editor Ian Angus presents five new books on capitalism and the climate crisis, restoring forests, waters in revolt and a dangerous billionaire.
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By Ståle Holgersen
Verso Books
Capitalism produces crises and crises reproduce capitalism. Ecosocialist strategy cannot be based on what is possible in today’s system, or on what will soon be impossible if the crisis continues. Our historical mission in the face of the climate crisis is to build a movement that can overturn the profit/accumulation system before that hell-bound train takes us over a cliff.
By Andreas Malm and Wim Carton
Verso Books
Even before 1.5 degrees, climate disasters are intensifying — and yet mainstream climate policies are based on surrender, on the assumption the best we can do is overshoot the target and cool things down later, using unproven and unknown technologies. In the meantime, the fossil fuel industry swims in the largest profits ever made. Malm and Carton show how this outrageous view came to dominate climate negotiations, and lays out the stakes for the climate struggle in the years ahead
By Jake M Robinson
Pelagic Publishing
Just planting more trees won’t save our forests. Haphazard tree-planting in unsuitable locations can wreak havoc on ecosystems and jeopardise the livelihoods of local communities. Forest restoration requires a nuanced approach that integrates the latest scientific advancements, Indigenous knowledges and a deep understanding of the interconnectedness of life within these vital ecosystems.
By Jeremy Rifkin
Polity Books
Our planetary hydrosphere, the basis of all life on Earth, is rebelling in the wake of a global warming climate, spurring massive floods, devastating summer droughts, heatwaves and wildfires and powerful autumn hurricanes and typhoons, wreaking havoc on ecosystems and society. Rifkin argues that next stage in the human journey involves recognising the vital importance of oceans, rivers and lakes and readapting to the waters of life.
By Tim Schwab
Henry Holt
Through his vaunted philanthropy, Bill Gates transformed himself from a tech villain into one of the most admired people on the planet. But he is still exactly who he was at Microsoft: a bully and monopolist, convinced of his own righteousness and intent on imposing his ideas, his solutions and his leadership on everyone else. Gates’s philanthropic empire is a dangerous model of unconstrained power that threatens democracy.
[Reprinted from . Inclusion of a book does not imply endorsement.]