My mom left me with Deep Economy by Bill McKibben sometime in November, and I'm just now getting around to posting about it. Frankly, I thought I'd already posted about it, but when I realized I hadn't, I nearly kicked myself. Since I read Deep Economy, I keep seeing and hearing about Bill McKibben-- particularly in my enviro-oriented magazines and Facebook feeds. McKibben is well-known for his work to bring awareness to pollution-- particularly with his group 350.org. McKibben speaks throughout the country about climate change due to human influence and he's also a prolific writer. I must admit, I have yet to read any more of his books, but I have found myself stopping to read any articles about him or written by him because of his work on Deep Economy.
Deep Economy is essentially the idea that the environment is directly tied to our economy-- thus making deeper than it might at first appear. If you're picking up the book for the first time, which I would definitely recommend, I would also recommend to skip the first chapter and read it once you're almost done with the book. I definitely feel the first chapter is his weakest writing and it was less than captivating, whereas with the second chapter, I felt the book began to take off and really connect with me.
Another major theme within the book is the push for reliance on communities rather than government intervention or even major metropolises. With this McKibben pushes for self-reliant communities within the larger community. He particularly pushes for this with energy needs and in order to meet our increasing demand on the grid.
McKibben also discusses the lack of sustainability of the U.S.'s current farming and food system. Simply enough, as the mega-farms grow, consumers lose as do other farmers trying to compete with such mega farms (with the exception of niche organic markets). He also discusses the environmental damage being done by the new methods of farming on an industrial level-- rather than maintaining and truly being in tune with smaller plots.
What I particularly like about the book is that McKibben takes a balanced approach to the topic and rather than simply pointing the finger at groups, he suggest methods to change and reason to change. It's very promising to hear about areas like Cuba that are seeing big benefits from mini-farms. While the book could easily be a downer with the number of facts, instead the facts are the catalyst needed to push for innovation. McKibben shares what he's learned from traveling and talking with peoples of numerous cultures and countries and it's actually inspiring to see what progress is being made by not just self-proclaimed environmentalists, but by pragmatists everywhere. Sustainability sells because it keeps the big picture in mind.
My copy (which I usurped from my mother- but with her approval) now includes notes written in the margins and post-it notes marking particular areas of interest. I also knew that this book would have some great information for some of my students who had been working on research papers-- which included such topics as organic foods and energy sources. Since reading Deep Economy, I'm on the lookout for more great non-fiction read like this one, so if you know of any-- send them my way.
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