The character of the numerous and grave problems facing human society—-climate change, loss of biodiversity, lack of food security, loss of ecosystem services, environmental toxification, and others—-are undeniably multi-faceted, cutting across not just academic disciplines but peoples, communities, and nations. Ecology, in its simplest formulation as the study of the interactions between organisms and their environment, is logically central to understanding and developing solutions to these problems; problems that have profound implications for livelihoods and justice. Yet if ecologists are to be leaders in facing these issues, or participate in "earth stewardship", we must recognize that such roles by definition require action. They require going beyond traditional roles and boundaries to learn and interact with a variety of other academic fields and communities. In doing so, we are essentially seeking to be action ecologists. Action research, an established field of practices first introduced by psychologist Kurt Lewin in 1946, is “comparative research on the conditions and effects of various forms of social action, and research leading to social action.” As it has been broadened over time into various forms, action research has consistently remained grounded in: collaboration with a variety of stakeholders; development of adaptive expertise; and “an iterative, cyclical process of reflecting on practice, taking an action, reflecting, and taking further action” (Riel 2010). As ecologists become more involved with policy, environmental justice, education, outreach, community participation and media communication—-which we must, if we are to be leaders or stewards of any sort—-we need to thoughtfully examine where we have come from and where we would like to go. To do this, we will build upon our 2010 Revolutionary Ecology symposium to discuss and clarify three focusing questions: 1) What is an action ecologist? 2) What “actions” are most important to ecology, and are those the same as the “actions” that are most important for addressing global problems? 3) If we are to be action ecologists, stewards, or leaders, how we are going to evaluate and reward ecologists of the 21st century to reflect this?