Limits to Growth, The 30-Year Update. Donelly Meadows, Jorgen Rangers and Dennis Meadows, Chelsea Green Publishing, 2004.
This well written book nicely captures in one volume the range and depth of challenges we face regarding our ecological footprint and how it exceeds the earth’s ability to replenish. This includes water, food, energy, and other resources, combined with the outputs (e.g. waste) we produce as a result.
The first half of the book looks at the theory and data related to each resources and its use and abuses. This part of the books is enlightening and well worth keeping to hand to inform debate about our ecological and environmental condition. The second half of the book looks at the updated computer models the authors use to predict aspects of our future should we not change behavior. Thus the second half more depressing and challenging to accept on face value.
For many years we have all heard doomsday calls and naysayers who claim that ‘the end is neigh’ as a result of trends of some kind that cannot go on. Indeed in A Nation Of Takers, there are other trend lines that warrant more urgent attention yet we are not able to effect change. And this is my problem with this kind of book.
Overall the book is a call for responsible change; to plan for resource consumption more carefully and to share the usage more evenly. As he book suggests the current potentially disastrous use and abuse of the earths resources is extremely unbalanced: the poorer nations are too populous and unable to feed themselves and the west is too rich and decedent. These conditions are not ‘right’ or ‘wrong’, they just are. But there are factors that perpetuate these conditions such as acute corruption in many poor countries and maladjusted markets in the west due to over- and ineffective regulation.
The problem with this book is that the World shows no sign or ability to make the changes prescribed. There is no political will. Worse, there is no debate about such a set of findings and assumptions. The left assumes this material is all true and our fault; the right assumes the data is flawed and a dig at free market economics. There is great need for debate but there is none.
It does no good for ‘my voice to be heard’ since all our voices are not what the politicians hear. Our entire political system no longer operates for my benefit or for yours: it operates for its own sustainment and growth. Virtually no government willingly contracts and gets smaller and leaves the people in charge. As proof, this kind of book is not even debated by the right, since the left assume it is all true. Until both sides sit down and consider both sides are possible, this book and its findings will remain problematic.
Recommended 7 out of 10.
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