YSM Issue 86.3

FEATURE
BOOK REVIEWS
Eaarth: Making a Life on a Tough New Planet
BY ALEX CO
At first glance, the misspelling of our planet’s name may cause a double take, but that was author
Bill McKibben’s intention. McKibben emphasizes that the world has become a completely different
place, changing in ways that humans have never seen. In fact, it is so unlike the old Earth that McKibben
believes it deserves a new name, familiar but fundamentally different: “Eaarth.”
Despite the prolonged presence of humans on the planet, McKibben argues that Eaarth has come
to fruition only within the last 50 years of intense development. In this time, carbon dioxide emissions
have increased exponentially. As this trend continues, Eaarth is on a destructive path to serious
environmental damage: atmospheric emission levels have already reached 392 parts per million (ppm),
well above the 350 ppm threshold that experts deem unsafe. The emissions trend will only persist as
modern society continues to develop.
McKibben’s use of statistics and vivid imagery of intense ecological disasters makes his argument
both credible and alarming. To solve our problem, McKibben proposes a grassroots approach. In place
of large-scale development which adds to existing dangers, we must scale back and repair our planet
while adapting to the new planet “Eaarth.” “Maturity is not the opposite of hope,” he writes. “It’s what
makes hope possible.”
Although this type of change is necessary for the planet, McKibben’s plan is slightly unrealistic. Most
likely, few will adopt the “graceful” change that McKibben prescribes. It remains to be seen whether
the people of Eaarth will mature, accept responsibility, and take action.
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BACKGROUND IMAGE COURTESY OF RONEPPINGER.COM
Full Planet, Empty Plates
The Coming Population Crash
BY DEEKSHA DEEP
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In his 2012 book Full Planet, Empty Plates, Lester Brown asserts that
our world has reached a tipping point. Already-crowded regions such
as Sub-Saharan Africa, India, and China face projected population
booms, edible crops are being wasted on a dubious biofuel industry,
and global warming is taking its toll on crop yields. All this, according
to Brown, has created the perfect storm: with growing population
pressures and ever-diminishing resources, humanity is now in the
midst of a geopolitical crisis.
One of Brown’s central arguments
is that our global resources are intertwined
— most prominently, food,
fuel, and water. When 70 percent of
our water is reserved for irrigation
and 32 percent of crops are used
for fuel, a shortage of any major
resource lowers the availability and
affordability of all goods in the
global market. Furthermore, every
one degree Celsius increase in global
temperature causes a corresponding
10 percent decrease in crop yields.
Since our resources are so closely
linked, we are even more vulnerable
to environmental damage: we have put all of our eggs in one basket,
and that basket is in a precarious position.
As he cites dire statistics to develop his argument, Brown’s heavy
reliance on numerical elements in prose format can often distract
from the book’s key takeaway. But even in the absence of charts and
graphs, these statistics still have an impact on the invested reader.
Depicting a threat of global proportions, Lester’s message ultimately
prevails because it appeals to the most primitive of instincts: survival.
Although the experts have warned us about a population explosion,
when will the global population actually peak? According to author
and journalist Fred Pearce, it already has — and it is now leveling off
for the first time in several hundred years. In his 2010 book The Coming
Population Crash, Pearce explores the social and economic repercussions
of this surprising global demographic shift.
Pearce sets the stage with a historical narrative of the past two hundred
years, taking the reader from initial fears of unsustainable population
growth to government-enforced
sterilization and abortion programs.
Pearce explains that our generation’s
drop in fertility rates has created lasting
impacts that could extend far into the
future. Within the next few decades,
for example, migration will increase as
a result of rising demand for foreign
hands in Europe and East Asia.
In discussing the history of population
control and the consequences of
the impending population crash, the
book tackles a variety of controversial
subjects that range from government
policy to gender roles. Pearce backs up
each claim with compelling statistics, seamlessly integrating information
from interviews and press reports. In highlighting specific historical
events, he offers an interesting interpretation of human culture.
The Coming Population Crash presents not only a comprehensive overview
of historical efforts to control population growth but also provides
an interesting forecast for the future: as the population ages, society will
succumb to a calmer and wiser influence. The earth may have a more
optimistic outlook than doomsday-forecasters care to admit.
38 Yale Scientific Magazine | April 2013 www.yalescientific.org