by Oliver St John

     It's not uncommon for musicians to take up worthy causes and to use their considerable influence to promote awareness of them. The 1985 Live Aid concert, and the 20th anniversary Live 8 event, raised a great deal of awareness and money to combat the plight of Third World countries. U2 have made phenomenal efforts to secure aid for African regions blighted by poverty and disease.

     So, The Green Room asks, who's doing what for the environment?

     Sting is perhaps the most recognized environmental activist in the music sphere. His tireless campaigning to end Amazon deforestation is famous throughout the world, and the knowledge he has raised of the dangers of deforestation has helped a generation of music lovers to make small changes in their own lives.

     Chuck Leavell, who has performed on keyboards for Eric Clapton, the Rolling Stones and the Allman Brothers, to name but a few, has brought the deforestation fight home with him. His 2,200 acres of forest land serve as an object lesson in sustainable forest maintenance, both for the use of wood and for the esthetic value.

     Other artists have preferred to work with existing causes. Radiohead, for example, and Thom Yorke in particular, have partnered with Friends of the Earth to raise awareness of global warming. Yorke recently commented that he frequently feels like a hypocrite due to the energy and fossil fuel expenditure inherent in getting a touring band from venue to venue, but they are working to reduce emissions as much as possible and use renewable energy sources. Jason Mraz has been promoting the Natural Resources Defense Council, which promotes environmental cleanup as well as green living practices which can avoid further damage.

     Others have taken a more direct approach. Peter Garrett, former frontman for groundbreaking Australian group Midnight Oil, served two terms as president of the Australian Conservation Foundation and subsequently ran for political office. As a member of the Australian Parliament, Garrett has continued to develop initiative after initiative aimed at reducing the environmental damage caused by human activities.

     Canadian rockers The Tragically Hip have been active in fighting mankind's destruction of natural resources north of the border. Their efforts across Ontario, and lately across more of Canada, have greatly assisted the country's awareness of its own environment.

     Another way in which artists have made their contributions has been in setting up organizations of their own. In our July issue, we covered Reverb, the cause set up by Guster's Adam Gardner and his wife Lauren Sullivan. Reverb has been instrumental in assisting artists with "greening up" their activities - providing information on biofuels and wind energy in order to minimize the environmental impact of concerts. They have worked with Barenaked Ladies, the Dave Matthews Band, Bonnie Raitt, Alanis Morissette and many others.