How to Avoid a Climate Disaster: Micro Review
I have always been a great fan of Bill Gates. Both as a technologist as well as a philanthropist. His latest book touches on a subject that has me worried like many of us. I will be honest, being a parent, its hard not to worry about the planet that my kids and their kids will be growing up in.
But Climate Change seems to have become a contentious topic for some reason. With that said, Bill Gates’ latest book was a pleasure to read. Its a book that’s balanced, skeptical and biased. Balanced in its approach, skeptical of opinions and biased towards facts and action. Exactly what we need to read. I thought I knew quite a bit about climate change but I admit that what I knew before I read this book was very fragmented that I had gleaned from many different sources. This book simply and comprehensively lays bare the enormity of the challenge in front of us, the potential solutions and the task ahead of us. Its a pragmatic approach laid by a Billionaire who is putting his money where his mouth is. Bill Gates provides data, dispels myths, describes his own experience, efforts, plans and proposals to tackle this menace.
The book starts with defining the problem and the challenge. We are adding 51 Billion (with a B) tons of greenhouse gases to the atmosphere every year. The earth is already warming. What the argues is that unless we get to 0, there would be catastrophic impacts, its a matter of when and not if.
He then breaks down the key sources of the greenhouse gases:
- Making Things — 31%
- Plugging In — 27%
- Growing Things — 19%
- Getting around — 16%
- Keeping warm and cool — 7%
For each one of these, he delves into the current state, the opportunities and the innovations.
And then he finally gets into, how do we prepare for inevitable, what governments can do and what each one of us can do.
Its definitely a book I will recommend whether you believe in the topic or not. You will walk away a more informed person.
I will digress from the usual. There are quite a few quotes and facts that I could cite but instead I would recommend instead that you watch this video from Bill
