Seven Increasingly Complex Questions For: KAREN WEBER

It's hard to resist superlatives when talking about Karen Weber.  As Founder and Executive Director of Boston GreenFest – the multi-culti, omni-cool weekend takeover of Boston City Hall Plaza, whose tenth edition arrives August 11-13 – Weber can certainly stake claim as the linchpin of the city's green movement.

And her position as head of two other important local organizations (the Foundation For a Green Future and Earth Our Only Home, both of which bring greenery to where it wasn't) cements that claim further.

Born in Beverly, MA, Weber is also intensely involved with social justice efforts (informed by her doctorate from Northeastern), green building (she's a LEED AP) and oceanographic research (she's done that all over the world). And, oh yes, she's the mother of four. Ultimately, Karen Weber is a superlative example of what disciplined passion and rigorous intelligence can bring to today's enlightened causes.

How'd you get involved with environmental work?

Well, I suppose it all started because I liked playing outdoors. I've always had a focus on outdoors, and went on to study Marine Biology and Maritime Fisheries, so that's not a far cry from environmental concerns.

After my triplets started elementary school, I met my business partner and we started Earth Our Only Home, to put green roofs on buildings. We quickly saw how valuable this is – how much green roofs can have an impact on the planet. I then connected earth and sea, and started realizing how important that work could be.

So where did Boston GreenFest come from?

In 2007 and '8, I was involved in helping with another festival at City Hall Plaza called AltWheels.  But funding for this industry dried up in 2008, and the women in charge of the festival passed the torch to me, still a neophyte. We decided to broaden the focus of the festival to be more inclusive, so we built an event that would be multi-cultural and fully environmental, and added a big music component. We wanted people to show up and to have fun – and to learn while having fun.

In many ways, Boston GreenFest is about outreach.  What are some of the important things that green activists can do to engage young people?

Communication is the key. If they're on their screen, go to their screen; if they're in school, go to school. Find out what their concerns are. Then ask them simple questions: How long can you go without air? Without water? Because if we don't have these essentials, we aren't going too far. So what are the things we need to do to manage those two very important resources, because right now it doesn't look like our politicians believe we need to breathe or drink.

As you see it, what are most encouraging new developments in green awareness?

A really strong expansion of ideas of social justice. More people are seeing that we cannot be sustainable if people aren't respecting each other, cultivating a sense of dignity and gratitude for each other. The social justice movement, considering each other's rights in a full and meaningful way – when you're doing that you're also respecting the planet. Caring for our planet is caring for ourselves.

Often – maybe usually – there's a gulf between what we know and what we do.  For environmental progress, what's necessary to convert understanding into action?

A couple of things. It's usually said the only way you can touch people is with some issue that affects them first hand – some episode of pollution or fracking or whatever that impacts them directly. Then people respond with: You know what, I matter, I can do my part in my corner. And then that impacts the next person.

Beyond that, you have to have a constant supply of role models and ideas that people can relate to – we have to provide regular reminders that we can move in other directions. I've seen a lot of students who want to start non-profits, they're volunteering their time, they're signing up for environmental-science majors – and they're combining it with the arts, with the other sciences, with business. People are visibly starting to find their way to new frontiers.

Things go one at a time – but we will definitely hit the social tipping point. Now we just have to pray that we hit the social tipping point before mother nature gets to her tipping point. Unfortunately, it may be like when you have to put a traffic light an an intersection. You only do it after enough people have died there. In this case, it may be too late if we wait.

Is consumerism inherently inimical to sustainability?

No. Consumerism can also be used to achieve environmental goals. They say that if only five percent of consumers said they want GMO's labeled, it would be enough to turn the tide. If people are not going to put money into these companies – if they say, We're not buying it figuratively, we're not buying it physically, then that will be it. And if young people get the word out through their apps and their new forms of entrepreneurship, there will be a shift – we're only a few years away from that.

Strategically, where is the green movement falling short?

In not working together enough. We replicate too much. Everyone wants their own cause to stand out. With an event like Boston GreenFest, yes, we want to provide an opportunity where a lots of groups can showcase – but we also want to give them opportunities to find out what each other's doing, to create healthy and efficient synergies. We need to communicate with each other more and then work with one another.

That sounds like a plug for Steve's Weave!

That doesn't sound like a complex question!

5/3/17