Freelance writer and environmentalist Betsy S. Franz has launched a full-scale search for celebrity nature nerds. Franz, who believes that the future health of the environment depends on the willingness of citizens to get “up close and personal” with the wildlife around them, is looking for celebrities to help encourage this message.
“Sure, there are many different shades of ‘green’, and environmental responsibility takes many forms,” Franz says. “Every day citizens and celebrities alike are proud to proclaim their passion for solar energy and hybrid automobiles. But how many of them are ready to come out of the closet when it comes to the more nerdish pastimes such as bird watching and butterfly gardening? How many of them are ready to admit that they not only hug trees, but they also fondle flowers and even caress critters from time to time?”
“Certainly we can imagine animal activist celebs such as Mary Tyler Moore and Ellen DeGeneres getting eye-to-eye with the bunnies and squirrels in their yard. And Martha Stewart must surely appreciate the serenade of songbirds in her flower filled gardens.”
“But what about other well-known environmental celebrities?
“If they haven’t, then perhaps they should. It’s a wonderful cause to want to save the planet but it isn’t a planet of asphalt and steel and carbon spewing monolithic factories that we are trying to save. It’s the miniscule miracles. The sights that, in the past, only the nerds have taken the time to notice. And it is there, perhaps, when one gets eye-to-eye with the birds and the butterflies and the creatures that visit our gardens and wander through our yards, that we realize what it is we are working so hard to protect.”
Franz is conducting her search online and through various bird and nature groups.
“To many people, “nerd” is a dirty word,” Franz said. “But I believe that if some celebrities will begin to espouse the pleasures of birding and wildlife watching, that more and more people will get involved.”
You can follow Franz’s progress on her blog:
http://thenaturelady.blogspot.com/
