A “green giant” is coming to Warren Wilson

The environmental movement has grown substantially since the catch phrase “small is beautiful.” Now that “green” is a mainstream phenomenon, the replacement theme sometimes seems to be “bigger is better” — that is to say, the bigger the corporation pledging environmental accountability, the better positioned it is to protect our warming planet. A flurry of special “green” issues hit magazine stands recently, their glossy pages depicting the nation’s “green giants” (not the Jolly Green Giant of the frozen food section, silly) — the politicians, CEOs and celebrities who grew into environmental superheroes overnight, thanks to the media spotlight on their eco-activism. (Mind you, not everyone can swallow the assertion that the likes of Pacific Gas & Electric should be hailed as some kind of Captain Planet.)

But at least one green giant — named so by Outside Magazine — comes across as the real deal. Majora Carter, a lifetime resident of the Bronx, is a renowned environmental-justice advocate. The founder and executive director of Sustainable South Bronx, a nonprofit that sets up innovative, environmental projects to meet community needs, Carter also co-hosts “The Green,” a recently launched television series.

“In my own community, most of us are no longer thinking, ‘This is the South Bronx; of course we get the garbage,’” Carter told Outside. “Now we say, ‘No. Why do I have to live like this?’ Just asking that question is incredibly important.”

Carter will appear as the keynote speaker at Warren Wilson College’s Saturday, May 19, commencement ceremony, which starts at 10 a.m. on the Sunderland Residence Hall lawn.

— Rebecca Bowe, editorial assistant