protomattr reviewed Drawdown by Paul Hawken
Review of 'Drawdown' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
In a recent television interview with Senator Ben Sasse, he repeated a common criticism of “climate alarmists” - that they point to problems in dire terms yet provide no solutions. This outstanding book, a collaboration of dozens of individuals of various science and policy backgrounds, is the best I have seen at presenting a coherent set of such solutions. First, to better define the problem, the Project Drawdown team defines “drawdown” as the point in which the levels of greenhouse gasses peak and begin to decline.
Eighty solutions, covering well-discussed areas such as transportation, energy, and land use, as well as areas that don’t receive as much attention, such as girls’ education and food, are presented in thought-provoking essays complete with economic analysis and beautiful full-page photographs. The overriding message is one of win-win: the benefits of implementation outweigh the costs, especially when we are honest about the cost of …
In a recent television interview with Senator Ben Sasse, he repeated a common criticism of “climate alarmists” - that they point to problems in dire terms yet provide no solutions. This outstanding book, a collaboration of dozens of individuals of various science and policy backgrounds, is the best I have seen at presenting a coherent set of such solutions. First, to better define the problem, the Project Drawdown team defines “drawdown” as the point in which the levels of greenhouse gasses peak and begin to decline.
Eighty solutions, covering well-discussed areas such as transportation, energy, and land use, as well as areas that don’t receive as much attention, such as girls’ education and food, are presented in thought-provoking essays complete with economic analysis and beautiful full-page photographs. The overriding message is one of win-win: the benefits of implementation outweigh the costs, especially when we are honest about the cost of maintaining the status quo. And these solutions are available now - the only hindrances are human stubbornness, short-sightedness, and greed. No one of these solutions is a silver bullet - all must be taken together to achieve drawdown. This is a central theme of the book. Like throughout Nature, we must shift our perspective and look at systems holistically, rather than as individuals in isolation.
An additional twenty “on-the-horizon” solutions follow these. I found these to be especially inspirational, as well as the excerpts from ecologists, authors, and the Pope, interspersed throughout. Overall, Drawdown is a very important contribution to addressing probably the most crucial issue of our times, even if all it does is dispel the notion that no one is proposing solutions. I might send Senator Sasse a copy.
