WWDD (What Would Dolly Do?)
This week, we are taking our inspiration from long-time philanthropist, social and environmental activist, and music legend, Dolly Parton.
This week, we are taking our inspiration from long-time philanthropist, social and environmental activist, and music legend, Dolly Parton. We will be asking ourselves, when it comes to climate change, what would Dolly do?
Dolly Parton is known around the globe for her singing, songwriting, and general charm. Despite critical acclaim, she is perhaps best known in her home state of Tennessee for being a generous philanthropist and social and environmental activist. She has always been vocal about her love of the environment through her music and, in an interview with National Geographic in April, expressed concerned about its future.
“We should pay more attention. We’re just mistreating Mother Nature—that’s like being ugly to your mama,” Parton says.
In her interview with National Geographic, Dolly worried about the extreme weather events the world has experienced lately and urged world leaders and regular people alike to do more to protect the environment. With recent extreme weather events, we find ourselves with similar concerns. In our post today, we will be digging into Dolly’s views on environmental conservation and asking ourselves “What Would Dolly Do?”
Did You Know?
For those who haven’t listened to the award-winning 2019 podcast series “Dolly Parton’s America”, we would highly recommend. Below, we just want to call out some of the highlights and interesting facts about Dolly’s life, to set the stage for our discussion of her philanthropic efforts and love of the environment.
Source: The Colloquial
Dolly was born the fourth of 12 children.
Growing up, her parents struggled to make ends meet.
Dolly began singing at age 10 on regional radio in Knoxville, and became a local star by the time she was a teenager.
After graduating Sevier County High School in 1964, she set off to build her music career in Nashville.
Early on in her career, Dolly made sure she had ownership interest in all the songs she wrote, meaning she gets paid when another artist sings one of her songs.
At age 20, she started the Owe-Par Publishing Company with her uncle, Bill Owens, and retained a controlling interest in her music from the very beginning.
Dolly is a vocal supporter of women, and has been known to show solidarity for her sisters in public and behind the scenes.
In 1986, Dolly and her former manager, Sandy Gallin, founded Sandollar Productions, the company that produced the Buffy the Vampire Slayer movie in 1992, and is credited in every episode of the TV series. Sandollar executive Gail Berman told the New York Times that Dolly personally handed her a check when she discovered that Berman was given less royalty money than the men at Sandollar.
Dolly has lived 57 years in Nashville with her publicity-shy husband, Carl Dean, whom she married in 1966.
Dolly opens each new season of Dollywood with a performance and a parade.
Philanthropy Through the Years
Dolly’s no stranger to putting her money to good use. She has built a multi-million-dollar empire through intellectual property as well as physical entertainment properties. She regularly puts these funds to use by supporting a number of education initiatives through the Dollywood Foundation (named after her theme park). Through the years, Dolly has championed causes ranging from childhood literacy, to gender equity, to environmental conservation.
Source: NBC News
In addition to her own foundation, Parton has donated to a number of charitable organizations, including the Barbara Davis Center for Childhood Diabetes, Save the Music Foundation and the Boot Campaign (an organization that donates proceeds to military veterans who are dealing with PTSD).
Climate Change – WWDD?
Dolly regularly mentions her love for the environment in her songs, such as “My Tennessee Mountain Home,” her 1972 homage to Eastern Tennessee’s Great Smoky Mountains where she grew up.
“In my Tennessee mountain home/Life is as peaceful as a baby’s sigh/In my Tennessee mountain home/Crickets sing in the fields near by” she sings on the track.
Dolly is very active in the causes closest to her heart. She uses her platform to encourage and create change when it comes to the environment.
American Eagle Foundation
Source: American Eagle Foundation
Doll’s theme park, Dollywood, is home to a bald eagle sanctuary run by the American Eagle Foundation. The foundation rescues and rehabilitates injured and orphaned bald eagles, owls, vultures and other birds pf prey. The bald eagle sanctuary at Dollywood is responsible for the release of over 180 bald eagles back into the wild.
Fundraising for Flood Damage
With Hurricane Ian slamming Florida this week, flooding is top of mind for many of us. In 2021, Dolly Parton’s Smokey Mountain Businesses have also raised $700,000 to help Tennessee residents affected by the sudden flooding in Tennessee that left more than 20 people dead. Fundraising was conducted through the United Way of Humphreys County. One of Dolly’s friends, country singer Loretta Lynn, lives in Humphreys County and the foreman of Lynn’s ranch was swept away in the floodwaters.
“I hope that this money can be put to good use to help the people of Middle Tennessee with what they need during their recovery…Loretta and her people helped us out so much following the wildfires in 2016 that I just knew we had to do something to help them. They have our prayers and our thoughts as they go through this time,” Dolly said.
Environmentalist Support
In 2009, Lamar Alexander (a U.S. Senator from Tennessee) sponsored legislation to ban mountaintop removal mining, which resulted in a coal industry boycott of operations in Tennessee. To make up for lost state revenue, the Sierra Club and Natural Resources Defense Council urged their members to visit Dollywood:
“Well, that's fine. A handful of miners hell-bent on turning mountains into moonscapes may not visit Tennessee, but you can. Whether you're a fan of Dolly's or someone who believes that America's mountains are worth saving, NRDC urges you to show your love by showing Tennessee the money. Visit Dollywood...hike the Great Smokey Mountains...tour Graceland...hit Nashville's "music row"...there's so much to see and do! And after you visit, be sure to mail a postcard, your receipts or even ticket stubs to Sen. Lamar Alexander thanking him for all he's doing to protect the Appalachian Mountains for future generations of Americans.”7
Hopes for the Future
Dolly Parton urges us to respecting the music, the land, and each other. Dolly stands strong, in all her glittery glory, when it comes to caring for the environment. Her message is clear —
“We need to take better care of the things that God gave us freely. And that we’re so freely messing up.”
Source: Southern Living
Hot Tea
Our hot tea this week is our inspiration for this week’s post – the Climate Tech Weekly series, "What Would Dolly Parton Do? 9 to 5 in the Climate Tech Sector". This series provides deep dives on different climate technologies, with clever riffs on Dolly Parton’s song lyrics.
Dolly told us to sing in the sunshine, and Sunfolding listened
Galvanize: Financially supporting women entrepreneurs from 9 to 5
Sources:
A timeline of Dolly Parton's philanthropy (Yardbarker, 2022)
Dolly Parton Thinks Mistreating the Environment Is Like ‘Being Ugly to Your Mama’ (Billboard, 2022)
What Dolly Parton wants us to know about the Smoky Mountains (National Geographic, 2022)
Dolly Parton Talks Climate Change, Compares Mistreating Earth to 'Being Ugly to Your Mama' (People, 2022)
Dolly Parton Says Climate Change Is “Like Being Ugly to Your Mama” (Consequence.Net, 2022)
Dolly Parton says damaging the Earth is ‘like being ugly to your mama’ (Independent, 2022)
Environmentalists Come to the Defense of Dolly Parton (Nashville Scene, 2009)
What We Can Learn From Dolly Parton’s Business Savvy And Her $1 Million Donation To The Moderna Vaccine To Fight Covid-19 (Forbes, 2020)
Dolly Parton raises $700,000 to help residents impacted by Tennessee flood damage (WSLS, 2021)