George Wagner, an Inverness resident who fought for environmental causes and dedicated himself to Carl Jung’s legacy, died in Marin General Hospital after a stroke on Oct. 7. He was surrounded by his loving family: Suzanne, his wife for 50 years; two children, Melissa Mahoney and Mathew Wagner; and two grandchildren. He passed just a few days shy of his birthday, when he would have turned 83.
Mr. Wagner was born on Oct. 11, 1932, on a dairy farm in Monrovia, Calif. When he was 17, he enlisted in the Navy and saw combat in Korea, where he was a ship’s gunner. During his tour of duty, he witnessed the destruction of human targets, which haunted him throughout his life. But it was not until decades later that a Point Reyes physician, the late Dr. Ellen Gleber, discovered he was suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. After his diagnosis he helped establish a group, at the veteran’s hospital in San Francisco, of professionally successful veterans suffering from late-onset P.T.S.D.
In spite of his personal difficulties, he made outstanding public contributions. Mr. Wagner was an environmental pioneer. Starting in Los Angeles, where he was a lawyer, he helped organize, fundraise for and lead the effort to adopt the California Coastal Act in the 1970s, at a time when environmental measures were not popular in the state. The legislation has greatly affected West Marin, as the Act eventually authorized the creation of our county’s Local Coastal Program, which regulates land use as well as offshore activities.
But that was only the beginning of his environmental advocacy. After his work on the Coastal Act campaign, he helped found and was the first president of the California League of Conservation Voters, a non-partisan political action group that has played an important role in establishing the state’s environmental policies. The league also provided a model for similar organizations in other states throughout the country.
His most recent environmental challenge was an effort that lasted more than 30 years: to champion wind power as a major, non-polluting, energy source. Early efforts by others to establish wind farms at Altamont Pass in the East Bay were the source of controversy, partly because of the deaths of many birds, including some endangered species. The organization that Mr. Wagner co-founded in 1975, Wind Harvest International, has adopted a vertical axis windmill that is smaller and promises to be more efficient and safer for birds. The windmill technology is in the final stages of rigorous testing in Denmark that will lead to certification, enabling it to be recognized and sold in the United States and internationally. The company has branches in Europe and Australia, where investors are interested in installing the windmills once the approval process is completed. Another likely target for the installation of the company’s windmills is Africa, where there are enormous energy needs.
Mr. Wagner’s environmental activities would be sufficient to completely occupy most people during their lifetime, but his efforts were intertwined with a second career. In 1973 he became the first executive director of the Jung Institute of Los Angeles, a position he held for 12 years. During that time he formed an administrative staff, arranged the purchase of a headquarters and raised funds for the Institute, which trains Jungian analysts, organizes lectures and seminars, and provides a low-fee clinic for adults and children. He and his wife also established The Film Archive at the Los Angeles Jung Institute, which contains video recordings of interviews with the first generation of those who knew Jung personally as colleagues, analysts and friends. The couple also produced two documentaries—“Matter of Heart,” which has been widely distributed and translated into several foreign languages, as well as “The World Within”—and a series of hour-long interviews on D.V.D. called “Remembering Jung.” These recordings are available through Amazon Books or the Bookstore at the Los Angeles Jung Institute.
Despite the demands of his environmental advocacy and promoting the legacy of Carl Jung, Mr. Wagner was a gregarious, extroverted man, always ready to strike up a friendly conversation. His was a familiar face around Point Reyes Station, where Wind Harvest International had an office in the Creamery building. He could be seen most mornings chatting at the Bovine Bakery, where he befriended staff members and customers alike. Few people who talked with him were aware of his remarkable history, but he is remembered fondly by many friends and casual acquaintances alike.