Pentti Linkola | |
|---|---|
 Linkola in 2011 | |
| Born | Kaarlo Pentti Linkola (1932-12-07)7 December 1932 Helsinki, Finland |
| Died | 5 April 2020(2020-04-05) (aged 87) Valkeakoski, Finland |
| Subject | Ornithology,environmentalism,nature,deep ecology |
| Notable works | Can Life Prevail?: A Revolutionary Approach to the Environmental Crisis (2011) |
| Notable awards | Eino Leino Prize 1983 |
Kaarlo Pentti Linkola (7 December 1932 in Helsinki – 5 April 2020)[1][2][3] was a prominent Finnishdeep ecologist,[4]ornithologist,[5] polemicist, naturalist, writer, and fisherman. He wrote widely about his ideas and in Finland was a prominent thinker,[6][7]: 271 and is linked by some authors toecofascism and toauthoritarian deep ecology.[8][9][10][11] Linkola was a year-round fisherman from 1959 to 1995. He fished onKeitele,Päijänne and theGulf of Finland, and since 1978 he fished onVanajavesi.[12]
Linkola blamed humans for the continuousdegradation of the environment. He promoted rapidpopulation decline to combat the problems commonly attributed tooverpopulation.[7] Linkola also defendedan end to immigration, the reversion to pre-industrial life ways, andauthoritarian measures to keep human life within strict limits.[8]
Linkola was born on 7 December 1932. He grew up in Helsinki and summered in Kariniemi inTyrväntö at the farm of his maternal grandfather,Hugo Suolahti. His father,Kaarlo Linkola, was a botanist,phytogeographer, and theRector ofUniversity of Helsinki, and his grandfather Hugo had worked as thechancellor of that same university.[13] Linkola's half-brother, Anssi, was killed during theContinuation War against the Soviet Union in 1941, at the age of 20.[14][15] One year after Anssi died, Kaarlo died of prostate cancer.[16] Hugo then died in 1944 due to a heart attack. Linkola had an elder sister, Aira, and a younger brother, Martti.[15]
After he graduated fromHelsingin Suomalainen Yhteiskoulu in 1950, Linkola studied biology for half a year, then abandoned academic studies to become an independent researcher. He lived inSignilskär inÅland and madeornithological observations.[13] Although he was one of Finland's most famous ornithologists, Linkola started to live an austere life as a fisherman, as this was in line with his teachings.[5] He was involved in theKoijärvi Movement that started in 1979, but his views proved too radical for mainstream Green politics.[17]
In 1995, Linkola founded theFinnish Natural Heritage Foundation (Luonnonperintösäätiö),[18] which concentrates on preserving the fewancient forests still left in southern Finland and othernature conservation. The foundation receives donations from private individuals and companies, then purchases forest areas deemed unique enough to deserve protection.[13] By 2017, the foundation had purchased 62 protected areas, spanning 145 hectares (360 acres) in total.[16] On the 101st anniversary ofFinland's independence, Linkola was announced as the winner of a poll conducted by the national broadcasterYle to determine who had done the most to preserve Finland's natural heritage.[19]
Linkola was married from 1961 to 1975, and had two children.[1] He died in his sleep at his home inSääksmäki on 5 April 2020.[2][20]
Linkola's views have been sometimes described as "ecofascist".[21] He believed that democracy was a mistake, saying he preferred dictatorships,[22] and only radical change can preventecological collapse.[5] He contended that the human populations of the world, regardless if they are developed or underdeveloped, do not deserve to survive at the expense of thebiosphere as a whole.[23] In May 1994, Linkola was featured on the front page ofThe Wall Street Journal Europe.[24] He said he was for a radical reduction in the world population and was quoted as saying about a future world war, "If there were a button I could press, I would sacrifice myself without hesitating, if it meant millions of people would die."[25]
Linkola's writings describe in emotional detail theenvironmental degradation he witnessed. He dedicated his 1979Toisinajattelijan päiväkirjasta (From the Diary of a Dissident) to German far-left militantsAndreas Baader andUlrike Meinhof, stating that "they are the signposts, notJesus of Nazareth orAlbert Schweitzer".[5] He supported acts of terrorism such as the2004 Madrid train bombings as he viewed them as disruptions to a society that is responsible for the degradation of the Earth. When asked in 2007 why he had not himself become a terrorist, Linkola said that he lacked the ability and bravery.[26]
Linkola was pleased to see the rise ofGreta Thunberg, a Swedish activist seventy years younger: "I follow very closely what is said about her. After all, she's even a great girl in a little crazy way. Let's see how long she can still fight."[27]
In the 2009 bookEnvironmental Change and Foreign Policy: Theory and Practice, Mika Merviö, Professor of International Relations at theKibi International University, contended that while most environmentalists in Finland distanced themselves from Linkola, those concerned about the environment avidly read his writings. Merviö said that Linkola represents "a very Finnish and dark version of 'an inconvenient truth'."[5]
After Linkola's death, the incumbentMinister for Foreign AffairsPekka Haavisto andMinister of the Environment and Climate ChangeKrista Mikkonen, both from theGreen League, expressed their condolences and praised Linkola's significant efforts for nature conservation. Haavisto said that Linkola had influenced generations of environmentalists, and while Linkola did not defend human rights, there never was disagreement about conservation.[1]
Media related toPentti Linkola at Wikimedia Commons
Quotations related toPentti Linkola at Wikiquote