Submitted by Sheldon Rampton on
Burson-Marsteller's hiring of Lord Melchett, the former director of Greenpeace UK, prompted the Independent to examine the growing trend of British environmentalists "who have decided to work for the blue chip giants they once sought to humble ... In the past seven years, at least six directors of environmental groups have joined their one-time opponents in big business," including Tom Burke and Jonathon Porritt, former directors of Friends of the Earth; Des Wilson, who once headed the campaign to remove lead from gasoline; and Gavin Grant, who led a campaign to expose human rights abuses by Shell and the Nigerian government.