Environmentalist Stages of Loss

In a meeting today discussing what my students go through when taking my class, I jokingly referred to it as paralleling the traditional stages of loss that mourners often feel.

The more I think about it, the more I realize it to be true.

STAGES OF LOSS:
Denial
Bargaining
Anger
Despair
Acceptance

This is the perfect metaphor for what the students go through when studying Sustainable Design.

STAGES OF LOSS:
Denial: "Yeah, right! That can't be true!"
Bargaining: "...but doesn't it cost more?"
Anger: "...how can the government allow this to happen?!"
Despair: "...so, what's the point? Everything is toxic."
Acceptance: "...now I see what I can do."

In truth, accepting the inevitable conclusion about our environment is a type of mourning. Is this the death of our innocence?