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In honor of the 50th anniversary of Earth Day (April 22, 2020), we are making the script of Voices of
the Earth available for all to use for free. We have secured the rights to distribute the project for
non-commercial use.

Compiled by Rush Rehm (Professor of Theater and Classics, Artistic Director of Stanford Repertory Theater) and Charles Junkerman (Director Emeritus, Stanford Continuing Studies), Voices of the Earth deals with the troubled relationship between humans and the natural world.

The script features environmental pioneers (Muir, Carson, Stegner, Leopold), great nature writers (Thoreau, Snyder, Abbey), playwrights who turn to the environment for inspiration (Sophocles, Chekhov, O’Neill), native American voices (Crowfoot, Chief Luther Standing Bear, Walking Buffalo), natural philosophers (Aristotle, Galileo, Rousseau, Emerson), poets who honor the earth (Li Po, Rumi, Neruda, Levertov, Lorde), international environmental activists (Mendes, Saro-wiwa, Maathai, Goodall, McKibben), climate change deniers who insist we face no crisis, and scientists who know better.
Voices of the Earth brings home the threat that looms over our survival on the planet, even as it
lifts the spirits and calls us to action.

Voices of the Earth has proved a powerful performance piece, serving as the centerpiece to Stanford Repertory Theater’s 2019 Festival, The Environment and Social Justice, in collaboration with Planet Earth Arts. The running time of the full script is approximately 70 minutes, but it can be shortened in any way one chooses.
While the script has been used in a theatrical setting, it can be tailored to a variety of circumstances. We are reaching out to groups who might be interested in performing the script, using it to build the environmental movement, having a group reading as part of Earth Day 2020, and so on.

Suggested Uses:
1) Staged performance (designed for seven performers, but this can be expanded or contracted as
need or desired)
2) Small (or large) group readings, along the lines of the Lysistrata project before the Gulf War
3) Select speeches, poems, or quotations for rallies, signs, etc.
4) Draw on the texts for Letters to the Editor/ written pieces related to environmental justice

If you know of any organizations that may want to use the script, we would appreciate you letting them know about the project.

Email us at v.of.the.earth@gmail.com for more information and to get the script, as well as bibliography listing the source and original publication information for all the included works. Again, this is all for free and represents no commercial interests of any sort.

If you are looking to get involved in environmental activism, here are some organizations we suggest:
  • Extinction Rebellion
  • 350.org
  • Sunrise Movement
  • Sierra Club
  • World Wildlife Fund
  • Save the Bay
  • Environmental Defense Fund
  • Save the Redwoods
  • IWW Environmental Unionism Caucus
  • US Climate Strike
  • Local Peace and Justice Leagues
  • Democratic Socialists of America
  • Save the Elephant
  • PETA
  • Greenpeace
  • Redwood League
  • Audubon Society
  • Food First
  • National Park Service
  • Fridays for the Future
  • Local and campus environmental organizations

Suggestions for environmental organizations do not constitute a formal endorsement. Let’s work together, any way we can, to use Voices of the Earth in the fight to save the many lives on our precious planet. Connect with us on Instagram (@voicesearth) to hear about updates and performances.

SRT "Voices of The Earth" from Stanford TAPS on Vimeo.