Who is involved in this endeavor and in what types of activities are they engaged?
  • To what degree, and in what ways, might this Cyberactivist Community help to reshape world politics? Provide specific examples to support your answers.

Greenpeace: Thirtieth Anniversary

Greenpeace turned 30 in September 2001. Visit the or organization's 30th Anniversary site to read about its "achievements" and "heroes and heroines."

Questions

  • Of the "achievements" presented here, which impress(es) you as most significant? Why?
  • Which is relatively more important in helping Greenpeace accomplish its objectives: its organizational characteristics (e.g., size, philosophy, tactics) or the "heroes and heroines" that carry out its activities? Explain your answer.

Chapters

Resources

Site Info