This Changes Everything: Capitalism vs. the Climate

If there was one book I would recommend for this generation to read, it would be this one. Indeed the time has come for a much deeper reflection of our lives and our roles in this world. Several brave individuals and communities who are directly threatened by climate change and by powerful fossil fuel corporations are doing so already, as described by Naomi Klein, but there is an urgent need for a much broader understanding of these issues. Power and information differentials are described beautifully in the book, and also the science and the politics of solutions to climate change. People need to work together to transform their lives and societies towards equity and sustainability, and there are already several examples from across the world to show that such transformation are both possible and desirable. All in all, it is a very scary book, but also one filled with tremendous hope. It will be up to this generation on how things turn out for our world. And this book will help you take your first step.

Naomi Klein, as usual, does a thorough job, something that her readers have come to expect from her works, to paint a grim picture of the failure of the collective that is humanity. She adds a few stories to lift the spirits of the weary, that the war to stop climate change is not lost and there is a lot that can yet be salvaged.However, this was written in a time when sanity prevailed in the world, where the only thing we had to complain about was that how on finer points Obama gets it wrong. This was a book written for a world where Trump was not the President of USA and regressive policies on climate change by the USA was not the norm.After reading this book one begins to grasp the true extent of peril we face and how for the first time in the history of this world a single species would be solely responsible for the destruction of all.Needless to say this book must be a part of the standard curriculum of students the world over.

If i be honest the , i purchased the book because i thought i would learn something about climate change . but this book starts with a perception that the reader already knows basic information about climate change , so for me personally it was a bit hard to catch with naomi at the start but i got my way around by the second chapter or so . there are some of the best concepts discussed in this book when the reader posses some power in soicety this book can really help that reader make envoirment related policy and overall understanding captalism's impact on envoirment

A very bold account of the underlying causes for global warming and climate change. The writer’s main argument is that our economic system – free market economy, unregulated capitalism, neo-liberalism – is against the natural world and is the root cause of climate change. Our economic system demands that economies do not remain finite but keep growing and this growth is leading to an ever increase in carbon emissions because economies are essentially driven by the burning of fossil fuels. As per the writer, if we want to avert catastrophic climate change and keep global warming below the ‘tipping point’, we have to make drastic changes to this system by shifting to renewable sources of energy, by giving impetus to local economies as well as change our life style to reduce consumption.The book is highly recommended and a must read.For people who believe that climate change is a reality and an existential threat to all life on Earth; this book answers the question as to why nothing much is being done to tackle this vital issue.

Naomi Klein does a fantastic job as the author of this book.The arguments in defense of climate change, as presented in the book, are well supported by scientific facts and findings.You may feel half way through the book that you are reading a "left" book as the author talks a lot about the things that are wrong with extractive economy ( Capitalist economy) as we have it now. But then that is the truth too.Extractive economy is certainly unsustainable.Be prepared to overwhelmed after reading this book.

While many people who are inclined to read this book already have an inkling of how capitalism has ruined our environment (and indeed our society and world), this book expands upon this prior feeling with very compelling arguments and information. A must read for those of us who care about our country, society, planet and most importantly future of our children.I have one issue with this novel, which is that Naomi Klein does not talk about the impact of agriculture and non veg food production in her book, which is both baffling and disappointing, as agricultural rearing cause over 60% of global emissions (transport of all kinds accounts for 17%).

This book will end up making me buy every single one of her books. Incredibly informative and definitely an eye opener. Do not miss out on this one. Read it and it'll change the way you look at the world.

Very poor quality. The pages were torn, many pages were yellow, and the book had visible stains on it. This looks like an old or damaged copy, not a new book as described. Extremely disappointed with the condition in which it was delivered. Would not recommend purchasing from this seller.

Our planet is dying: our Earth, our one and only beautiful blue planet, is rapidly becoming less able to sustain life. This Changes Everything is a brilliantly written, accessible, thoroughly researched, and convincing account of climate change that offers hope. It doesn't have to happen: there is still a narrowing window of time in which we can reverse the processes and a global grassroots movement is gathering determined to bring about the necessary change. Everyone has a part to play: it can no longer be left to remote authority.The writing has long been on the wall. Before Kofi Annan, Secretary General of the UN, declared climate change the most serious problem confronting humankind, reports by august scientific institutions and global charities had warned about the menacing developments and been brushed aside by public and politicians. Prevailing economics and business with strong political support allied to bury the problem and worked to cast doubt on the authoritative scientific conclusions. In the 1980s, under President Reagan US environmental agencies and their staff were sidelined and disempowered. Even now the BBC treats UKIP with more respect than the Green Party. Yet the message is proving correct: we are living beyond our means. We depend on global commons and are behaving like a flock of voracious goats, consuming and polluting the future of humankind. Our conventional economies based on extractive industries, use of carbon-based energy sources, and aimed at economic growth are incompatible with the survival of life on earth and everywhere the canaries are falling silent and dropping off their perches. Wildlife has been reduced by 50% in 40 years.In London, Hallowe'en 2014 was the warmest every recorded (32 deg C on my balcony) and delightfully sunny - what's not to like? That some effects of global warming are positive - they can plant forests in Iceland where none were possible and the UK has the beginnings of a wine industry - confuses the issue. In the long term there is only catastrophe if we go on as we are doing.Naomi Klein has pursued her subject through the corruption of US environmental charities by big energy, the WTO, conferences of deniers, an alarming meeting of climate changers, polluting mines, oil wells, fracking sites, pipelines and everywhere finds opposition that is highly active, often successful, and growing worldwide. Small communities threatened by politically supported energy companies can seldom prevail and only a massive global grassroots movement can exert sufficient pressure to force the necessary comprehensive change in the whole political, economic, and business nexus including energy companies, extractive industries, the agreements and rules of the World Trade Organisation and much more.I found it difficult to put down Naomi Klein's book which is as hard-hitting and thought-provoking as No Logo and the Shock Doctrine. It is easy to despair of the whole situation, and she finds reason for real hope. Catastrophe is not inevitable. A global coalition is building of environmental organisations large and small. This book is addressed to the intelligent and concerned grassroots: we, the people have to act for the future where power and authority have failed. It's the right message and just in time. The movement is off the ground, but it's a long way to go and we have to get a move on.

Super importante para entender e abrir os olhos para esse embate real (capitalismo x clima), que não é fantasia, pois a autora, como boa jornalista, demonstra por n's exemplos reais. Fazendo questão de apontar a necessidade de mudança do nosso sistema que prejudica tanto o nosso planeta e coloca a nossa própria existência em risco.

I'm old and I don't have any kids, but somehow I still care about what happens to people in the next few years and even about what happens after I'm gone. There's a lot of unnecessary suffering that will likely be coming along sooner rather than later due to our unsustainable habits. There is still the possibility of having a reasonably comfortable future if we take stock of what's explained so clearly in this book. However it seems that there's not much time remaining to change our course. I hope you'll read this book. It could make a difference. We might not have to look back and think about what might have been possible. But it seems that we're down to the point where every month that goes by of sitting on the fence and diddling is going to multiply the suffering many fold. I don't think it has to work out that way. Many thanks to Naomi Klein for making the effort to inform us.

Naomi has written from her heart a "cannot put down" series of stories that are truly impactful. Makes me want to do something. I will.Very well researched with hundreds of references spanning numerous facets of life.One thing I think is missing though. The call for each of us to do something simple like boycott fossil fuels - first for a day/ month, then 2, 3 and so one until we are off the stuff. I sold my car and rarely drive, I sold my big house and live in a half-sized, more efficient apartment close to work. And Lord willing, I will cut back my meat eating by 80% or more as my New Year's resolution. If each of us took these kinds of steps, it would not be enough, but it would be a tsunami to the fossil fuel and financial sectors.Or maybe this call is not missing from Naomi's book. Maybe she has set us up for just such a change in ourselves! Bless you Naomi! You encouraged me to do even more!Nelson LeeClimate Steward

This is an interesting topic. I've just finished Naomi Klein's This Changes Everything and was struck by it. Mostly, it reminded me that I'm old. A lot of what she writes about in the history to combat climate change are things I lived through, and was active in.Case and point: The World Trade Organization (WTO) rules allow countries to sue if regional laws are enacted to protect local renewable businesses. Ever wonder what happened to cheap solar panels from China? These are the PV panels that were available at places in the US like Harbor Freight Tools for rock-bottom prices. And China had been flooding the market with them. The EU and US decided that it didn't like this economic challenge to their own fledgling solar industries, and sued successfully in the World Court, to impose sanctions against China for subsidizing its industry. The same thing is detailed in Klein's book, with high-quality PV industry in Ontario, set up to meet a "local only" law for PV production. It was struck down. The end result of this is pretty clear. Solar (or any innovative industry) can't be protected by local governments, but must compete on the global marketplace. Likewise, there are no provisions for environmental nor social concerns in the WTOs laws. The only consideration is price. It is a "level playing field" with no room for planning to meet more human needs.This, of course, is not news. The WTO has been around for a decade and a half, and in that time, the World Court has made several rulings, strictly following its provisions.The WTO didn't have to be like this: I know. I was there. In 1999 I had read in a leftie throwaway paper called Change Links that a protest of the WTO had been planned in Seattle. I was a student at the time, at Pasadena City College, and made arrangements to be away for the week. I took a train to Seattle, and had free accommodation via a phone number I'd called in the paper. It wasn't rocket science. Why not have a provision for protecting environmental and social concerns written in?Much of the demonstration was amazing. It was one of the first times Indy Media was well-established and very active. I was interviewed for an article (See "Labor joins enviros in march for Mother Earth" on page two of this newsletter — http://www.holisticnetworker.com/wto/blindspot2.pdf). There were free lectures and seminars. The mood was very loving and I learned a lot. The last two days or so was a bit tougher: a group of anarchists had smashed some windows during the largest demo, and the police were very vigorous. There was the establishment of what were termed "no protest zones" and I had a button confiscated by a policeman who would have arrested me for walking in a public street with the pin. It read: "Dolphins oppose the WTO. So do I." He took my pin.It was disappointing that our efforts made no effect on the laws that quickly became the WTO. It is very distressing presently. It's not enough to say "Oh, yes, I tried. I was there." Klein's book brings home the very real assessment that nothing substantial has been accomplished in this time, and we will all fry. Of course, she ends on a high note, but the urgency is there. It's definitely worth reading, whether you are young or old.