Reviews for Plan B 3.0: Mobilizing to Save Civilization

The average rating for Plan B 3.0: Mobilizing to Save Civilization based on 2 reviews is 5 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2008-02-10 00:00:00 Jim Pappas 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" section at the end of the book, I was surprised that the author didn't say things like "buy EnergyStar appliances and a hybrid vehicle" (although he did say things like this in the course of the book), but instead left off with a take-home message of "keep writing to your congressmen and senators--even meet with them in person if possible--for as long as it takes for them to get the message that we have to do this now." The earth's ecological systems are on the point of collapse and won't wait, and while individual purchasing decisions do make a difference, what the only way to really avert the end of civilization as we know it is to change public policies and start investing in and subsidizing renewable energy instead of fossil fuels.

Review # 2 was written on 2008-06-23 00:00:00 Amy Moye 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, however the way that Plan B is organized is extremely effective. It is attempting to serve as a plan for saving society by 2020 and it does this by implementing approaches already employed by a few countries but on a global scale. The solutions are based on current economic realities and while ambitious, also seem attainable. I would recommend this book to concerned people who may already know a lot of the information regarding environmental decline and possible societal collapse, people who may be increasingly wary of the green washing campaigns that attempt to tell us we can buy our way out of any problem. Plan B advocates consuming less animal products, alternatives to car culture, and other ways of reducing consumption that are backed up by hundreds of referenced works. I learned that switching from a typical western diet to a plant based one is the equivalent from switching from regular Suburban SUV use to a Prius. Note: Since plan B calls for orchestrated cooperation on a global scale it most definitely will not be enjoyed by people truly fearful of government consolidation and the emergence of one world government, population control and the like.