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Drawdown: The Most Comprehensive Plan Ever Proposed to Reverse Global Warming by Paul Hawken
catrionabikes's review against another edition
5.0
I didn't read this cover to cover - it's more a coffee table, browsing sort of book for me. Every house should have a copy...
jeninmotion's review against another edition
4.0
This was surprisingly hard to get through, not because it was written very technically, it was just...a coffee table book that would be easier to read in a smaller format. And so there were moments it was a little dull.
On the other hand, 5 stars for making the case for fixing climate change "cool". I want to do a lot of these things because it's good. Educating girls, family planning, and eating less meat are good things to do and they'll help save the future? Awesome. As I read through a lot of the solution, I was like "these are policy goals I like even if they didn't reduce CO2" and other ones were just like "huh, feeding cows algae. Sounds good." It sounded like a challenge to get the public will to support this, but mostly the solutions didn't involve solving giant theoretical challenges and THEN changing public support and I like that.
On the other hand, 5 stars for making the case for fixing climate change "cool". I want to do a lot of these things because it's good. Educating girls, family planning, and eating less meat are good things to do and they'll help save the future? Awesome. As I read through a lot of the solution, I was like "these are policy goals I like even if they didn't reduce CO2" and other ones were just like "huh, feeding cows algae. Sounds good." It sounded like a challenge to get the public will to support this, but mostly the solutions didn't involve solving giant theoretical challenges and THEN changing public support and I like that.
elisab21's review against another edition
5.0
The biggest easiest thing we can all do is reduce food waste! It's the dumbest problem. This book is full of eye-opening ideas about how we influence the environment. Inspiring!
davidr's review against another edition
5.0
This book is a catalog of the hundred or so technologies that could potentially draw down the carbon dioxide (and other greenhouse gases) from the atmosphere. The book was written by a couple hundred expert researchers in all walks of life. Each technology is very well presented, in a manner that is easy to understand by a non-expert. The book is very attractive, flush with color photographs appropriate for each topic covered.
Each technology is rated in terms of the amount of carbon that could potentially be removed from the atmosphere, the net cost of the technology, and the net savings. When these numbers are too speculative for an educated guess, that is mentioned. The technologies are all ranked in terms of their potential for sequestering carbon. Also, since some of the technologies are inter-related, there is an effort made to prevent double-counting the impact.
Some of the technologies are well known to most people, while others are novel. I was most interested in some of the agricultural topics. Most surprising to me was "silopasture". This entails allowing animals--mostly cattle, but other domesticated animals, also--to feed in meadows with trees. Silvopastures yield more livestock per acre than grass pastures, and sequesters five to ten times more carbon than treeless pastures.
A related technology is the managed grazing of pastures by cattle. This technique vastly improves conditions of the pastures, protects organic matter, and the soil becomes more porous and better able to absorb intense rainfalls. As a result, herbicides, pesticides, fuel and fertilizers can be reduced, as well as veterinary costs. And yet another agricultural technique is known as agro-forestry, which is becoming widespread. It is positively transforming the Sahel Desert.
I was astounded by the statistic that there are 18,500 miles of high-speed rails in the world. But, only 28 of these rail-miles are in the United States. On the one hand, high-speed rails are very expensive, and on the other hand, they actually do not reduce carbon emissions very much.
The emphasis in most of the book, is that these are practical, economical technologies ready to be implemented. There are net savings from most of these technologies; sequestering carbon can be cost-effective and help the atmosphere, at the same time. At the end of the book, there are a handful of future technologies that have not yet reached the stage of practicality, each of which has a bright potential for the future.
While I read the book end-to-end, it is actually more of a reference book--a very fascinating reference book! After reading the introductory sections, each topic is self-contained and can be read in isolation without losing the meaning.
Each technology is rated in terms of the amount of carbon that could potentially be removed from the atmosphere, the net cost of the technology, and the net savings. When these numbers are too speculative for an educated guess, that is mentioned. The technologies are all ranked in terms of their potential for sequestering carbon. Also, since some of the technologies are inter-related, there is an effort made to prevent double-counting the impact.
Some of the technologies are well known to most people, while others are novel. I was most interested in some of the agricultural topics. Most surprising to me was "silopasture". This entails allowing animals--mostly cattle, but other domesticated animals, also--to feed in meadows with trees. Silvopastures yield more livestock per acre than grass pastures, and sequesters five to ten times more carbon than treeless pastures.
A related technology is the managed grazing of pastures by cattle. This technique vastly improves conditions of the pastures, protects organic matter, and the soil becomes more porous and better able to absorb intense rainfalls. As a result, herbicides, pesticides, fuel and fertilizers can be reduced, as well as veterinary costs. And yet another agricultural technique is known as agro-forestry, which is becoming widespread. It is positively transforming the Sahel Desert.
I was astounded by the statistic that there are 18,500 miles of high-speed rails in the world. But, only 28 of these rail-miles are in the United States. On the one hand, high-speed rails are very expensive, and on the other hand, they actually do not reduce carbon emissions very much.
The emphasis in most of the book, is that these are practical, economical technologies ready to be implemented. There are net savings from most of these technologies; sequestering carbon can be cost-effective and help the atmosphere, at the same time. At the end of the book, there are a handful of future technologies that have not yet reached the stage of practicality, each of which has a bright potential for the future.
While I read the book end-to-end, it is actually more of a reference book--a very fascinating reference book! After reading the introductory sections, each topic is self-contained and can be read in isolation without losing the meaning.
bufally47's review against another edition
5.0
Who knew a climate change book could be so much fun? Instead of chastising us for all we’ve done wrong, this book shows us what’s already being done around the world to curb (and potentially reverse) global warming. I was so dazzled by all the innovations in everything from mechanical engineering to agriculture that I kept forgetting I was reading a climate change book. It’s basically popular science with a sprinkling of sociology.
Each of the 100 methods featured comprise a perfectly bite-sized chapter free of jargon yet packed with surprising factoids. Most of the obstacles to implementing these methods either involve a shift in traditional perspectives or (more often) up-front costs that can be overcome by subsidies or incentives. These partial-solutions are presented in such a clear-eyed manner that it's hard to ignore not only their environmental benefits but also their economic ones.
The chief drawback of this book is basically just that you need the physical print book. The e-book left me without a sense of the overall structure, plus I was missing out on some beautiful pictures. Also there are short articles thrown in from time to time which seemed randomly inserted when e-reading, but when I checked the physical book out from the library and realized the layout was quasi-textbook style, the articles made more sense. Dare I even speak of the audiobook? It was absolutely atrocious. My other qualm concerned the book’s omissions – deeper dives into things like job loss, harvesting techniques, and unseen costs – but one book can only answer so many questions.
And now back to gushing. This is so much more than recycling and electric cars. If you get as excited as I do about carbon sequestration, stop what you’re doing right now and pick this book up. Regenerative agriculture (with all its variants) was the star of the show for me, and I continue to delight in the benefits of integrating trees and grazing animals into farming, especially no-till farming with cover crops. Of course that’s only the tip of the iceberg. A few other topics addressed, off the top of my head, include: new airplane and ship designs to increase efficiency, the potential of bamboo and hemp and biochar, an emerging type of rice cultivation, green roofs, and Danish biking infrastructure. The book answered questions I’d had in the back of my mind, such as: How is wind power stored? What is it about fertilizer runoff that transforms nearby waterways into “dead zones”? Why don’t we just grab carbon dioxide right out of the air?
I love this book for including articles with titles like "The Man Who Stopped the Desert." I love this book for inspiring me to get a community garden plot and eat less meat. I love this book for recognizing that fear and shame are not useful tools for change.
This is great read for anyone with a curious mind, especially those with an interest in environmental science. It’s thrilling to peek into the abyss of forced innovation, to gain access to the cutting edge in such a dizzying array of fields. Most people will probably treat Drawdown as a coffee table book to dip and out of, but I devoured it start to finish.
Each of the 100 methods featured comprise a perfectly bite-sized chapter free of jargon yet packed with surprising factoids. Most of the obstacles to implementing these methods either involve a shift in traditional perspectives or (more often) up-front costs that can be overcome by subsidies or incentives. These partial-solutions are presented in such a clear-eyed manner that it's hard to ignore not only their environmental benefits but also their economic ones.
The chief drawback of this book is basically just that you need the physical print book. The e-book left me without a sense of the overall structure, plus I was missing out on some beautiful pictures. Also there are short articles thrown in from time to time which seemed randomly inserted when e-reading, but when I checked the physical book out from the library and realized the layout was quasi-textbook style, the articles made more sense. Dare I even speak of the audiobook? It was absolutely atrocious. My other qualm concerned the book’s omissions – deeper dives into things like job loss, harvesting techniques, and unseen costs – but one book can only answer so many questions.
And now back to gushing. This is so much more than recycling and electric cars. If you get as excited as I do about carbon sequestration, stop what you’re doing right now and pick this book up. Regenerative agriculture (with all its variants) was the star of the show for me, and I continue to delight in the benefits of integrating trees and grazing animals into farming, especially no-till farming with cover crops. Of course that’s only the tip of the iceberg. A few other topics addressed, off the top of my head, include: new airplane and ship designs to increase efficiency, the potential of bamboo and hemp and biochar, an emerging type of rice cultivation, green roofs, and Danish biking infrastructure. The book answered questions I’d had in the back of my mind, such as: How is wind power stored? What is it about fertilizer runoff that transforms nearby waterways into “dead zones”? Why don’t we just grab carbon dioxide right out of the air?
I love this book for including articles with titles like "The Man Who Stopped the Desert." I love this book for inspiring me to get a community garden plot and eat less meat. I love this book for recognizing that fear and shame are not useful tools for change.
This is great read for anyone with a curious mind, especially those with an interest in environmental science. It’s thrilling to peek into the abyss of forced innovation, to gain access to the cutting edge in such a dizzying array of fields. Most people will probably treat Drawdown as a coffee table book to dip and out of, but I devoured it start to finish.
machadamia's review against another edition
3.75
After reading The uninhabitable earth, I knew I had to read this book to get me out of a depressed state. Drawdown tells you exactly what a lot of climate anxious people need to hear. That the solutions are here. It's even doable. We just need to do it.
tommyc's review against another edition
4.0
Drawdown gives me hope for our future. After reading The Overstory I have felt pretty down about society's chances of stopping deforestation and the climate crisis. Yet this book presents actionable ways that we can fix our stupidity. I also enjoyed the technical aspects that showed the true effect of each change. Sure, most actions need to come from governments or large corporations (solar and wind are both top-10 interventions). However, eating a plant-rich diet is the fourth most effective way to flip this climate crisis around, and that is certainly something you have control over. What I also found very surprising was that truly some of the best ways involve restoring forests and/or changing the way we farm—either by changing grazing patterns, including trees within the crops, or growing diverse crops together.
As I said, this book gave me hope. We can solve this. Solar is now less expensive to produce than fossil fuels, and is still getting cheaper. I have been reaffirmed in my plant-rich diet, and I have been inspired to find ways to actively make a positive impact on forests (because I just really love trees).
I would really recommend more people read this, 4.1/5 stars
As I said, this book gave me hope. We can solve this. Solar is now less expensive to produce than fossil fuels, and is still getting cheaper. I have been reaffirmed in my plant-rich diet, and I have been inspired to find ways to actively make a positive impact on forests (because I just really love trees).
I would really recommend more people read this, 4.1/5 stars
lwbean's review against another edition
5.0
If you have ever despaired about climate change and wondered what you can do: this book has 100 of the top things you can do to help make a positive impact on our planet. Paired with AN INCONVENIENT SEQUEL: TRUTH TO POWER by Al Gore, you will have everything you need to become a climate change activist!