Everything I Know About Environmentalism, I Learned From Star Wars

1. It's all about balance. Anakin was prophesied to be the "one who would bring balance to the force", but the Jedi didn't realise he would do this by weakening the light side and strengthening the dark side. In the environment balance is also desirable, and problems occur when humanity disrupts the natural equilibrium.
2. Man-made objects aren't inherently good or bad, it depends on what they're used for. General Grievous and his droid army were bad news, but R2D2 and C3PO are goodies. Similarly cars, air conditioners and airplanes aren't the enemy, as long as we can use them wisely.
3. C3P0 said "It's against my programming to impersonate a deity." If only humans were so wise!
4. The ewoks with their neat tree-houses (I really wanted to live in one of those!) and slingshots managed to overcome the Federation stormtroopers. Likewise, I believe that a well-coordinated bunch of treehuggers can achieve their aims despite opposition from governments and corporations.
5. Everything is connected. The Force is an energy field created by all living things. It surrounds us and penetrates us. It binds the galaxy together. Well, in the Star Wars universe it does, anyway. In our universe all life is connected too. The Victorian ideas of a hierarchy in nature - top predators, food chain, the ascent of man - they're not true. Tigers aren't the top of the food chain because fleas drink their blood. Does that makes fleas a top predator? In fact everything depends on everything else, so we need to save the plankton just as much as we need to save the whales, and we need to save the fleas as much as the tigers. Or to put it another way, there's always a bigger fish.
6. Shmi Skywalker (Ani's mum) said "You can't stop the change any more than you can stop the suns from setting." Another word for environmentalism is conservation. But we shouldn't aim to preserve everything exactly the same as it is today. That would be unnatural.
7. Size doesn't matter. Yoda was small but he kicked butt. Never think you're too small to make a difference.
8. Don't underestimate the power of the dark side. Big corporations are stealing green clothing. Petrol companies are changing their logos to green leaves and flowers, chemical companies are planting trees and supermarkets are putting solar panels on their roofs. But are they really changing their ways, or are they just adopting highly-visible tokens of eco-friendliness. Are they still raping the planet behind the scenes? Find the facts. Don't be fooled by the marketing.
9. It's never too late to change your ways, and sometimes your children will show you the way. Darth Vader became Anakin again because of Luke's courage. And even hopeless petrol-heads can see the light.
10. The rebels can defeat the Federation. A small band of committed people can bring about change for the better. All it takes is dedication, organisation, loyalty, faith, courage, and a heap of junk that can make the Kessel run in less than twelve parsecs.