Let’s pretend that our wonderful state of California one day decided that it was fed up with being involved in the economic and social rules and norms that the rest of the world deals with. What if the citizens of our fine state revolted against the government in D.C., with a new society in mind emphasizing entirely different values, based on preservation and sustainable living. This is the envisionary approach that Ernest Callenbach took when he wrote his book Ecotopia in 1975. The fictional novel centers around Northern California, Oregon, and Washington, who have seceded from the United States in favor of a much different way of life. In this short futuristic tale, Callenbach paints with vibrant colors the picture of a post-carbon utopia, spending time on each component of society as if they were the pieces of a background to a portrait where the foreground could be you and me. The detail with which he writes his prose, combined with the main setting of San Francisco and its surrounding areas, forced me as a reader to really envision what a society like the one he is suggesting would look and more importantly feel like. Ernest Callenbach’s book Ecotopia describes a culture of emotion, feeling, and nature which we have never seen before. Although many individual parts of the vision may seem flawed, the innovative thinking of social ecology which Callenbach so artfully entwines into a plot line can lead even the average reader to focus on the creativity and ingenuity of environmentalism.
Ecotopia was written in 1975, amid the chaos and rebellion of the 70s. The decade was an incredible time of civil rights protests, feminism, and environmental activism. The 1960s began the hippie movement of ordinary people breaking the bounds of societal norms in hope of a more natural lifestyle. While this liberated existence continued into the early and mid seventies, the time is better known for its forceful movements of change through massive protests, its music, and the transition of the United States into a more equitable and accepting nation. It is no surprise that out of this period came a book such as Ecotopia.
Although the fictional nation-state does not experience large-scale demonstrations, Callenbach did take many of the issues being discussed at the time and incorporate an outcome of his own personal liking into the book. The issues of women’s rights and gender equality are heavily integrated into Ecotopian life, where women are the founders of the main political party, and are not bound by the ropes of societal beliefs that women are incapable of activities that men are, a norm that we still live with today. Also, creativity and self expression were encouraged during the hippie movement and throughout the seventies, and have the presence of an elephant in the room throughout the book. In everything from music and art, to building one’s home or car, ecotopians not only have the ability to be original, but are expected to be.
Finally, the largest and most obvious aspect of life in the 1970s which influenced Ernest Callenbach in his writing was the environmentalist movement. Began by a few, such as Rachel Carson, the ideologies soon became fad, sweeping the nation with not only “green” thoughts, but comprehensive actions as well. The very first Earth Day, on April 22nd 1970, sponsored by Senator Gaylord Nelson and planned by Denis Hayes, was one of the first national recognitions of the need for a more sustainable standard of living. Callenbach framed Ecotopia around this, intertwining issues that were current at the time of his authorship, into an ultramodern fantasy world of a 1970’s American.
The simple plot line that Callenbach writes the book with is an indication of his hopes that people would take much more out of the book than an Aladdin-themed forbidden love story. In actuality, Callenbach first wrote the book as a simple how-to on creating a sustainable society, but was told by publishers that it needed more of a draw for readers. Although I am not sure what was added, this was probably a better choice, as I would imagine it forced him to consider much more the feeling of living in a place such as this, rather than the working logistics. To this (possible) addition, I’d say Callenbach did an extraordinary job of interweaving how the society would work with the day to day emotions that those living there would feel.
Sensory images of togetherness, love, and caring for not only your immediate family, but anyone, are thoughts which evoke a strong sense of longing in many people. As argued in the book, this is because our society lacks all of this interconnectedness among individuals; many of us, similar to the main character William, do not feel attached to people or places, merely objects. This connection is strengthened through the industrial economy in Ecotopia, where almost every product used is produced locally. In this way, every person in society experiences the positive feeling that they have contributed to a better standard of living for their neighbors and friends. Also, when you know the person who made the shirt you are wearing or the bike you are riding, the object gains an increased sense of importance and value. One issue our society today experiences is that we do not see first hand the work that is put into producing our everyday goods, and therefore we are removed from the true cost and value of the object.
Ernest Callenbach wrote Ecotopia with an air of futuristic hopefulness that attracts many, especially those who have studied or read recently about natural disasters, warming waters, and the disappearance of arctic glaciers and coral reefs due to climate change. It is intriguing to think that the book, however, was written over 35 years ago, while the message still rings true: our way of life is unsustainable on this earth. The most inspiring part of the book is that several of the innovations which Callenbach simply imagined have actually been created since the first publishing. I don’t want to make it sound like the book was by far the best ever written- on the contrary there were several parts, including the issue of segregation and war rituals, which I found to be skewed in terms of utopian ideas. Ecotopia sends a drastic message of change to all who sit down in a few lazy afternoons to read it (the book is relatively short). While some individuals may be utterly frightened by the over-enthusiastic utopian perspective of how a sustainable society might function, the bigger picture of achieving some sort of sustainable culture and civilization must be recognized. In a post-carbon city, such as the ones being designed by the Davies Forum class, Ecotopia is a perfect example of a plan based in both imaginative as well as technically feasible solutions for our unsustainable way of life. It lays out plans for not only economic success and achieving a society where carbon is completely eliminated, but also includes social issues that would be fixed through this new type of living, such as intergenerational contact and gender equality. All of these accomplishments, and more, are topics which the Davies Forum as a class has discussed at length as vital pieces to a new, sustainable culture.
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