If membership figures are any indication, the 1990s
will be a lot tougher for many environmental groups than the 1980s.
Traditional heavyweights like The Wilderness Society, the National
Audubon Society, the Sierra Club and The National Wildlife
Federation have experienced significant drops in membership since
1990. Membership at The Wilderness Society, for instance, dropped
from 404,000 in 1990, to just 300,000 in 1993, while Greenpeace
USA’s membership plummeted from 2.5 million to 1.7 million during
the same period, reports The Economist. Some groups are faring
well, however. The memberships of the Environmental Defense Fund,
The Nature Conservancy and The Natural Resources Defense Council
continue to grow. NRDC’s membership, for instance, rose from
138,000 in 1990 to 170,000 in 1993. Why the apparent schism between
the broad-ranging activist organizations and more narrowly defined
groups? Analysts at The Economist say the lack of a clear enemy in
the White House and the growth of local environmental groups may be
having an effect.
This article appeared in the print edition of the magazine with the headline Some groups hot, some not.
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