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aorth's review against another edition
4.0
Regarding agriculture: Page 20, "All present agriculture, whether it is slash-and-burn or sod-breaking, involves the reversion of a climax system to a pioneering one."
Blew my mind.
Blew my mind.
kosr's review against another edition
4.0
A Failed Declaration?
So Far, I have read three books that cover the topic of sustainability (broadly speaking), with the intention of reading many more. The first, Endgame: The Problem of Civilisation, was written by Derrick Jensen , and came in two separate parts - the second I have not read yet - that essentially suggested a "Post Civilisation" world in which us miserable Sapiens will have to consider a complete revolutionary style takedown of our out-of-control system of rampant neoliberal capitalism, and bring about a complete reset on humanity.
I liked the book, but found Jensen rambled for far too long, and allowed his point to become diluted with over compensation into the realm of bitterness. I would still recommend this as a read though, as his extremities do bare a brutal hammer blow to the reader that should effectively shake the brains foundations.
The second book, Beyond Civilisation, by an author named Daniel Quinn, was a shorter read and suggested humanity simple move away from its current endeavours naturally. No need to make a fuss, just put down what we're doing and look for a better way of living. At least, that's what I gathered from the books slightly messy construction. My review speaks in more detail on the goodreads page that I wrote it on, but despite it's shorter length, I found Beyond Civilisation an even more confusing read than Jensens Endeavour.
What both books are missing - in my humble opinion - is a real clear look at our current system, and what detailed suggestions could be made to replace it. This is where Paul Hawken comes in.
The Ecology Of Commerce differs from the above mentioned in one majorly fundamental way. It's premise is that we need to modify and amend our current capitalistic structure from within, and embrace a nature inspired system of restorative economics. One that mimics nature in lack of waste and constant renewal. Not only this, but business should be incentivised to work harder toward treating the environment more positively (you know, such as not killing hundreds / thousands of species a year through forest clearance and what not) through taxes on waste and pollution, rewards for cleaner energy application and working toward creating jobs through new eco-friendly industries.
There's a lot more to cover, and I have to admit, I lost Hawken at times in the more economic side of things (when he does decide to go down that route of explanation), but for the most part this text was very readable, and was the best attempt I've seen yet at a genuine effort to lay out a better way of humanity handling itself.
Now for the downside.
This books over twenty. years. old.
Has much changed? No, not much at all. We could talk about the many smaller details that have arisen in terms of the rise of Veganism, eco-friendly companies and environmental awareness...
...or we could focus on the fact major corporations are more powerful than ever, and are still continuing to destroy our planet through war, resource consumption and greed.
SO many blaring alarm bells are laid out in this book that I had to remind myself that they were being delivered to the reader in 1993. A truly worrying analysis.
It would be best if you read this book. It's really quite important now more than ever. I'll leave you with a segment of the book that stood out to me:
"...Corporations are creating a second world, an environment of deadening commercial strip centers leading in and out of our towns and cities, garbage trains loaded with trash and toxins, and Bhopals where 200,000 people are sick or dead or dying. It is a world where fewer and fewer people benefit from the grosser and more swollen acts of commerce, a world in which the small things, the seemingly inconsequential forms of life, are extirpated with disdain, but to our ultimate peril..."
So Far, I have read three books that cover the topic of sustainability (broadly speaking), with the intention of reading many more. The first, Endgame: The Problem of Civilisation, was written by Derrick Jensen , and came in two separate parts - the second I have not read yet - that essentially suggested a "Post Civilisation" world in which us miserable Sapiens will have to consider a complete revolutionary style takedown of our out-of-control system of rampant neoliberal capitalism, and bring about a complete reset on humanity.
I liked the book, but found Jensen rambled for far too long, and allowed his point to become diluted with over compensation into the realm of bitterness. I would still recommend this as a read though, as his extremities do bare a brutal hammer blow to the reader that should effectively shake the brains foundations.
The second book, Beyond Civilisation, by an author named Daniel Quinn, was a shorter read and suggested humanity simple move away from its current endeavours naturally. No need to make a fuss, just put down what we're doing and look for a better way of living. At least, that's what I gathered from the books slightly messy construction. My review speaks in more detail on the goodreads page that I wrote it on, but despite it's shorter length, I found Beyond Civilisation an even more confusing read than Jensens Endeavour.
What both books are missing - in my humble opinion - is a real clear look at our current system, and what detailed suggestions could be made to replace it. This is where Paul Hawken comes in.
The Ecology Of Commerce differs from the above mentioned in one majorly fundamental way. It's premise is that we need to modify and amend our current capitalistic structure from within, and embrace a nature inspired system of restorative economics. One that mimics nature in lack of waste and constant renewal. Not only this, but business should be incentivised to work harder toward treating the environment more positively (you know, such as not killing hundreds / thousands of species a year through forest clearance and what not) through taxes on waste and pollution, rewards for cleaner energy application and working toward creating jobs through new eco-friendly industries.
There's a lot more to cover, and I have to admit, I lost Hawken at times in the more economic side of things (when he does decide to go down that route of explanation), but for the most part this text was very readable, and was the best attempt I've seen yet at a genuine effort to lay out a better way of humanity handling itself.
Now for the downside.
This books over twenty. years. old.
Has much changed? No, not much at all. We could talk about the many smaller details that have arisen in terms of the rise of Veganism, eco-friendly companies and environmental awareness...
...or we could focus on the fact major corporations are more powerful than ever, and are still continuing to destroy our planet through war, resource consumption and greed.
SO many blaring alarm bells are laid out in this book that I had to remind myself that they were being delivered to the reader in 1993. A truly worrying analysis.
It would be best if you read this book. It's really quite important now more than ever. I'll leave you with a segment of the book that stood out to me:
"...Corporations are creating a second world, an environment of deadening commercial strip centers leading in and out of our towns and cities, garbage trains loaded with trash and toxins, and Bhopals where 200,000 people are sick or dead or dying. It is a world where fewer and fewer people benefit from the grosser and more swollen acts of commerce, a world in which the small things, the seemingly inconsequential forms of life, are extirpated with disdain, but to our ultimate peril..."
chaitanyasethi's review against another edition
5.0
What a brilliant book! Certainly one of my Top 10 reads of the year.
'The Ecology of Commerce' talks about the pressing need for business to answer to ecological sustainability. With evidence of current business practices harming people, environment, animals, and nature, it is no longer acceptable to deny responsibility. As much as they would like us to believe that if we recycle at home and buy paper cups instead of plastic cans we can control it, the fact is, without business intervention, this problem is not going to be solved.
Paul highlights how the current democratic capitalist system is flawed - it came out of industrialization at a time when population was low enough that environmental concerns were not on anyone's mind & natural resources seemed abundant. However, that is not the case now. The way free markets operate, they emphasize low prices but do not internalize environmental costs. The incentives encourage businesses to exploit the environment. Consumers are not made aware of the supply chain of the products they purchase. The growth story sold to the world is that of large businesses leading countries out of poverty. Ecology is seen as disruptive and a barrier to free trade and environmentalists are seen as hysterical critics. It doesn't have to be that way.
Although it was written in 1993, the ideas still hold merit. What I loved most about it was the clear, rational tone with which it was written. It did not paint anyone out as a villain but highlighted how we can all collaborate to deal with this problem. Paul's three suggestions - to redesign supply chains and product cycles on 'waste-equals-food', gradually switch from fossil fuels to alternative sources, and a feedback and accountability mechanism valuing restoration, are all excellent recommendations, made sounder by the fact that he gives examples of all of them being presently used as successful methods of running businesses, as seen in the world.
I can't believe this book isn't more popular. I annotated it to the extent of a textbook. I would encourage anyone with an interest in business and/or sustainability to pick it up. It's a slow read but it has a valuable pay-off.
'The Ecology of Commerce' talks about the pressing need for business to answer to ecological sustainability. With evidence of current business practices harming people, environment, animals, and nature, it is no longer acceptable to deny responsibility. As much as they would like us to believe that if we recycle at home and buy paper cups instead of plastic cans we can control it, the fact is, without business intervention, this problem is not going to be solved.
Paul highlights how the current democratic capitalist system is flawed - it came out of industrialization at a time when population was low enough that environmental concerns were not on anyone's mind & natural resources seemed abundant. However, that is not the case now. The way free markets operate, they emphasize low prices but do not internalize environmental costs. The incentives encourage businesses to exploit the environment. Consumers are not made aware of the supply chain of the products they purchase. The growth story sold to the world is that of large businesses leading countries out of poverty. Ecology is seen as disruptive and a barrier to free trade and environmentalists are seen as hysterical critics. It doesn't have to be that way.
Although it was written in 1993, the ideas still hold merit. What I loved most about it was the clear, rational tone with which it was written. It did not paint anyone out as a villain but highlighted how we can all collaborate to deal with this problem. Paul's three suggestions - to redesign supply chains and product cycles on 'waste-equals-food', gradually switch from fossil fuels to alternative sources, and a feedback and accountability mechanism valuing restoration, are all excellent recommendations, made sounder by the fact that he gives examples of all of them being presently used as successful methods of running businesses, as seen in the world.
I can't believe this book isn't more popular. I annotated it to the extent of a textbook. I would encourage anyone with an interest in business and/or sustainability to pick it up. It's a slow read but it has a valuable pay-off.
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