We travel together, passengers on a little spaceship...
Planet Patriots
(Authors, Artists, Activists, Scientists, Musicians, and Poets...)
People can be Planet Patriots in many ways, not only of the written word, but as artists of creative and inspirational life. Some are writers and authors – whether storytellers, essayists, play-writers, screenwriters, or poets, which are frequently the starting point for many other art forms. Their medium might painting, photography, film, or sculpture, music or songwriting, dance, computer programming, video games or tattoos, or the crafts of woodworking, glass-making, welding, fiber art, or research in history, scientific experimentation, geographical exploration, the development of useful technology, culinary arts for personal and planetary health, or the art of civil disobedience and peaceful public protest demanded by conscience. As Henry David Thoreau said, “It is something to be able to paint a particular picture, or to carve a statue, and so to make a few objects beautiful; but it is far more glorious to carve and paint the very atmosphere and medium through which we look, which morally we can do. To affect the quality of the day, that is the highest of arts.”
Note: We all need heroes to empower people of all ages to realize their own potential to create positive change in the world. One does not have to embrace all statements made by an author or their behavior to find value in their essential message. It is easy to say, as Andrew McNight said of Ansel Adams, that he “was no hero, cursed with pride and foible.”
But McNight goes on to clarify: “like any Einstein you find, take everything you can… let us see like Ansel Adams did.” A hero does not have to be someone who is perfect, but is a person who has made the world a better place, and helps point the way to how we may do the same. The Planet Patriots revealed and celebrated on these pages can all in some way inspire us to have a better relationship with the Earth that is our home.
This collection of web pages about various Planet Patriots is designed to remember the people who paved the way for the modern environmental movement. The focus here is on people who helped to preserve the natural environment, because even if you live in a city, it is the natural world that ultimately sustains us. We must build on the legacy of those pioneers in planet patriotism who came before us. For that reason, mostly historical, deceased people are listed in the first section below. The inspiration of these people can help people in our contemporary world extend the path that these pioneers started – to protect wilderness; to protect people, animals, and the planet against toxic waste and toxic ideas; and to find way to live in better harmony with the Earth. A second section below focuses on my favorite living “authors” who exemplify Planet Patriotism.
Note: It is currently fashionable to denigrate historical figures who we believe were not as enlightened as we are today. Rather than recognizing their achievements in the context of their times, too often we emphasize their failures and shortcomings, as viewed from our contemporary understanding of things. It is important to recognize, however, that despite their foibles and the inherent (unavoidable, really) backwardness of their times, we all stand on the shoulders of giants who laid the foundations upon which we can now so confidently aspire to reach greater heights. (This is aside from the many factual inaccuracies for some of these figures, such as John Muir.) An evolutionary view reveals that each iteration of past and present Planet Patriots continue to evolve over the generations. As Theodore Roosevelt said, “Men must be judged with reference to the age in which they dwell.” We need not worship historical figures to find much to admire and to learn from, so long as they are understood in the context of their time and place. We all – especially youth – need people to inspire us, and we are here today solely due to those who came before us, making new discoveries in the arts and sciences especially. In particular, as ecologist Bruce Byers notes, we should be grateful to our conservatist ancestors (of both nature and culture) for their efforts to lead us away from our selfish, Eurocentric and anthropocentric worldview, which has been despoiling our continent for centuries. The recent misguided attacks on those whose lives and thought have inspired us to conserve the wildlife, wild places, culture, and beauty of the Earth are completely counterproductive.
Planet Patriots can be found all over the world; but for practical purposes I focus here almost solely on people from the United States – whether they are immigrants (like John Muir and those whose ancestors hail from Europe, Africa, or elsewhere), or indigenous people (like Black Elk).
Some of the best Planet Patriot Authors are featured below. People can be Planet Patriots in many ways. Some are writers and authors, not only of the written word, but as artists of creative and inspirational life. Our Featured Planet Patriots contain biographical sketches, illustrated First Day or Event Covers or postage stamps when available, a bibliography, favorite quotes for each author, and related websites for each.
David Brower – As editor, activist, and writer Brower is known as one of the leading Planet Patriots of the 20th century.
Rachel Carson – the “fountainhead of the modern environmental movement.”
Jimmy Carter – President Carter, who reached age 100 on October 1, 2024, and died on December 29, 2024, was one of the greatest, but largely unacknowledged, conservation figures in American history. Former President Carter’s accomplishments in preserving Alaska’s wildlands with the passage of the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act (ANILCA) in 1980, have certainly elevated him into the conservation pantheon that includes such giants as Henry David Thoreau, John Muir, Teddy Roosevelt, Aldo Leopold, and Olaus and Mardy Murie. With the stroke of his pen, Carter created or added to sixteen wildlife refuges, thirteen national parks, two national forests, two national monuments, and twenty-six wild and scenic rivers. These are not just “business as usual” protected lands, but conservation on an unprecedented, ecosystem-sized scale. The land and water legacy left behind by Jimmy Carter through ANILCA is virtually unparalleled in this country or really, anywhere in the world. Jimmy Carter more than doubled the size of the National Park System and it remains the single largest expansion of protected lands in history. Carter’s ANILCA legislation set aside more congressionally designated wilderness than any conservation law before or since. Then-president Carter knew, as Thoreau presciently put it, “In wildness is the preservation of the world.” The 104-million acres of Alaska wildlands protected by President Carter’s bold efforts, just like his placement of solar panels on the White House roof 43 years before it was mainstream, are evidence that he saw farther into the future than most American presidents before or since. (Text written by Peter Christian, director of communications for the National Park Service, Alaska Region.)
Dr. Harold Wm. Wood, D.V.M.. My father can be considered a true Planet Patriot as he worked for over 50 years as a veterinarian. His inspiring philosophy of life was derived from working with animals from bees to elephants, and people all over the world “No matter the color of their face, no matter of their ancestral race.” Born in Oklahoma two years before statehood, Doc Wood had a fascinating life from growing up on a cotton farm to pursuing a higher education to become a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine which became his life-long career, taking him to faraway places and meeting people from all over the world. This resulted in his philosophy appreciating all people, human and non-human alike: “People are beautiful. From the gorgeous movie star to the tiny baby in its crib asleep. The fat, the thin, the short and the tall. I love them all… Large and small animals and the uniqueness of each species combining their individual colors and habits bring beauty to every corner of the universe! Insects that fly or crawl, birds and bees, I love them all.” You can read his stories in his book I Love Them All (2013, 2025).
John Muir and “Godful” Nature by Raymond Barnett, in the academic journal Religions special issue on “Spiritual Examplars,” (2012, 3(2), 266-288.) Discusses John Muir’s view that asks us to adopt a gaiacentric, not anthropocentric, perspective on our place in the universe, and how that view came to define Muir’s faith and serve his noble purpose of preserving the Wilderness.
Tim DeChristopher – Environmentalist imprisoned for nearly 2 years for his protest bidding in 2008 for 14 oil and gas leases located on public land in Utah’s redrock country that was later canceled after a court injunction for failing to meet environmental standards.
Ron Eber – Pacific Northwest Environmental & Wilderness Campaign History
Joe and “Bugs” Fontaine –“Bugs” and Joe Fontaine with his book, The Kern Plateau and Other Gems of the Southern SierraMy friends Joe and Bugs were mainstays in protecting the southern Sierra Giant Sequoias. I first met Joe driving to a Wilderness conference in the 70’s, before he became Sierra Club President (1980-1982), where I hosted him when I was Chair of the Club’s Cascade Chapter. I later worked closely with him in the Sierra Club’s Kern-Kaweah Chapter and the Giant Sequoia Task Force. His contributions as a grassroots volunteer are immense; as are those of his wife, fondly called “Bugs” given Leah’s life-long love of creatures large and small. Sadly, Bugs passed away February 22 2025.
Bonnie Gisel (off-site link) – Author, presenter, and historian.
Ursula Goodenough – Scientist, author, and President of the Religious Naturalist Association
Robert Hanna at the gravesite of his great-great grandfather, John Muir.
Robert Hanna – The Great-Great-Grandson of John Muir continues to support protection of our planet just like his famous ancestor did. See interviews and background here:
(Radio Interview of Robert Hanna by Capital Public Radio, February 24, 2016). Hanna is also the driving force behind a resolution, introduced Thursday, April 21, 2016 in the California state legislature, that would rename as Buffalo Soldier Memorial Highway a stretch of road at the south entrance of Yosemite National Park. As the precursors to national park rangers and backcountry rangers, and as attendants during the ground-breaking meetings between President Theodore Roosevelt and John Muir in Yosemite Valley, the Buffalo Soldiers helped set the stage, it can be argued, for the establishment of a system of U.S. national parks. Hanna’s appreciation of their story is just one of his efforts to provide a bridge between national parks and communities of color. Together with the great-great grandson of Theodore Roosevelt, Robert Hanna has written prominently in defense of our national parklands, see, e.g.. Despoiling Our National Parks Betrays our Democracy(Newsweek, December 19, 2017). He recently led a successful effort to designate part of California highway 120 in Yosemite as the Chiuru Obata Great Nature Memorial Highway (Rafu Shimpo, Los Angeles Japanese Daily News (9/16/21).
Founder of clothing company, Range of Light, Range of Light on YouTube – while the company is no longer in business, Robert continues to work on behalf of the natural world as exemplified in this video drawing upon the words of John Muir.
James Hansen – Retired NASA scientist who has tried to warn us about global climate change for decades
David Seaborg – (Wikipedia) – author of the poetry book Love Thy Sowbug and two scientific tomes with an Autocatyltic Hypothesis about how organisms amplify diversity (How Life Increases Biodiversity).
African American author Leah Thomas identifies several Black Women environmentalists as her environmental heroes. Regrettably these are all contemporary persons, reflecting the sad history of our country:
Betty Reid Sorskin
Hazel M. Johnson
Teresa Baker
Gloria Walton
Dr. Rae Wynn-Grant
In addition, we should applaud the following Black environmental heroes:
Barack Obama – As President, he protected more natural habitat than any president in American history, exceeding the 290 million acres by the founder of US National Parks, Theodore Roosevelt. Among his many accolades: protecting nearly 550 million acres of habitat, from Arctic tundra to coral reef; creating the two largest marine reserves on Earth (which included quadrupling the size of Hawaii’s Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument) and the world’s second-largest desert reserve—made up of the more than 1.8- million-acre Mojave Trails, Sand to Snow and Castle Mountains national monuments; and adding 22 new parks to the U.S. national park system. He continues to advocate for protection of our Planet. On September 3, 2022, Obama won the “Best Narrator” Emmy in the 2022 Emmy Awards for a Netflix documentary series, “Our Great NAtional Parks.” Obama describes these national parks from around the world as “our shared birthright.” They “regulate our climate, clean our air, and purify our water,” he says. They also provide us places to restore ourselves and reconnect with nature, introduce us to unusual creatures and their extraordinary behaviors and are breeding grounds for scientific research. “Give nature a chance and it will recover,” says Obama. “Chilean Patagonia is an inspiring example when we work together with nature and believe in the true value of our national parks.” An earlier comment by President Obama, made on June 16, 2016 when he visited Yosemite, expresses his views on planet patriotism: “This planet belongs to all of us. It’s the only one we’ve got. And we can’t give lip service to that notion, but then oppose the things that are required to protect it. We have to have the foresight and the faith in the future to do what it takes to protect our parks and to protect this planet for generations to come. And that’s especially true for our leaders in Washington. It’s what Lincoln did when he set aside this ground for all posterity. That’s what Muir and Roosevelt did when they inspired the national parks system. That’s what our generation has to do. We’ve got to summon that same vision for the future.”
Off-site Links
Sadly, many of the creators of these sites have failed to uphold their responsibility to put in forwarding links to new locations for their web pages. Rather than deleting them, you may find information about these Planet Patriot heroes with a search engine or on the Internet Archive Wayback Machine. Use at your own risk.
Bonobo Conservation Initiative – Co-founded by Sally Jewell Coxe, known as “Mama Bonobo,” Sally has worked tirelessly for over 20 years to protect bonobos, preserve the Congo rainforest, and empower Congolese communities as leaders in conservation.
Dr. Bruce Hayse – Organizer and a major funder of a nonprofit group, African Rainforest and Rivers Conservation, which operates an armed, independent anti-poaching operation to safeguard 100,000 square miles [260,000 square kilometers] of eastern Central African Republic rain forest and savanna from the slaughter of professional poachers.
Other Planet Patriots
Matriotism by Elouise Bell – The author argues that a “matriot” – from Latin mater, is the Earth equivalent to patriotism – one who loves and loyally or zealously supports her motherland, her own planet – Mother Earth. Matriotism, argues the author, is yin to patriotism’s yang. It’s about the Earth, not the world. It’s about what those fortunate few have seen from spaceship portals, not what we see on a map or a globe with regularly updated borderlines and political color-coding. From Earth Island Journal (Summer, 2002). Sounds just like Planet Patriotism to me!
Here is an introductory list compiled by Elouise Bell which she calls “Matriots”:
And all of the Goldman Environmental Award Winners and the nearly 700 recepients of the United Nations Environment Programme’s (UNEP) Global 500 Award.
People can be Planet Patriots in many ways. Some are writers and authors, not only of the written word, but as artists of creative and inspirational life. Their medium might be the written world, or instead paint or sculpture, music or songwriting, the crafts of woodworking or photography, research in history or science, the development of useful technology, and even in the art of civil disobedience and peaceful public protest demanded by conscience. As Henry David Thoreau said, “It is something to be able to paint a particular picture, or to carve a statue, and so to make a few objects beautiful; but it is far more glorious to carve and paint the very atmosphere and medium through which we look, which morally we can do. To affect the quality of the day, that is the highest of arts.”
Note: We all need heroes to empower people of all ages to realize their own potential to create positive change in the world. One does not have to embrace all statements made by an author or their behavior to find value in their essential message. It is easy to say, as Andrew McNight said of Ansel Adams, that he “was no hero, cursed with pride and foible.”
But McNight goes on to clarify: “like any Einstein you find, take everything you can… let us see like Ansel Adams did.” A hero does not have to be someone who is perfect, but is a person who has made the world a better place, and helps point the way to how we may do the same. The Planet Patriots revealed and celebrated on these pages can all in some way inspire us to have a better relationship with the Earth that is our home.
