World on the Edge

By Beth Mylius

World on the Edge (2011) by Lester R Brown, President of the Earth Policy Institute

He writes:

We are in a race between political and natural tipping points. Can we close coal-fired power plants fast enough to save the Greenland ice sheet and avoid catastrophic sea-level rise? Can we raise water productivity fast enough to halt depletion of aquifers and avoid water-driven food shortages? Can we cope with peak oil and peak water at the same time?

On page 200 he raises the question What can I do?  He says lifestyle changes are essential, but they are not nearly enough. Restructuring the global economy means becoming politically active, working for the needed change…Inform yourself.  Read about the issues. Pick an issue that is meaningful to you. You can begin by talking with others to help select an issue to work on. Once your group is informed and has a clearly defined goal, ask to meet with your elected representatives or email then or write to them.

His final paragraph states:

The choice is ours – yours and mine. We can stay with business as usual and preside over an economy that continues to destroy its natural support systems until it destroys itself, or we can be the generation that changes direction, moving the world onto a path of sustained progress. The choice will be made by our generation, but it will affect life on earth for all generations to come.