Synopses & Reviews
This diverse collection by best-selling authors, renowned scientists, and experienced activists is an engaging and practical book that will be of interest to the lay reader as well as university students in both graduate and undergraduate courses.
The expert contributors to The Post Carbon Reader were asked to unflinchingly describe the deep and interconnected sustainability crises confronting humanity in the 21st centuryand then give readers concrete steps for addressing those crises.
This unprecedented collection of writings (34 essays, 4 previously published) is an honest, informed and engaging exploration of the most challenging issues of our time. It includes chapters by best-selling authors like climate activist Bill McKibben, renowned scholars like "ecological footprint" co-founder William Rees, and up-and-coming experts like urban food systems pioneer Erika Allen. Lead editor Richard Heinberg is the world's leading author of mass-market books on fossil fuel dependence and depletion. Heinberg says, "We've run out of time, natural resources and capital, so this is our only chance to get things right."
Review
“A must-read for anyone who cares about how peak oil and climate change affect us all.” Transition Voice
Review
"For a comprehensive, integrated overview of the relationship between the human species and its planetary home circa 2010, look no further. The Post Carbon Reader is an invaluable primer, resource, and textbook. This is what you need to know — period." Lester R. Brown, President of Earth Policy Institute and author of Plan B 4.0: Mobilizing to Save Civilization
Synopsis
In the 20th century, cheap and abundant energy brought previously unimaginable advances in health, wealth, and technology, and fed an explosion in population and consumption. But this growth came at an incredible cost. Climate change, peak oil, freshwater depletion, species extinction, and a host of economic and social problems now challenge us as never before. The Post Carbon Reader features articles by some of the world's most provocative thinkers on the key drivers shaping this new century, from renewable energy and urban agriculture to social justice and systems resilience. This unprecedented collection takes a hard-nosed look at the interconnected threats of our global sustainability quandary — as well as the most promising responses. The Post Carbon Reader is a valuable resource for policymakers, college classrooms, and concerned citizens.
About the Author
Richard Heinberg is Senior Fellow in Residence at Post Carbon Institute and the author of nine books, including
The Party's Over and
Peak Everything.
Daniel Lerch is the author of Post Carbon Cities.