Realism in Green Politics: Social Movements and Ecological Reform in Germany (Issues in Environmental Politics)

This book addresses the fundamental concerns of political ecology. It makes available in English for the first time the key writings of Helmut Wiesenthal, perhaps the leading exponent of a realist perspective in the German Greens, and a major intellectual force in the international Green movement. Drawing on the debates and social issues that have informed green politics in Germany, Wiesenthal provides a comprehensive critique of leftist and ecological fundamentalism in the green movement. He takes up a central issue in a variety of contexts: how can a complex modern society adapt to ecological constraints without sacrificing human values like democracy, equality, and justice? Weisenthal is particularly concerned to make green politics relevant to the needs of voters who are disenchanted with orthodox party politics. There is important new material reviewing the prospects for green politics in the context of a united Germany. Wiesenthal rejects simplistic dichotomies like "deep and shallow ecology" and draws upon political sociology to propose a reconciliation between ends and means in green strategy.