Book: Hope for a Heated Planet

I had an opportunity to listen to an old hand in environmental movement, Robert Musil, former Executive Director and CEO of Physicians for Social Responsibility (PSR), on changing alignments in the climate change battle. Please see the links below for the book and the talk.

He wrote to a book to document the grassroots efforts in the US such as

1. 10000+ students' lobbying efforts at congress
2. 1000s of church gatherings
3. Hundreds of cities going carbon neutral
4. 30+ governors committing to Kyoto targets
5. Companies being forced to leave US chamber

He talks about ground-level changes compared to Kyoto:

1. Change in attitudes that is bringing/forcing politicians on board
2. Splintered business community now vs. solid opposition
3. Buildup of public opinion first before a deal is struck vs. Al Gore's last minute parachuting to sign the deal without public backing
4. Military as a new bedfellow arguing the national security side of the issue
5. High quantity and quality of engagement from youth across the world

Overall he is cautiously optimistic. Listening to him gave me a perspective on how far things have come.

Hope for a Heated Planet: How Americans Are Fighting Global Warming and Building a Better Future (also from Rutgers University Press)

Rejecting cries of gloom and doom, Hope for a Heated Planet shows how the fight against global warming can be won by the grassroots efforts of individuals. Robert K. Musil, who led the Nobel Peace Prize–winning organization Physicians for Social Responsibility, explains that a growing new climate movement can produce unprecedented change—in the economy, public health, and home—while saving the planet.

Musil draws on personal experience and compelling data in this practical and rigorous analysis of the causes and cures for global warming. The book presents all the players in the most pressing challenge facing society today, from the massive fossil fuel lobby to the enlightened corporations that are joining the movement to “go green.” Musil thoroughly explains the tremendous potential of renewable energy sources—wind, solar, and biofuel—and the startling conclusions of experts who say society can do away entirely with fossil fuels. He tells readers about the engaged politicians, activists, religious groups, and students who are already working together against climate change.

But the future depends, Musil insists, on what changes ordinary citizens make. Through personal choices and political engagement, he shows how readers can cut carbon emissions and create green communities where they live. With practical and realistic solutions, Hope for a Heated Planet inspires readers to be accountable and enables them to usher in an age of sustainability for future generations.

Podcast: Our Role in Combating Climate Change - Talk at the World Affairs Council of Northern California

Members of civil society do not have a seat at the upcoming climate treaty negotiations in Copenhagen, yet the issue of climate change affects us all. Looking at the causes and potential cures for global warming, Robert Musil sees hope in the role of the individual. He argues that it is efforts of a growing grassroots movement of engaged citizens that will ultimately decide the course of the climate challenge. Through personal choices and political engagement, he explores how we can cut carbon emissions and produce unprecedented change across sectors. Musil was the Executive Director and CEO of Nobel Peace Prize–winning organization Physicians for Social Responsibility (PSR) and helped launch PSR’s environmental program in the early 1990s.