A green utopia: the legacy of Petra Kelly

[Truncated introduction] This thesis will introduce Petra Karin Kelly, former Green politician and campaigner for social justice and environmental issues to an English-speaking audience as an important figure in the development of ideas relating to ecofeminism, nonviolence, and Green politics and utopias. Kelly, born in 1947 in Germany, spent the latter half of her childhood in the United States, and attended university there before returning to Europe. While working with the European Community in Brussels, Kelly became involved in grassroots politics in Germany and was one of the co-founders of the German green party, Die Grunen, (literally: the Greens) in 1979. She was to become a formidable politician through her passion for grassroots politics, nonviolence and feminism and her excellent leadership skills. Later ostracised by the party, due in part to her inability and unwillingness to conform to party rules, Kelly worked independently, giving speeches and promoting peace and the importance of human rights. However, at the age of 44, she was murdered by her partner, Gert Bastian, who then shot himself. It should be noted that texts so far written on Petra Kelly have been essentially biographies, which, while encompassing much of her academic and political life, focus heavily upon her personal life, in particular her relationships with married men, and her long term relationship with former NATO General Gert Bastian ... Therefore, the aim of the dissertation is not to ignore the importance of personal matters, rather to ensure a professional approach towards them. For this reason, the focus of this sociopolitical and sociohistorical thesis is upon the elements of ecofeminism, nonviolence and utopia as they relate to Petra Kelly’s politics, both within her role with Die Grunen and in her political life outside of German parliament.