Great fanfare for truth and realism about the huge ecological debt that advanced economies owe to less developed countries. Bringing a new language of economics to our understanding of threatened biodiversity and ecology, this is the must read book of 2005.
From the publisher's announcement:
Have you ever wondered what you can do to help stop global warming? To live in a way that is more beneficial to our planet? This book shows you how, in small but significant ways, you can make changes to the way you live that will help to preserve the balance of the environment and protect it for future generations. The author, Andrew Simms, is an expert in environmental policy, based at one of the world's leading think-tanks. In this short, accessible book, he illustrates the deeply harmful consequences of the West's totally unsustainable consumption patterns. He reviews the ecological consequences of climate change and the effect of global warming on developing countries. And he argues that the West has a huge ecological debt towards developing countries, much bigger than the financial debt of developing countries towards industrialised nations.He shows how, in order both to adapt to changing climate conditions and to pay back our debt to developing countries, we can rethink our lifestyles and how we think about 'progress' in a way that will sustain our environment and create a more balanced global society.
Author Biography: Andrew Simms is Policy Director of the New Economics Foundation (a leading think-and-do tank in the UK working to create environmentally sound and socially just economies). Andrew is a regular contributor to the World Disasters Report and his articles are published regularly in British national newspapers such as the Guardian and the Financial Times. He is a regular commentator on BBC, commercial radio and television.
"Creative and compelling."
- Guardian
"Essential reading."
– Head of the IPCC
"A new phrase has entered the language."
– Anita Roddick