Famous Environmental Activists - List of Famous Environmental Activists

An environmental activist may refer to a person who advocates and works for the cause of protecting the natural environment from various forms of destruction and degradation. An activist may be strongly passionate about conservation of the environment, its improvement, preservation, pollution control and plant and animal diversity. An environmental activist works for various environmental issues and campaigns including climate change, sustainable development, sustainable agriculture, waste management and renewable sources of energy among others. The need to protect the environment in various ways was recognized as early as 1272, when King Edward I of England forbid the practice of burning of sea coal. While during the Industrial Revolution in Europe, pollution in the air was one of the mainly recognized environmental problems of that time. The term environmentalism, originated in the year 1922 as a social movement with the main objective of influencing political process related to the environment. Environmental activists in the 21st century have been using the internet effectively, to create awareness about environment related issues and launch various environmental campaigns. Learn more intriguing and informative facts about some of the world’s most famous environmental activists, with their biographies that include trivia, interesting facts, timeline and life history.

The Most Famous Environmental Activists

NameBirthdayNationalityBio
Erin BrockovichJune 22, 1960AmericanErin Brockovich is an American environmental activist and legal clerk
Mark RuffaloNovember 22, 1967AmericanMark Ruffalo is an American actor, director, and environmental activist
David SuzukiMarch 24, 1936CanadianDavid Suzuki is a Canadian academic and science broadcaster
Margaret AtwoodNovember 18, 1939CanadianMargaret Atwood is a Canadian writer, best known for her novels, short stories and poems
Medha PatkarDecember 1, 1954IndianMedha Patkar is a well-known Indian social activist
Wangari MaathaiApril 1, 1940KenyanWangari Maathai was an environmentalist who won the prestigious Nobel Peace Prize Award
Woody HarrelsonJuly 23, 1961AmericanWoody Harrelson is an American actor and activist
Charles Robert Redford Jr.August 18, 1936AmericanRobert Redford is an American actor, environmentalist and is the founder of the ‘Sundance Film Festival’
Laurie DavidMarch 22, 1958AmericanLaurie David is an environmental activist from USA
Laurance RockefellerMay 26, 1910AmericanLaurance Rockefeller was an American businessman, venture capitalist, philanthropist and a prominent environmentalist
Erin Brockovich

Erin Brockovich

Erin Brockovich is an American environmental activist and legal clerk

AmericanJune 22, 19601,036 views

Mark Ruffalo

Mark Ruffalo is an American actor, director, and environmental activist

AmericanNovember 22, 1967402 views

Laurance Rockefeller

Laurance Rockefeller was an American businessman, venture capitalist, philanthropist and a prominent environmentalist

AmericanMay 26, 1910204 views

Rosalie Edge

Rosalie Edge was an American women’s rights activist and environmentalist who founded the Hawk Mountain Sanctuary in Pennsylvania.

Aldo Leopold

Aldo Leopold was a renowned American ecologist, environmentalist and scientist

AmericanJanuary 11, 1887179 views

Baba Amte

Baba Amte was an Indian social activist best remembered for his work for rehabilitation of leprosy patients

IndianDecember 26, 1914160 views

Woody Harrelson

Woody Harrelson is an American actor and activist

AmericanJuly 23, 1961225 views

Wangari Maathai

Wangari Maathai was an environmentalist who won the prestigious Nobel Peace Prize Award

KenyanApril 1, 1940288 views

Gary Snyder

Pulitzer Prize winner and famously known as the ‘poet laureate of Deep Ecology’, Gary Snyder is an American poet, travel writer, translator, essayist, lecturer and environmental activist.

AmericanMay 8, 1930162 views

Livia Giuggioli

Livia Giuggioli is an Italian documentary film producer and environmental activist