Green illusions : the dirty secrets of clean energy and the future of environmentalism
Author(s)
Bibliographic Information
Green illusions : the dirty secrets of clean energy and the future of environmentalism
（Our sustainable future）
University of Nebraska Press, c2012
- : cloth
- : [pbk.]
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Note
Includes bibliographical references and index
Description and Table of Contents
Description
We don't have an energy crisis. We have a consumption crisis. And this book, which takes aim at cherished assumptions regarding energy, offers refreshingly straight talk about what's wrong with the way we think and talk about the problem. Though we generally believe we can solve environmental problems with more energy-more solar cells, wind turbines, and biofuels-alternative technologies come with their own side effects and limitations. How, for instance, do solar cells cause harm? Why can't engineers solve wind power's biggest obstacle? Why won't contraception solve the problem of overpopulation lying at the heart of our concerns about energy, and what will?
This practical, environmentally informed, and lucid book persuasively argues for a change of perspective. If consumption is the problem, as Ozzie Zehner suggests, then we need to shift our focus from suspect alternative energies to improving social and political fundamentals: walkable communities, improved consumption, enlightened governance, and, most notably, women's rights. The dozens of first steps he offers are surprisingly straightforward. For instance, he introduces a simple sticker that promises a greater impact than all of the nation's solar cells. He uncovers why carbon taxes won't solve our energy challenges (and presents two taxes that could). Finally, he explores how future environmentalists will focus on similarly fresh alternatives that are affordable, clean, and can actually improve our well-being.
Watch a book trailer.
Table of Contents
List of Illustrations
List of Figures
Acknowledgments
Introduction: Unraveling the Spectacle Part I: Seductive Futures1. Solar Cells and other Fairy Tales2. Wind Power's Flurry of Limitations3. Biofuels and the Politics of Big Corn4. The Nuclear-Military-Industrial Risk Complex 5. The Hydrogen Zombie6. Conjuring Clean Coal7. Hydropower, Hybrids, and other Hydras Part II: From Here to There8. The Alternative-Energy Fetish9. The First Step Part III: The Future of Environmentalism10. Women's Rights11. Improving Consumption12. The Architecture of Community13. Efficiency Culture14. Asking Questions Epilogue: A Grander Narrative?
Resources for Future Environmentalism
Notes
Index
by "Nielsen BookData"
