Radicalism and the Forestry Environmentalist

The "No Compromise" radical environmentalist is a radicalized branch of the larger environmental movement that emerged out of frustration with mainstream environmentalism. Radical scholar Christopher Manes called the movement "a new kind of environmental activism - iconoclastic, uncompromising, discontented with traditional conservation policy and at times illegal". Manes has since withdrawn from that style of activism and admits, “I was pretty radical back then”.

Manes had major influence on the Earth First! movement (EF!) EF! has developed one of the largest radical environmental presences on the Internet and known for "leaderless resistance" by taking "direct action" in defense of "mother earth" including civil disobedience.

EF! provides large amounts of material to read online and through their "Journal". Earth First! depends heavily on the persuasive power of the movement's writings based on a pantheistic outlook toward Nature. Their rallying point is deceased leader Judi Bari who was maimed in a controversial bombing incident in 1990; she died in 1997 of cancer.

Earth Firsters believe that too many of our wild places have been sacrificed to the evils of capitalism. They also believe that most other "mamby-pamby" environmental organizations have fallen into compromising positions worring more about their image and funding than saving wilderness and have abandoned the concept of "eco-defence". Another group, called the Earth Liberation Front or "Elves", embraced by EF!, promotes "economic sabotage" on targets that are believed to harm the environment.

Radical environmentalists espouse much of the "Deep Ecology" ideology. Anything is fair game when defending this ethic. Their tactics include, but are not limited to, blockades, tree-sits, spiking trees and damaging targeted forest-related property.