Book Review: Whole Earth Discipline
Permalink +Fri, Jul 16, 2010, 4:44 am // Guest writer
Whole Earth Discipline: An Ecopragmatist Manisfesto by Stewart BrandEric Hirst is guest writer.
Environmental Heretic or Prophet? A Review of Stewart Brand’s Whole Earth Discipline: An Ecopragmatist Manifesto, Viking Press, 2009.
Stewart Brand’s new book shakes the foundation of conventional environmental thinking. I moved to California in 1964 to attend graduate school. That summer I hiked in Yosemite National Park and instantly became an environmentalist. Like many others, my environmental interests evolved over the following decades. Initially, my goal was to preserve western high-altitude wilderness areas (rocks and ice.) My horizons later expanded to include air pollution, water pollution, and toxic wastes. Much of my career at Oak Ridge National Laboratory focused on energy efficiency, primarily to reduce the use of fossil fuels and the environmental problems associated with their extraction, transportation, and combustion. Now global warming looms over everything else, the ultimate game changer.
Along comes Stewart Brand with a book on global warming and strategies to respond. Brand, now in his early 70s, is best known for his Whole Earth Catalog, published from 1968 to 1985. His new book challenges many conventional environmental beliefs. Because the author is a well-recognized environmentalist, we need to take seriously his criticisms of the environmental establishment and his suggestions. The book has chapters on population, urbanization, nuclear energy, genetic engineering, and geo-engineering.
Climate change is unlike other environmental problems in its magnitude, both scope and scale. It affects the entire planet, not just local regions. And it promises to change dramatically life on earth. Environmentalists traditionally worried about the effects of people and our technologies on the environment; with global climate change we are now worried about the effects of the earth on us.
Many environmentalists (including me) believe that population growth lies at the root of all major environmental problems. Unless we can slow and then stop population growth, all is lost because increases in the number of people will overwhelm all efforts to manage the commons and cut pollution.
Brand has a different take on the issue. Largely because of increasing urbanization, population growth is slowing dramatically. As more and more people move to cities, they choose to have fewer children. Indeed, within a few decades we will have a declining world population.
Urbanization is good for the environment, according to Brand. Getting people out of the countryside allows the rural landscape to recover. In addition, cities are where innovation occurs and new ideas are born. Brand is upbeat about the slums in large third-world cities, which he says are hotbeds of creativity.
Brand says that nuclear energy must be a key part of our energy mix. Most renewables are intermittent (e.g., solar and wind,) which limits their usefulness to the electrical grid. Electricity is the ultimate real-time product, produced at exactly the same time it is consumed, because the electrical system has almost no storage capacity. Nuclear power is reliable, controllable, and its production costs are very low. It provides baseload power that runs steadily 24/7.
Brand says we should not worry about the long-term (thousands of years) storage of nuclear waste. We should plan to store such wastes for about a century and assume that the creativity and new technologies invented by our children and grandchildren will solve the long-term waste-storage problem. Had environmentalists been unsuccessful in blocking nuclear plants, we would have a lot fewer coal plants—and therefore much less carbon dioxide, sulfur and nitrogen air pollution, and land and streams ruined by mountaintop removal and strip mining.
Concerns about genetically engineered foods (frankenfood) are seriously misplaced. The environmental community should learn more about biology so it understands the major benefits these modified foods bring to society, including much less use of pesticides and fertilizers. Brand says the environmental community has “starved people, hindered science, hurt the natural environment, and denied our own practitioners a crucial tool” in opposing genetic engineering.
Brand sees the environmental movement made up of Romantics and Scientists. “The romantics identify with natural systems; the scientists study natural systems.” A new set of players is emerging—engineers who want to fix things. And global warming is a gigantic problem in search of lots of fixes. “Romantics love problems; scientists discover and analyze problems; engineers solve problems.”
Brand favors further study of and experimentation with new ideas to modify the earth’s climate, called geoengineering. These are efforts to directly modify the earth’s climate and slow (or reverse) global warming. The leading scheme involves stratospheric sulfates. Much as a volcano would, we could inject sulfates directly into the atmosphere. Airplanes, cannons, or balloon-suspended hoses could be used to deliver the sulfates.
Brand’s book includes an excellent list of books and papers on science, climate, cities, population, nuclear, genetic engineering, environmentalism, ecology, Indians, restoration, and geoengineering.
Brand is too much of a technological optimist. He believes we will identify and invent new technologies and systems to solve the problems caused by global warming. He also believes (implicitly) that these new technologies will have no serious adverse side effects. I disagree with both of his beliefs. However, this is such an interesting, wide-ranging, and well-written book that I urge you to read it.
Editor note: This book is currently in stock and on the shelves at Village Books. July 15
Comments (1)
To add a comment, click here to login or register.
Steve Wilson // Mon, Jul 19, 2010, 8:08 am
Thanks for the book review Eric. Sounds very interesting. I would agree that Stewart is overly optomistic. Is he suggesting that we are no longer under the spell of Alfred E. Newman: “What Me Worry?”
Why is it that it’s more popular to believe we can solve all these man-made problems instead of avoiding their creation. Seems like a convenient form of denial.
BTW, have you read ‘The Report From Iron Mountain’ (from the 60’s)?
Book Review: Whole Earth Discipline
Fri, Jul 16, 2010, 4:44 am // Guest writer
Eric Hirst reviews this October 2009 book by Stewart Brand of Whole Earth Catalog fame. Stewart is critical of several mainstream environmental stances.
1 comments; last on Jul 19, 2010
Planning for Earthquakes
Thu, Apr 01, 2010, 10:00 am // Guest writer
Tom Anderson submits this guest column. He brings attention to our local earthquake risks - and what we can do to prepare.1 comments; last on Apr 01, 2010
The Way I See It - The Fall of Science
Wed, Mar 03, 2010, 5:00 am // Ham Hayes
Enough has been revealed, written and said about “Climate-gate” for me to be alarmed.7 comments; last on Mar 07, 2010
The Way I See It - Death by Secrecy
Wed, Jan 27, 2010, 4:59 am // Ham Hayes
Issues are no longer relevant when secrecy is the name of the game.1 comments; last on Jan 27, 2010
Consuming earth’s assets
Wed, May 20, 2009, 11:25 am // Larry Horowitz
“At present, we are stealing the future, selling it in the present, and calling it gross domestic product.” So says renowned entrepreneur and visionary Paul…1 comments; last on May 21, 2009
Coming Up - The Weather
Wed, May 13, 2009, 11:08 pm // g.h.kirsch
Events have forced those who earlier warned of global warming to modulate their hysteria and instead ring the alarm for catastrophic “climate change” instead. Why…
2 comments; last on May 14, 2009
Watching the Space Station
Fri, Apr 24, 2009, 6:04 pm // John Servais
We expect to have clear or almost clear skies at dawn for the next few days. And, as chance would have it, the ISS -…
1 comments; last on Apr 24, 2009
March 2009 Temperatures for Bellingham
Thu, Apr 02, 2009, 8:57 pm // John Servais
Bill McCallum has sent us the temperature graph for March. As he notes:While March 2009 had the same number of days with temperatures above normal,…
3 comments; last on Apr 03, 2009
Book review: The Weather of the Pacific Northwest
Thu, Dec 18, 2008, 1:39 am // John Servais
The book on Northwest weather has just been published. I mean _the_ book. "The Weather of the Pacific Northwest by Cliff Mass. For any person…
0 comments
Weather - September temperatures for Bellingham
Wed, Oct 01, 2008, 11:37 pm // John Servais
Bill McCallum is creating these interesting graphs of our monthly weather and making them available to us. We will continue to post them through December…
0 comments
Uncharted Future
Fri, Jul 04, 2008, 12:21 am // Myron Wlaznak
Over the past few years, I’ve written in other venues about profound impacts we can expect to our daily lives from fundamental changes in a…2 comments; last on Jul 23, 2008
Weather - June Temperatures for Bellingham
Tue, Jul 01, 2008, 6:35 am // John Servais
Bill McCallum has sent us the June chart of temperatures. As you can see, we had another cold month. Bill notes:"Temperatures have been below normal…
0 comments
Magnetism & the search for unlimited energy
Sat, Jun 28, 2008, 7:11 am // Larry Horowitz
On March 26, 2002, the US Patent Office issued Patent No. 6,362,718 B1, potentially altering the entire paradigm in our quest for the holy grail…11 comments; last on Jun 30, 2008
Weather - May temperatures for Bellingham
Sat, Jun 14, 2008, 9:40 am // John Servais
Bill McCallum has provided us with his unique chart for our May temperatures. This is obviously a labor of love for Bill, as he compiles…
0 comments
It’s Enough to Make Anyone Grumpy
Thu, Jun 05, 2008, 5:41 pm // Myron Wlaznak
It’s been a pretty sorry spring so far. With the exception of Ski to Sea weekend, our little corner of the globe has been somewhat…1 comments; last on Jun 05, 2008
Weather - April temperatures for Bellingham
Wed, May 07, 2008, 3:24 pm // John Servais
Bill McCallum has provided us with a unique and interesting look at our monthly temperatures. Above is the chart for April 2008, with the actual…
0 comments
Hitting the Ground Running
Tue, Jan 08, 2008, 6:18 pm // John Servais
OK, we are running on the new server. And the design and programming are going well. I have cautious hope the transformed site will be…0 comments
Is a New Solar Cycle Beginning?
Fri, Dec 14, 2007, 2:16 pm // John Servais
Is a New Solar Cycle Beginning? This is on NASA's site and has strong credibility. You won't find this article on a Google news search.…0 comments
Of treaties, phones and sunspots
Thu, Dec 13, 2007, 1:43 am // John Servais
Some items that I think are neat or news and which will perhaps impact us a lot in the near future.Do you know that today…0 comments
Winter solstice wonders
Sun, Dec 09, 2007, 2:07 am // John Servais
A little lightness for the weekend may be nice. While most 'blogs' include a lot of personal introspection and personal involvement in the posts, this…0 comments
Fluoridation
Wed, Oct 19, 2005, 2:28 pm // John Servais
Got your attention? Time magazine has an article this week about our Bellingham fight over whether or not to put fluoride in our drinking water.…0 comments
Like toxic water flowing from GP
Sat, Jul 02, 2005, 3:18 pm // Site Management
The link to No Forced Fluoride in Bellingham is posted to the right. The pro-fluoride initiative backers - financed by Seattle powers with well-laundered money…0 comments
Fluoride in water is medicine
Wed, Jun 22, 2005, 3:28 pm // Site Management
We found the nerve endings. The fluoride proponents don't like the word "medicine" as used in the June 16 post below. Of course fluoride in…0 comments
We want pure clean water
Thu, Jun 16, 2005, 3:32 pm // Site Management
The fluoride proponents don't have a clue. They don't get it. When I open my water tap, I want clean water to come out, not…0 comments
Internet election results: It’s just a fad
Tue, Sep 16, 2003, 2:17 pm // John Servais
The Auditor will post election results in almost-real time this evening. First post should be about 8:15, and because of the very few races the…0 comments
So - what polite word can we use?
Wed, Sep 03, 2003, 2:41 pm // John Servais
Phone outage in Whatcom County, Bellingham and much of Skagit County since 7:45 am this morning according to news reports. KGMI is on top of…0 comments
There are a few outstanding news web sites
Tue, Jun 24, 2003, 4:13 pm // John Servais
that provide national and international news that is most important and not always available. One site is truthout and it depends on visitor donations to…0 comments
NwCitizen 1995 to 2008
Early Northwest CitizenNew
Citizen TedSkookum.us
WikiLeaks.org
Current Interest
Auditor election pageSkookum.us
WA State Elections
Local
Bellingham HeraldBham Politics & Economics
Bob Sanders
Carl Weimer
Cascadia Weekly
Citizen Ted
Ferndale R-J
Foothills Gazette
John Watts
KGMI
Latte Republic
Lynden Tribune
Mainstreampolitics
Northern Light
Northwest Review
Sam Taylor
Skookum.us
Twilight Zoning
Wally Wonders
Washington Outsiders
Western Front - WWU
Whatcom Watch
Local causes
Bham CofC political blogChuckanut Mountains
Citizens of Bellingham
City Club of Bham
Conservation NW
Cordata & Meridian
Futurewise - Whatcom
Lake Whatcom
N. Cascades Audubon
N. Sound Conservancy
Neighborhood Schools Coalition
No Leaky Buckets
NW Holocaust Center
RE Sources
Skookum.us
Transition Whatcom
WA Conservation Voters
Local Leisure
Adventures NWEntertainment NNW
Climate & Weather
Climate AuditWatts Up With That?
Weather by Cliff Mass
Cascadia
Crosscut SeattleJoel Connelly
Orcinus
Portland Indy Media
Seattle Indy Media
Washington Votes
Leisure
Am Cup - GGYC viewAm Cup legal fight
Worth checking out
Al-Jazeera onlineAlaska Dispatch
AlterNet.org
Antiwar.com
Arab News
Asia Times
Atlantic, The
Buzz Flash
Common Dreams
counterpunch
Daily Beast, The
Daily Kos
Daily Mirror
Drudge Report
FiveThirtyEight
Foreign Policy in Focus
Guardian Unlimited
Gulf News
Haaretz
Huffington Post
Innocence Project, The
Intrnational Herald Tribune
James Fallows
Jerusalem Post
Juan Cole
Le Diplo
Media Matters
Middle East Times
MoveOn.org
Nation, The
New American Century
News Trust
NMFA
numbers
Online Journal
Palestine Daily
Palestine News
Personal bio info
Politico
Progressive Review
Project Vote Smart
Reuters
Sea Shepherd
Slate
Talking Points Memo
The Onion
Tom Paine.com
truthout
War and Piece
WikiLeaks.org
ynetnews.com
Governments
Auditor election pageBellingham
Bham - PFD
Skagit County
The White House
WA State Access
WA State Elections
WA State Legislature
Whatcom Auditor
Whatcom County
Other - for whatever
BushFlash.comChickehhawks
Doonesbury
George Bush
Info Clearing House
Michael Moore
Reality News
The Crisis Papers
Third World Traveler
Unity08
Election 2009
- Candidate Forum - video- Mike McAuley endorsement
Bham #6 - Catherine Chambers
Bham #6 - Michael Lilliquist
Bham At Large - Orphalee
Bham At Large - Seth
County #1 - Dan McShane
County #1 - Kathy Kershner
County #2 - Ken Mann
County #2 - Mary B Teigrob
County #3 - Carl Weimer
County #3 - Michelle Luke
County At Large - Bill
County At Large - Laurie
Port #1 - John Blethen
Port #1 - Scott Walker
Port #2 - Doug Smith
Port #2 - Mike McAuley
2010 Winter Olympics
Amy Goodman InterrogationNo 2010 Olympics
No women ski jumpers
Olympics muzzle free speech
Olympics Resistance Network
Page of Links
Spectacle Vancouver
Zirin on Olympics
Less active
Eye on WhatcomPost-Oklahoman Confessions
The American Telegraph
Quiet, offline or dead
David HackworthGitmo prisoner 345
Mega Awesome
Not in my county
Parkenfarker
Pro-Whatcom