Our undergraduate project assistant, Eddie Henry, summarised dozens of our interviews with environmentalists. So what did he make of them?

With hundreds of hours of audio tracks, being asked to provide concise summaries of life stories was an initially intimidating task for a 20-year-old new to this type of qualitative research. Writing summaries to accompany interviews in the British Library catalogue and help make the interviews easier to navigate, like most administrative work, was something that seemed important but slightly mundane. It felt at first that the fun parts of research had already been conducted, and I was simply helping with the boring bits. I also thought I knew what the environmental movement was, from the various political activity seen on my university campus. Big names like ‘Just Stop Oil’ and ‘Insulate Britain’ were constantly in my news feed. Greenpeace was always the first group I thought of when someone said the word ‘environmentalist’, and I vaguely knew where the Green Party came from. 

However, as I began working through the interviews, it was not long until the value of the project became infectious. With each new name I heard, every person and organisation off-handedly mentioned, I became entranced with how much there was for me to learn. The 50-year web of UK environmentalism slowly unravelled, demonstrating its scale, interconnectivity, and complexity. Through completing important administrative duties for the project, I found myself reinventing my conception of what environmentalism is, hearing its powerful stories, and the deep humanity that exists within it all. It became a privilege to learn such a rich history, stretching all the way back to the Victorian dogmas of conservation, tracing the surge of environmentalism in the 1970s. The half-century that followed became a puzzle to solve, piecing together all the different people and movements that became entwined with each other. I never would have anticipated the excitement of hearing a particular campaign, protest, or policy be mentioned by various interviewees, their lives all briefly united. The name drop of another person being interviewed became the sticking glue of this historical personal network. 

It was from this that I learned a major value of the environmental movement, which could only be truly understood through its history and the oral accounts of those who lived it. With each anecdotal story told, the interpersonal bonds were always what left me both hopeful and inspired. Whether it was hiding under tables during Earth Summit meetings or the conversations had in a tunnel under the A30, each person had stories of human connection even in the direst moments. With each victory and defeat, every road blocked and policy lobbied, there was always a fiery humanity to it. Hearing each persons’ upbringing, education, and personal life, not only enriched the humanity behind their contributions, but served as a reminder that every environmentalists has their own story. It is these stories which portray love for people and drive for collaboration that unites every person who considers themselves an environmentalist. When summarising each hour of an interview into just 500 words, it seemed impossible to document every incredible moment mentioned, every joked cracked, every minor interruption of a pet dog sniffing the microphone. Each tangible sense of reality is something I hope the summaries encourage people to experience for themselves, when they go on to listen to the accompanying recordings and read their transcripts. 

As a soon-to-be graduating Sociology student, my involvement in the project has provided me a substantial foundation of what qualitive research can be and what it can accomplish, appreciating the particular benefits of an oral history methodology. But beyond that, the project has taught me that it is not only a love for nature that drives environmentalists, but a love for people, community, and connection. It is clear to me how valuable it is for younger generations to understand this vast personal history, in a format which reflects the humanity of the movement. So, I implore any young environmentalist, who is struggling not to feel pessimistic about our future, to explore this fantastic archive of stories. These oral histories demonstrate how our passion, humanity, and collective strength is something that has always managed to prevail. It has been a privilege to help facilitate this impact. As a young person fearful of the fate of his world, this collection of interviews provides a novel kind of hope – that there has always been ordinary people doing their best, and their best has done so much more than we realise.