Niels Henrik Hooge. Master of Laws and Master of Arts in Philosophy. His great interest in environmental and sustainability issues dates back a long time and has manifested itself in activism, cooperation with green NGOs in Denmark and abroad, as well as in many types of writing. In addition to editorial staff work in Danish environmental magazines, he has published several books, including most recently the novel “Kosova” (2016) and the poetry collections “Grøn nation” (Green Nation, 2015), “Miljødigte” (Environmental Poems, 2018) and “Miljødigte 2” (Environmental Poems 2, 2019).
Økologisk kortdigt
Blindt at vække naturens kræfter til live
Er at lege med ilden
Uden at vide om den kan slukkes igen
Eller breder sig til alle
Og forvandler verden til aske
Short ecological poem
Blindly to awaken the forces of nature Is to play with fire
Without knowing if it can be put out
Or spreads to all continents
Turning the world into ashes
Økodigterens refleksioner
Jeg er en vinder, fordi
jeg ønsker at tabe.
Hvis jeg kommer sidst,
er det med vilje.
Hvis jeg er til grin, er det
fordi, jeg selv griner først.
Før jeg blev noget, var
jeg intet.
Min identitet hviler på
det, jeg ikke er.
Jeg udvikler mig ved at
definere mig som det, der
ikke er det, det ikke er.
Først og fremmest tænker
jeg før jeg taler.
Hvert ord repræsenterer
toppen af et isbjerg.
Og ikke en kulisse, der
hele tiden flytter sig.
Det, der definerer mig, er
min tid.
Jeg er villig til at påtage mig
alle verdens byrder.
Reflections of the eco-poet
I am a winner, because
I want to lose.
If I come in last, it’s on
purpose.
If I am a laughingstock,
It’s because I have the
first laugh myself.
Before I became some-
thing, I was nothing.
My identity is based on
something that I am not.
I develop by defining
myself as something
that is not what it isn’t.
First and foremost, I
think before I speak.
Every word represents
the tip of an iceberg.
Not a piece of scenery,
moving incessantly.
What defines me, is my
concept of time.
I am willing to carry all
the burdens of the world
on my shoulders. 
