Barry Commoner's Day

Abstract

“Barry Commoner's Day” represents for me a great opportunity to settle up my debt of gratitude to Barry Commoner. I thank Barry for the personal friendship he has honored me with for many years, allowing me to take advantage of his experience, his good advice, and his scientific and political teaching. He used to be an incorrigible optimist. And I hope he has not changed with the passing of the years because God knows how much environmentalists need people like him since they have a tendency to complain and foretell misfortunes. But Barry's contribution is not just optimism. His great contribution lies in his ability in matching economic and social rationality, technological progress, and the minimization of environmental impacts. That is to say, the finding that at the basis of the processes involving the destruction of natural resources, there is often an irrational behavior, which is technologically and economically disadvantageous.