There Is No Planet B

There's no "B" option. So, lets just fix what we have got. A good read.

Good book on Clomate Change

We chose There is No Planet B by Mike Berners-Lee as our book of choice. It has opened our eyes to the pressing need to be environmentally friendly for our future. The first chapter focuses on food and the impact of overconsumption on the world, highlighting that consumers make up 20% of all food waste. I also found that focusing on limiting meat and dairy products in our diets to reduce carbon emissions particularly stuck with me. Berners-Lee emphasizes the importance and urgency of paying close attention to our nutrition and waste with a clean lens. In Chapter 2, Berners-Lee briefly discusses the impending climate emergency and outlines facts and solutions to this issue, mainly targeting politicians. He then goes more in-depth on environmental and climate issues, such as biodiversity and ocean acidification. He explains them in layman's terms so readers can understand the complex yet clear problems that have plagued our earth. These topics instill fear, allowing his message to resonate with many people and create the mentality necessary to invoke change. The story then moves onto chapter 3 which investigates the current energy crisis. Berners-Lee examines various energy sources and the current wastefulness of current usage patterns. He is highly critical of fossil fuels and argues for a transition to clean energy sources like solar and wind. Chapter 4 shifts to travel which “accounts for a big enough chunk of the world’s energy use with most of this coming from liquid fossil fuels” (114). The carbon footprint of such acts is problematic and unnecessary from cars to airplanes and he encourages alternative methods for sustainable transportation. He particularly emphasizes the harmful effects of flight as a form of transport. Chapter 5, however, focuses on growth and metrics revolving around GDP or gross domestic product and traditional models. According to Berners-Lee, Our goal in society is maximum profit, which is destructive in an environmental sense. He advocates for redefining the economy towards the well-being of humans and the planet. Readers can only help the world if they change their interactions with money and invest in necessity, not overindulgence. This leads into Chapter 6 which deals with people and work, highlighting the growing population and its damaging environmental impact. He also explains the role of labor in society and calls for fair wages, hard work, and ethical practices that reflect the commitment to sustainable values. He proposes a carbon tax, where the more carbon you use, the more you pay. In conjunction with labor, Berners-Lee delves into businesses and technology in Chapter 7, calling for innovations. He pushes for science-based targets and specific goals from the Paris Climate Agreement to reduce Greenhouse gas emissions. These ideals are pushed into the private sector and look to technology to spark positive changes. Shifting the focus to a more personal level, Berners-Lee answers the major question of values in the Anthropocene. He gives many strategies to better understand what they see as important and looks to center values around a community's well-being. These aren’t limited to truthfulness, compassion, and calling out political incongruencies. He also focuses on how it is difficult to control some of the most important issues, but we can control our values. In Chapter 9, he begins to discuss critical thinking skills to tackle the challenges of today. To truly be environmentally friendly, readers must stretch beyond societal norms and begin to adapt to fit the context we live in. The world is far from perfect and to maintain this planet as there is no second option, Berners-Lee advocates for critical thinking and analysis of information. Most of these thinking skills come down to politics, with questioning sources and finding truth being the most important thinking skills. He takes these topics to the next level in Chapter 10 which emphasizes protest and its role in effecting transformations. While hesitant to endorse these methods, Berners-Lee ultimately encourages these actions as necessary. He is explicit about how to be an activist and understand the tightrope between peace and chaos. In Chapter 11, he puts it into a big picture by wrapping up his argument and highlighting the most important topics from each chapter. These range from “We have the opportunity to live better than ever” to “We need a new system of economics fit for the twenty-first century.” (222-223). Finally, he puts his entire novel into a practical close by offering realistic steps to becoming a more sustainable individual. He gives various tips and also gives a space for asking questions as success can only come from collective action. The language in There is No Planet B is accessible through its clear structure, despite its discussion of complex issues. This book is a series of common questions that Berners-Lee answers, which allows readers to engage with topics and learn straightforwardly. The intended audience includes those with a general knowledge of the environment as it deals with complicated subjects but can be a suitable call to action for anyone. While this format creates more simplification, he jumps quickly between questions and answers, making the story lack the depth necessary for the global changes he calls for throughout. For example, he touches upon various pieces of data and the environmental effects but does not talk about how to pay for these, making us view this story as a wishlist rather than a realistic guide. While it is intriguing, we don't understand the author's goal of this story as he jumps from small to large-scale problems, leaving readers confused and overwhelmed. Nonetheless, this book holds significant value in the fight for a better planet as it provides a comprehensive view of invoking change. He looks through many angles of society, from social to economic, and the implications in many facets of life. This makes readers think systemically and consider the various sides of this debate. Ultimately, we would not recommend it if you are solely looking for personal solutions. His writing can get bogged down by information and take away from the ultimate message. However, this is a strong overview of the environmental challenges that have become a major problem on our planet. It is a good starting point for readers intrigued by climate change, and for that audience, we recommend it. It depends on who is reading this novel, but it would ultimately be beneficial for many.

When I bought the book, I noticed that the author shared his last name with Tim Berners-Lee who founded the World Wide Web. It turns out they are brothers. That’s quite an intelligent and influential family. This is a book full of interesting facts and information as well as astute observations. He explicitly stating that one core value underpinning the book is that everyone has the same intrinsic value regardless of nationality or religion, and that as other life forms go, they too deserve a place. The title “There is No Planet B” refers to the fact that colonization of exo-planets is unrealistic and very far off and as Hawking stated, “We will not establish self-sustaining colonies in space for at least 100 years”. We must take care of this planet. The book discusses climate change and other environmental degradation resulting from food production, energy, travel and transport, and more. Even though the focus of the book is climate change it also discusses its cousin ocean acidification, pollutants other than greenhouse gases, the problem with plastics, extinctions and biodiversity, and food shortage. He says that it is all connected. The book feature detailed explanations, carbon footprint calculations and data, and it is filled with facts and graphs that are very helpful. He warns against the use of biofuel and makes it clear that solving climate change and other environmental issues does not need to result in suffering or poverty if done the right way. He supports a price on carbon and so do I. He criticizes the idea that population is the core problem. He states that “One billion reckless people would easily trash the place, while 15 billion careful people could snuggle up together and be fine”. I agree with that sentiment. His list of 14 things that every politician needs to know about the climate emergency, I think is very insightful. His explanation and endorsement of solar energy was both very informative and inspiring. I have many good things to say about this book, but I can’t give it five stars because of his discussions on economics. He admits to not having economic expertise and yet his socialist opinions on the topic are presented as fact. On page 157 he asks of businesses to make sure their salary distributions are roughly in line with the Maxwell-Boltzmann distribution, which is insane. He talks a lot about wealth distribution, he does not like the free market, and he seems to discount the laws of supply and demand. On page 138 he appears to mock economists. His criticism of the GDP metric is mostly valid, but he forgets that it depends on the context you use it. On page 260 he gives a definition of Neoliberalism, which is incorrect and then proceeds by denouncing it. There were also a few minor issues not related to economics in the book. On page 237 he makes an incorrect statement regarding the pyramids, and I don’t think he gives nuclear power and fusion power a faire shake even though he acknowledges their potential value. I certainly support a carbon price. The reason for this is that there are market failures called externalities. Supply and demand on their own do not take into account third party costs such as societal damage from carbon emissions. Economists of all stripes understand this and typically propose adding an imposed price, a carbon price in this case. With a carbon price market forces would be in play to reduce emission. Market forces are very effective and “automatic”. Bureaucrats making economic micro decisions and distributing wealth according to their own biases is not effective (Soviet Union). The word externality is never mentioned in this book probably because the author does not like market-related language, or maybe he does not even know what the word means. Clearly smart people such as Mike Berners-Lee are not immune to the Dunning-Kruger effect. I still recommend the book but take his opinions on economics for what it is, left-wing opinions, not fact.

His analysis leaves out the fact that a kW of fossil fuel does not magically appear where it is needed as the energy of Solar and Wind Batteries does. The FF has to be drilled/mined and transported to the location it is needed. This has required two trillion dollar wars, bribery of petro dictators and aircraft carriers launching multi million dollar missiles at Yemeni pickups. These economic costs are not included in the faulty logic of his analysis. Fossil fuel is NOT economically or geographically sustainable whereas SWBs are.

This, plus their previous book A Burning Question can bring someone pretty far in their understanding of at least the *concern*

Sehr klare, außerordentlich gute Einleitung in das Problem. Veraltete, naive und eklektische beschränkte Darstellung der Handlungsoptionen. Wunschdenken und blinde Flecken zuhauf. Schade.

Here is the statement from the back cover of this amazing book: ‘We still have a chance to live better than ever on Planet Earth. But, as humans become ever more powerful, how can we avoid blundering into disaster?’ And this book does its level best to answer that question with positive ideas, suggestions, and examples. Anyone who’s been alive for the past forty years and has avoided burying their head in the sand must know by now that we are in trouble, serious trouble. Greed, selfishness, division, vested interest, and inexcusable ignorance (given the amount of information available) have allowed the destroyers to overwhelm the creators and carers. But this hopeful, constructive, sensible, and brilliantly researched book has re-ignited the optimist in me. There is a chance, small and only briefly available, for us to change things in such a way that we might not only survive but actually render the world a better place in which all of us can live. Wouldn’t that be wonderful? Given the current state of the world as it now operates, under rules well past their sell-by dates, ruled as it is by charlatans, narcissists, dictators, and greedy, self-serving opportunists with more money than sense, it is easy to become deeply pessimistic. But we can change things. It is possible. What those people don’t understand is that they will be every bit as susceptible to the irresistible destructive power of the climate emergency that lurks just around the corner as the rest of us. Wealth and power will make absolutely no difference to their chances of survival when the disaster occurs. But we can do something to prevent that disaster. And that is what this book is all about. The suggestions are written in a style that’s accessible, intelligent, and informed, but lacking in the arrogance so often associated with books that give advice. The references and the glossary of research sources give credence to everything the author mentions here. The book is believable simply because it is obviously true. There is a brief introduction to the first edition (I read the updated version). The book then tackles the growing threats and their possible solutions under the following headings: Food, Climate and Environment, Energy, Travel and Transport, Growth Money and Metrics, People and Work, Business and Technology, Values Truth and Trust, Thinking Skills for Today’s World, Protest, Big-Picture Summary, and What Can I Do? Each section gives examples of the causes of our current problems, possible solutions, and sources of information for further reading. The language makes often complex systems and situations readily understood without in any way being patronising. There follows a comprehensive section dealing with Climate Emergency Basics, and another headed Alphabetical Quick Tour. ‘Endnotes’ details the sources for the numbered items in each chapter, and these are extensive. Finally, there is a useful Index. If you are growing increasingly concerned for the future of the planet, please give this book a read. If you are still in the mindset of the denier, please give this book a read. And then see what parts of it you can adopt in your own life, what you can actually do to make a difference and help create a much better future than the one we are currently running full pelt toward. That cliff we will all otherwise plummet down is too steep and high to survive. But, if we can adopt the ideas and suggestions so wisely presented in this book, there’s a real chance we may at least endure and maybe even thrive in a world we can make so much better than that we currently occupy. Mike Berners-Lee is the son of mathematicians and computer scientists and brother of Tim Berners-Lee, the father of the internet.

Super livre pour apprendre les problématiques liées à l'environnement, très bonne approche globale et locale du problème, considération des enjeux économiques et socio politique à plusieurs échelles, vraiment indispensable en 2022. En anglais

Molto interessante e semplice da comprendere! Offre diversi un diverso punto di vista e tante soluzioni per vivere più armoniosamente con il nostro pianeta...