book data
115 ratings,
4.01
average rating, 46 reviews
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published
January 16th 2008
by W. W. Norton
binding
Trade Paperback, 399 pages
isbn
0393330877
(isbn13: 9780393330878)
description
The world has set in motion environmental trends that are threatening civilization itself. We do not have much time. We are crossing environmental thr...more
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avg 4.01
editions: all | this edition
editions: all | this edition
Read in February, 2008
It was exciting to hear how much is being done already in terms of renewable energy, with lots more in the building or planning phases. The author calls for a an 80% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2020 (not very far away), but makes it sound like a very reachable goal. We have the technology, we just have to have the political will (particularly here in the U.S., which lags way behind the rest of the developed world) to make it happen. In the "what you and I can do" sectio...more
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Lester Brown's most recent and updated guide to fixing the world. Read it to get perspective on the magnitude of our ecological threats, existing technologies & programs that could save ourselves and our planet, and the political & economic obstacles that are in our way to putting them in place. It's a mind-boggling read.
Warning: it's very dense. Read it in chunks and be ready for some real science & politics, as well as some amazing truths.
After nearly every chapter, h...more
Warning: it's very dense. Read it in chunks and be ready for some real science & politics, as well as some amazing truths.
After nearly every chapter, h...more
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Read in June, 2008
I really can't say enough about this book. It seems to me particularly well researched, pragmatic in its approach to solving some of the toughest environmental and social problems facing global civilization.
I would consider myself pretty well versed when it comes to issues potentially bearing the fall of civilization. I've spent a stint as a grad student atmospheric science, I enjoy entertaining outsider theories, i regularly read journals on ocean biochemistry and food security, ho...more
I would consider myself pretty well versed when it comes to issues potentially bearing the fall of civilization. I've spent a stint as a grad student atmospheric science, I enjoy entertaining outsider theories, i regularly read journals on ocean biochemistry and food security, ho...more
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Read in July, 2008
recommended to Nicolas by:
Hemang Dave
Lester Brown and his team compile an extraordinary amount of scientific research to produce this compelling treatise on the status of the world specific to our environment, our natural resources and the opportunities for humanity to either self-destruct or thrive.
The first 127 pages are difficult to read, as they detail all the catastrophic processes that are taking place, from massive-scale desertification to the depletion of water tables and the potentially irreversable climate cha...more
The first 127 pages are difficult to read, as they detail all the catastrophic processes that are taking place, from massive-scale desertification to the depletion of water tables and the potentially irreversable climate cha...more
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Has a copy to sell/swap
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Read in February, 2009
Plan B is a proposal of what steps must be taken to reverse current trends of environmental destruction and preserve civilization. The 3.0 is because this is the third revision of the Plan which has become gradually more dire as time moves on.
The book is split into two sections. The first covers the environmental and societal problems that we are already experiencing and will soon experience. It covers topics as diverse as food, oil, water, environmental destruction, disease and glo...more
The book is split into two sections. The first covers the environmental and societal problems that we are already experiencing and will soon experience. It covers topics as diverse as food, oil, water, environmental destruction, disease and glo...more
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Read in May, 2009
This book was a revelation to me. Of course, I realized that there were serious environmental risks to the planet, and that a major shift to renewable energy was required. But I didn't fully understand just how unsustainable our entire economic system is - the way we grow our food, build our buildings, dispose of our waste, transport ourselves from home to work, etc., etc. And I'd never really thought about the relationship between environmental degradation and failed states from a political per...more
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Read in February, 2008
recommends it for:
Juliet, Cathy, Ralph, Kate
About how we can help with global warming. So far very good.
A really a must read for everyone who eats, uses electricity.
Yes, everybody. Tells what we need to do, why and how if we can just get our collective act together.
A really a must read for everyone who eats, uses electricity.
Yes, everybody. Tells what we need to do, why and how if we can just get our collective act together.
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Read in March, 2009
Excellent summary of key ecological issues facing human civilisation, and a clear global plan on how to deal with them: 1. Eradicate poverty & Stablise population; 2. Restore the earth; 3. Feed people well (enough & with less ecological impact); 4. Design cities better; 5. Raise energy efficiency; 6. Turn to renewable energy. Provides estimated costings for 1-3, but unfortunately not for 4-6, which is a shame, because even though much can be done via the proposed 'tax-shift' change from income t...more
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Read in March, 2008
This book is pretty intense. If it's your first exposure to the effects of global warming, hold on to your seat... it's going to be a bumpy ride! Perhaps my gloom-and-doom-o-meter was reading high because I read this while (literally) sick to my stomach, trapped in bed... but I think not. Try to read quickly through the "this is the problem" section and move on to the "solutions" section. The solutions are big and complex, but generally speaking, I think there are things ...more
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Read in June, 2008
Lester Brown has sparse way of writing just the 'meat' of what needs to be said. Although some of the material is repeated in more than one of the chapters, his account of the political, economic, and social aspects of our over-exploitation of resources is clear, concise, and understandable by anyone with a 10th-grade reading ability. He also has an excellent grasp of the biological and physical sciences and explains what's going on in a way that anyone with a high school education can underst...more
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Good ideas, though some were a little short sighted or poorly explained, but 4 out of 5 for actually recognizing some great ideas that have been around for a while to save our civilizations. Great to get someone less familiar up to speed with possibilities for now and the future.
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Read in June, 2009
An up to date summary of stats around the most pressing issues facing mankind (global warming, lack of potable water, dwindling fossil fuel reserves, overpopulation). It is sobering.
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02/16/09
Mikaron
marked it as to-read
"Saving civilization is not a spectator sport."
Just listened to his speech delivered for the Lannan Foundation. Awesome!
http://www.lannan.org/lf/rc/event/lester...
Just listened to his speech delivered for the Lannan Foundation. Awesome!
http://www.lannan.org/lf/rc/event/lester...
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Read in March, 2009
I had to read this book for a class. It is a very good detailed book about global warming and really interesting solutions to some of the issues with the climate.
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Read in March, 2009
Excellent, even though sometimes confusing to me because some of his proposed solutions do not seem ecologically sound.
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Read in October, 2008
If you are interested in environmental sustainability, then you may enjoy this book. I would, however, suggest that you skip or skim the first six chapters, which spend a couple hundred pages establishing that there is a problem. If you are interested in the book at all, it's probably safe to assume that you accept the reality of the problem.
Aside from a few logical problems (suggesting a diet level that will sustain a global population of 5 billion people shortly after suggesting ...more
Aside from a few logical problems (suggesting a diet level that will sustain a global population of 5 billion people shortly after suggesting ...more
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Read in June, 2008
Lester is a "facts" man & this figures largely into his writing.
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Read in February, 2008
I am currently working my way - slowly - through this book. I can't take a lot of it at once because the outlook is so bleak. I know that the author is establishing the problem-space clearly so he can present his solution... but it is kinda like being bludgeoned with a plastic hammer: not as bad as a steel hammer, but it doesn't feel good either.
I'll let you know more as I get through it.
=== UPDATE - May 28, 2008 ===
I have given up on this book. It is a good b...more
I'll let you know more as I get through it.
=== UPDATE - May 28, 2008 ===
I have given up on this book. It is a good b...more
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01/05/09
Jayesh Jariwala
marked it as to-read
I gave this book as a gift and want to read it
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