Introduction -- Charles Darwin and the implications of evolution St Francis of Assisi, the patron saint of animals -- Environmentalism gaining momentum: Rachel Carson and 'Silent sping' Denis Hayes and Earth Day -- Planting trees with Wangari Maathai -- In defense of rain forests: Chico Mendes and Bruno Manser Al Gore's fight for the environment -- The strong men of environmentalism: Arnold Schwarzenegger and Steven Seagal Movie stars and activism -- Arne Naess and 'Deep ecology' -- Vandana Shiva and traditional agriculture -- Ian Kiernan, Rossano Ercolini, and Bea Johnson Pioneers of ecological economics -- The Greenpeace story Forerunners of animal advocacy Spokesmen for animals: Peter Singer, Richard Ryder, and Tom Regan -- Henry Spira, the hero of animal advocacy -- Animal advocates from Central Europe -- Albert Schweitzer: The man who loved all living beings Talking animals: The capacity of animal minds -- Primatologists Jane Goodall, Dian Fossey and Biruté Galdikas Ingrid -- Newkirk, Alex Pacheco, and PETA -- John Muir and Yosemite -- Aldo Leopold, the founding father of nature conservation -- James Lovelock and the Gaia-hypothesis -- Their symbol: The giant panda -- Scientists involved in conservation and environmentalism -- Gerald Durrell: How an amateur naturalist developed into a great conservationist Farley Mowat never cried wolf -- David Attenborough, the grand old man of natural history films Jacques-Yves Cousteau: Under the spell of the sea -- Paul Watson, the daredevil of conservation -- Epilogue -- Acknowledgements List of illustrations.

This book provides an introduction into the diversity of the environmental movement through great characters in the green sector. The book describes inspiring personal achievements, and at the same time it provides readers with information regarding the history, the main directions and the ethical principles of the environmental movement. Some of the most important characters of the movement from all around the world, are included in the book. As well as the title characters, Buddha and Leonardo DiCaprio, other famous environmentalists like Albert Schweitzer, David Attenborough and Jane Goodall are discussed. Some of the less well-known but equally important environmentalists such as Chico Mendes, Bruno Manser, Henry Spira, Tom Regan or Rossano Ercolini are highlighted in the various chapters. The selection of characters represents all major branches within the green sector, ranging from medieval saints to Hollywood celebrities, from university professors to field activists, from politicians to philosophers, from ecofeminists to radicals.