From Petra to Greta, the green movement

3 minutes read

Two weeks ago, I went in to greet a young German professor in my University Sustainability Department. I carried under the excellent biography of Petra Kelly by Sara Parkin[i]. I asked her if she knew her founding compatriot of the German Greens; she had no idea. I did the same exercise later among other young academics by downloading it, getting the same result. I said to myself, once again, an amazing woman, a key figure in the European eco feminism erased from history.

Last weekend the elections in Germany gave the German green party a third place. And to understand this long road of the German Greens, the figure of Petra Kelly is essential, whose thirtieth anniversary we will celebrate next year. In the 1980s, a significant part of the German and European public surrendered to her charismatic leadership.

Petra was one of the founders of the German Green Party (Bündnis 90/Die Grünen), and she brought her experience and emotions to the world of politics. She wanted to do politics differently, with tenderness and with authenticity. She led prevalent struggles against the installation of nuclear missiles in Europe or called for a free Tibet. Kelly and her colleagues were the first party to incorporate into politics issues that traditional parties had not done: grassroots democracy, pacifism, feminism, and environmental protection. She said the German parliament needed "to be revitalized by a non-violent, creative ecology, a pacifist movement, and an uncompromising anti-party party."

The appearance of a Swedish girl who began the "school strike for the climate" in front of her country's parliament three years ago has also contributed to the rise of the German Greens. Greta Thunberg has changed the story of the fight against the climate crisis and told the rulers of the world: "My name is Greta and I want you to panic, ... for more than thirty years, science has been clear, as you dare to keep looking the other way and come here saying that you are doing enough ... ?. Following Greta's example, the world's youth are beginning to demand climate justice. The easiest for many detractors has been to kill the messenger, that if she is manipulated, that if she should be in school ... For traditional politics, Greta disturbs them, as Petra did thirty years ago.

And surprisingly, traditional politics is uncomfortable for green parties. Despite Petra Kelly's legacy, German greens and other greens in Northern Europe, where people are theoretically more sensitive to these issues, have never been necessary. The latest votes from the green parties in Norway (3.8%), Sweden (4.4%), Denmark (7.7%), and Finland (11.5%) have sometimes allowed them to enter coalition governments. But little else. It seems that so far, the corset of a traditional party brings many problems to people who defend environmental positions. Perhaps this change this last Sunday in Germany? Annalena Baerbock, currently the leader of the German Greens, has taken a less annoying stance on the status quo, seeking to broaden the party base. Far from the figure of Petra Kelly, who shook Germany in the 1980s.

Maybe Petra Kelly and Greta Thunberg teach us that we need to go beyond matches, and we need a green movement that disturbs those of the gray suits. A green movement with many social bases brings together many people who want to put the planet at the center and not the economy. It is a green movement that reminds us all that our planet has limits and cannot exceed them. These planetary limits are the ones we must all vindicate together and defend. Hopefully, as Petra Kelly said: "We do not see the final peace near, and we will not reach utopia. The warlords will continue to be born in our grief. But if we do not give in to pessimism, hope will sprout, and anxiety will fade."

[i] Parkin, Sara (1995). The Life and Death of Petra Kelly. Rivers Oram Press/Pandor