George retired from being in charge of recreation for the VT Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation in 1996.

 

He began his environmental activism in the 1980’s when he joined the movement to stop the building of the massive Hydro-Quebec dams that were severely harming Quebec’s environment and indigenous people. As an exempt state employee, he risked losing his job because the dams were supported by the administration. He now devotes the majority of his time to environmental issues.

 

George is a founder or co-founder of several environmental related organizations including the VT Trails and Greenways Council, the VT Bicycle and Pedestrian Coalition, the VT Earth Institute, and Better(not bigger)Vermont, and is the only Vermont person in his seventies who organized two highly successful 350.org global climate actions.

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After retirement, he served as the first executive director of the VT Recreation and Parks Association, the VT Bicycle and Pedestrian Coalition, and Vermonters for a Sustainable Population from 2009 to 2015. He is also the secretary/treasurer of the New England Coalition for a Sustainable Population.

 

George was first became aware of the impacts of population growth when he saw the area on Susie Wilson Rd. in Essex Jct. go from a pleasant, rural area, to total suburban sprawl. He now sees similar development patterns happening in the once very rural areas of Washington and Orange, Vermont. His motivating force in his population work is his concern for the future of all living things.  

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George partakes in individual action to avoid oil and live sustainably. He has always heated his home with wood, has flown on a jet plane only once in his life for recreational purposes, has always driven a fuel efficient car, and is one of the first in Vermont to install an AllSun TrackerTM solar system. He led his church in becoming one of the first “green sanctuaries” in the U.S. and led the effort in his conservative legislative district to replace a representative who did not have an ecological agenda with a Progressive Party person. He financially supports many environmental organizations and has supported Vermont’s largest environmental organization, the VNRC, for decades

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In recent years, George has become internationally known for his research, writings, and innovative work on population including initiating the world precedent setting report, What is an Optimal/Sustainable Population for Vermont?