Etymology Acronym of not in my back yard. More at NIMBY.
1
UK, US Not in my backyard (in objection to an undesirable structure built locally).
nimby
noun
Etymology Acronym of not in my back yard. More at NIMBY.
1
Derogatory, Usually Someone who objects to the building of an undesirable structure in their neighborhood, especially in public policy debate.
politically correct green (as in vegetation) nimbies (may object to nuclear power plants, polluting factories, etc.)
socially conservative brown (as in shirts) nimbies (may object to the building of jails, prisons, housing for ex-convicts, drinking or adult entertainment establishments)
2 more examples
fiscally conservative green (as in money) nimbies (may object to the building of anything which may decrease preexisting property values)
Of course, in China everything is determined by the state. So many times, when I asked how China had managed to build this network so quickly, I was told that it was because the government had backed it. And, of course, there are fewer Nimbys in an authoritarian state.2025 April 16, Christian Wolmar, “Hugely impressed by China's high-speed rail network”, in RAIL, number 1033, page 42:
nimby
adj
Etymology Acronym of not in my back yard. More at NIMBY.
1
Not wanting to have to deal with unpleasant or distasteful things near them.
Their vote against measures to help refugees has been perceived by the socially conscious margin of society as a typically nimby attitude.
[…] to be obvious exaggerations of the threats, but rather focused on critiquing the means employed—i.e., the various enforcement techniques that adversely affected innocent bystanders—and in a very nimby (not in my back yard) sort of way.2010, Timothy J. Dunn, Blockading the Border and Human Rights, page 32:
Was used in a 1980 article by British writer Emilie Travel Livezey; popularized by British politician Nicholas Ridley, who was Conservative Secretary of State for the Environment. Prior to that, Joseph A. Lieberman, a member of the US Atomic Energy Commission, gave a keynote address in early 1979 at the Fort Magruder Conference Center in which he reportedly asserted that "the 'nimby' (not in my backyard) syndrome must be eliminated." As reported in the Newport News (Virginia) Daily Press, Tuesday, February 13th, 1979, "Radioactive Waste: National Regulations Needed." Source: WorldHistories.net.
1
Opposition to something deemed harmful or unpleasant being located in one's own neighborhood.
The very thought of having even a secure landfill anywhere near them is anathema to most Americans today. It's an attitude referred to in the trade as NIMBY -- "not in my backyard."1980 November 6, Emilie Travel Livezey, “Hazardous waste”, in The Christian Science Monitor:
Newman believes much of the resistance to the project stems from NIMBY (Not-In-My-Back-Yard) sentiment2016, Annalise Klingbeil, “Decision day looms for Drop-In Centre's controversial hotel housing project”, in Calgary Herald:
1 more example
From NIMBY (Not In MY Backyard) syndrome stalling several projects, Goa has moved ahead rationally to write a new chapter at Loliem, Canacona by welcoming location of Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) to the village.2016 March 21, Nandkumar M Kamat, “For IIT GOA Loliem Shows the WIMBY Way”, in The Navhind Times:
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Synonym of nimby.
Here again, the NIMBYs will try to derail any new dam project.2008, David Paul Brennan, 50 Programs to Save the Economy:
To distinguish themselves from NIMBYs, the current generation of housing activists has adopted new “back yard” variants (YIMBY, “Yes in my backyard”; PHIMBY, “Public housing in my backyard”; YIGBY, “Yes in God’s backyard”) to declare how they are for things (everything, subsidized housing, building on church parking lots) that a NIMBY presumably is not.2022 June 5, Conor Dougherty, “Twilight of the NIMBY”, in The New York Times, →ISSN, archived from the original on 10 Jun 2022:
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"Our CEQA process is clearly broken when a few wealthy Berkeley homeowners can block desperately needed student housing for years and even decades," Newsom's office said in a statement. "California cannot afford to be held hostage by NIMBYs who weaponize CEQA to block student and affordable housing. This selfish mindset is driving up housing prices, and making our state less affordable."2023 March 1, Aaron Kliegman, “Newsom declares war on environmentalists seeking to halt construction project”, in Fox News, archived from the original on 25 Apr 2023:
NIMBY
adj
Etymology
Was used in a 1980 article by British writer Emilie Travel Livezey; popularized by British politician Nicholas Ridley, who was Conservative Secretary of State for the Environment. Prior to that, Joseph A. Lieberman, a member of the US Atomic Energy Commission, gave a keynote address in early 1979 at the Fort Magruder Conference Center in which he reportedly asserted that "the 'nimby' (not in my backyard) syndrome must be eliminated." As reported in the Newport News (Virginia) Daily Press, Tuesday, February 13th, 1979, "Radioactive Waste: National Regulations Needed." Source: WorldHistories.net.
1
Synonym of nimby.
The problem is that these demands tend to be more parochial than millenial,^([sic]) much more NIMBY (not in my back yard) than global, and more concerned with financial well-being than ecological health.1990, Steven Anzovin, Preserving the world ecology:
“There's a very 'NIMBY' feel about it,” Allen said.2012 August 20, Bridget Clerkin, “New West Windsor outpatient addiction treatment facility answers call to serve local need”, in The Times of Trenton:
3 more examples
How much more NIMBY can we get in this region?2012 September 2, Allan Caplan, How much more NIMBY can we get?, archived from the original on 16 Oct 2023:
Some are NIMBY neighbors who don't want the traffic or changes in their neighborhood.2013, Peter Ladner, The Urban Food Revolution: Changing the Way We Feed Cities:
Why is California more NIMBY than Texas, for instance, or Austin more NIMBY than Houston?2016 February 9, Eric Jaffe, “Toward a Stronger Theory of NIMBYism”, in Bloomberg News, archived from the original on 08 Nov 2020: