Eco-economy : building an economy for the earth / Lester R. Brown.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Brown, Lester R. (Lester Russell), 1934-

Contributor:

Earth Policy Institute.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Environmental economics.

Physical Description:

xviii, 333 pages : charts, 1 map ; 24 cm

Edition:

First edition.

Place of Publication:

New York : W.W. Norton, [2001]

Summary:

In 1543, Polish astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus challenged the view that the Sun revolved around the Earth, arguing instead that the Earth revolved around the Sun. His paper led to a revolution in thinking -- to a new worldview. Eco-Economy discusses the need today for a similar shift in our worldview. The urgent question: Is the environment part of the economy or the economy part of the environment? Lester Brown argues the latter, pointing out that treating the environment as part of the economy has produced an economy that is destroying its natural support systems.

Brown notes that if China were to have a car in every garage, American style, it would need 80 million barrels of oil a day -- more than the world currently produces. If paper consumption per person in China were to reach the U.S. level, China would need more paper than the world produces. There go the world's forests. If the fossil fuel-based, automobile-centered, throwaway economic model will not work for China, it will not work for the other 3 billion people in the developing world -- and it will not work for the rest of the world.

But Brown is optimistic as he describes how to restructure the global economy to make it compatible with the earth's ecosystem so that economic progress can continue. In the new economy, wind farms replace coal mines, hydrogen-powered fuel cells replace internal combustion engines, and cities are designed for people, not cars. Glimpses of the new economy can be seen in the wind farms of Denmark, the solar rooftops of Japan, the bicycle network of the Netherlands, and the reforested mountains of South Korea.

Eco-Economy is a road map of how to get from here to there.

Contents:

1. The Economy and the Earth 3

Economy Self-Destructing 7

Lessons from the Past 14

Learning from China 17

The Acceleration of History 19

The Option: Restructure or Decline 21

I. A Stressed Relationship

2. Signs of Stress: Climate and Water 27

Temperature Rising 28

The Ice Is Melting 30

Sea Level Rising 34

More Destructive Storms 37

Rivers Drained Dry 39

Falling Water Tables 43

Facing Water Scarcity 46

3. Signs of Stress: The Biological Base 49

Fisheries Collapsing 51

Forests Shrinking 55

Rangelands Deteriorating 58

Soils Eroding 62

Species Disappearing 68

Synergies and Surprises 72

II. The New Economy

4. The Shape of the Eco-Economy 77

Ecology Over Economics 78

A Monumental Undertaking 81

Restructuring the Economy 83

New Industries, New Jobs 85

History's Greatest Investment Opportunity 92

5. Building the Solar/Hydrogen Economy 97

The Energy Efficiency Base 99

Harnessing the Wind 102

Turning Sunlight into Electricity 107

Tapping the Earth's Heat 110

Natural Gas: The Transition Fuel 112

Getting to the Hydrogen Economy 114

6. Designing a New Materials Economy 121

Throwaway Products 123

Materials and the Environment 126

The Earth's Toxic Burden 131

The Role of Recycling 135

Redesigning the Materials Economy 138

7. Feeding Everyone Well 145

A Status Report 147

Raising Cropland Productivity 150

Raising Water Productivity 154

Restructuring the Protein Economy 158

Eradicating Hunger: A Broad Strategy 163

8. Protecting Forest Products and Services 169

Fuel, Lumber, and Paper 170

Forest Services 172

Sustainable Forestry 176

Lightening the Load 178

The Role of Plantations 181

Reclaiming the Earth 183

9. Redesigning Cities for People 187

An Urbanizing Species 188

Car-Centered Urban Sprawl 191

Urbanization and Obesity 195

Urban Rail and Bicycle Systems 199

Planning Cities for People 202

III. Getting from Here to There

10. Stabilizing Population by Reducing Fertility 211

Breaking Out or Breaking Down 213

Africa Breaking Down 217

Filling the Family Planning Gap 220

The Role of Female Education 225

Using Soap Operas and Sitcoms 227

Stopping at Two 228

11. Tools for Restructuring the Economy 233

The Fiscal Steering Wheel 234

Tax Shifting 236

Subsidy Shifting 240

Ecolabeling: Voting with Our Wallets 244

Tradable Permits 248

Support for Fiscal Restructuring 249

12. Accelerating the Transition 253

United Nations Leadership 255

New Responsibility of Governments 257

New Role for the Media 259

The Corporate Interest 261

NGOs and Individuals 265

Crossing the Threshold 269

Is There Enough Time? 274.

Notes:

"Earth Policy Institute."

Includes bibliographical references (pages [277]-322) and index.

ISBN:

0393321932

OCLC:

48272718