How have you committed your life to protecting the environment?
I was deeply involved with the outdoors from when I was a little boy. I spent every spare moment of my time in the woods and creeks and rivers and salt water scuba diving, fishing, swimming, sailing.

Later on in my life, I began working for a group of commercial and recreational fishermen on the Hudson River bringing lawsuits against polluters who were destroying their livelihood and their recreation. We built a group called Riverkeeper that cleaned up the Hudson. It’s now the richest water body in the North Atlantic. It produces more pounds of fish per acre than any other water body in the North Atlantic and its miraculous resurrection inspired the creation of almost 180 Riverkeepers around the country. It’s now the fastest growing water protection group on Earth. It’s also interesting because it was started by small businesspeople who understood that good environmental policy is good economic policy. These were people who were trying to build communities and provide their children the same opportunities for dignity, enrichment, and good health as our parents gave to us.

Why do you think that sustainability and “going green” have become such hot button issues?
I think there’s a broad recognition in the business community that pollution is holding back our economy. Our dependence on carbon, borrowing a billion dollars a day to import foreign oil, and spending trillions of dollars on a war in Iraq is breaking our economy. Carbon, whether it’s coal or oil, is a huge drag on the economy.

The abolishment of the slave trade in England didn’t collapse the economy as predicted; it exposed the inefficiencies of free human labor. Its abolishment released the energies of thousands of innovators who searched for new sources of energy and launched the Industrial Revolution - the biggest epic of wealth creation in the history of mankind.

The same thing can happen today. In freeing ourselves from carbon, we will strip $300 billion annually from our trade deficit, $500 billion from our budget deficit. We will restore our national prestige and influence. We will improve our air and water supplies. We will create millions of jobs. We’ll create an export industry that today is the biggest industry in the global sector, which is clean technology. Energy efficiency is going to be good for our economy. It’s going to restore greatness to our nation.

What is the most pressing environmental issue we need to address?
I think the way that we use energy must be changed. For example, Iceland in 1970 was the poorest country in Europe and 100% dependent on foreign coal and oil. Today, it is 100% energy independent. 89% of its electricity comes from geothermal power. And it’s the fourth richest country in the world and the largest producer of energy per capita in the world.

Like in Iceland, the way we produce and use energy can change our entire economy, and our country needs to make these changes sooner rather than later.

When you speak to an audience, what is the effect you hope to have on each individual?
I hope that individuals will understand how important changing our energy usage and preserving the environment really is for us and future generations. I hope that people will come away with a sense of hope and optimism about our country and our prospects for the future.