Professor Aaron Sachs’ lecture about humor and environmentalism presented me with new ideas that I had not previously considered. He argued that environmentalists are so un-humorous that they may be hurting their cause. In my personal experience, I have never met a funny environmentalist, but I can understand why environmentalists would not want to use humor when discussing issues that are so sobering.

I did think of one notable exception to the humorless environmentalists: Jon Stewart. I do not know if Jon Stewart technically qualifies as an environmentalist, but he clearly shares similar views on climate change with many environmentalists. When he was still on the air, I found his humor very effective at persuading viewers. Unfortunately, Jon Stewart is no longer on T.V. Perhaps this is the reason he was not discussed by Professor Sachs.

One memorable example of Jon Stewart using humor to advance his environmental views happened after a Senator brought a snowball into the Senate Chamber in order to disprove climate change. Maybe this was the type of humor that Professor Sachs was envisioning. I do think Jon Stewart’s satire would be more effective at convincing the general public than a dry lecture by an environmentalist.

I also enjoyed the clip that Professor Sachs showed from The West Wing. It showed a group of environmentalists making a presentation to a member of The White House Staff. The staffer was not convinced by the presentation and made some jokes about it. Even though the jokes were somewhat funny the environmentalists did not find any humor in them. Maybe if the environmentalists had joked with the staffer they would have had more success persuading her to support their proposal.