A qualified ecologist is regarded as a scientist, and as a scientist, an ecologist should possess a body of knowledge, skills and understanding. Given that ecology (ie ecological science) is viewed as a part of environmental science, one concludes that an ecologist is a scientist with environmental expertise. However, the question should be asked 'are the terms ecologist and environmentalist interchangeable? Would it be appropriate to regard one with ecological expertise as an environmentalist?

Environmentalist is a term frequently applied by media and public usage to people carrying out certain tasks - most frequently those involved in actions which are specifically intended to be of 'benefit' to the environment. If this proposition is accepted, then it is clear that the term environmentalist has a very different meaning to environmental expert. The environmental expert (an ecologist, in this case) is qualified to study the environment scientifically, whereas the focus of an environmentalist is to assist / improve some aspect of the environment, to solve an environmental problem, frequently with an action-orientation (and unfortunately, in some cases, without the necessary ecological expertise).

The study of ecology, by itself, does not improve the environment or solve environmental problems of ecological nature. However, ecologists are frequently called upon to research and understand environmental problems and to offer ecological components of the solution. The point here is that adding to knowledge or explaining a phenomenon does not solve a problem, but can add necessary knowledge for a solution to be achieved.

Action is required to achieve a solution, yet science is frequently seen as impartial and objective, gathering data, turning it into information, knowledge, understanding and proposing credible solutions - rather than acting. Those working on the solutions and taking action may be scientists, but are often drawn from a wide range of other occupations. It is clear that by being an ecologist, a person is not automatically an environmentalist. Taking action is necessary to be called an environmentalist - this requires more than scientific curiosity and impartiality. It involves an understanding that action is essential in certain situations. It is pro-actively 'for the environment'.

Can an ecologist be an environmentalist? Can an environmentalist be an ecologist? There is no reason why one person cannot be both, although in any one situation that person would likely have to operate with a particular focus: environmental expert or environmentalist. It could well be that there would be major improvements to the quality of the natural environment if:

- more ecologists took responsibility for acting in appropriate circumstances, and

- those who took actions, environmentalists, were more ecologically informed.

By combining the best of what both groups can offer, real, better informed environmental problem-solving can be expected to occur. In conclusion, an ecologist can be an environmentalist, but is not an environmentalist by virtue of being an ecologist.