Loving this Planet: Leading Thinkers Talk About How to Make a Better World

by Helen Caldicott (Editor)

Overview

Conversations on sustainability, renewable energy, and other pressing issues: “A level of intellectual discussion all too absent in our national discourse.” —Booklist 
 
A co-founder of Physicians for Social Responsibility, named one of the most influential women of the twentieth century by the Smithsonian Institute, Helen Caldicott presents a valuable collection of her interviews with prominent figures and environmentalists—in which she:
 
*Scrutinizes our unsustainable dependence on nuclear energy
*Explores how the United States could transition to renewable energy
*Raises awareness about issues such as deforestation and sea-level rise
 
Extending well beyond the scope of conventional environmental discussions, this book gives us Martin Sheen on grassroots movements and unionized labor; Chris Hedges on the costs of standing up for your morals; and award-winning actress Lily Tomlin on contemporary politics, in a sarcastic and witty exchange at once hilarious and inspiring—and also includes interviews with Maude Barlow, Bill McKibben, Jonathan Schell, Daniel Ellsberg, Lester Brown, Frances Fox Piven, Bob Herbert, and more.
 
“A treasure trove of anecdotes featuring high-profile politicians, academics, and celebrities . . . Surprising statistics about nuclear waste storage, rising sea levels, and military spending serve as an alarm, but Caldicott and her collaborators also offer many innovative solutions.” —Publishers Weekly
 
“God bless Helen Caldicott.” —Los Angeles Times

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781595588067
Publisher:	New Press, The
Publication date:	09/04/2012
Pages:	384
Product dimensions:	5.60(w) x 8.04(h) x 1.02(d)

About the Author

Lannan Award winner Dr. Helen Caldicott is a co-founder of Physicians for Social Responsibility and was named one of the most influential women of the twentieth century by the Smithsonian Institute. She is the author of numerous books, including Nuclear Power Is Not the Answer (The New Press). She lives in Australia.

Table of Contents

Introduction: Delivering the Message to Love This Planet vii

Maude Barlow 1

Bill McKibben 14

Lester Brown 30

Janette Sherman-Nevinger 42

Hugh Gusterson 59

Chris Hedges 76

Diane Curran 90

Vini Gautam Khurana 104

David Krieger 121

Carole Gallagher 136

Jonathan Schell 154

William Hartung 171

Michael T.Klare 187

Daniel Ellsberg 197

Antony Loewenstein 210

John Church 227

Rhett Butler 241

Martin Sheen 257

Arjun Makhijani 269

Lily Tomlin 286

Michael Madsen 301

Bob Herbert 314

Frances Fox Piven 327

Denis Hayes 343

Phil Radford 356

Editorial Reviews

Caldicott (Nuclear Power Is Not the Answer), a physician and environmental advocate, addresses urgent global challenges in a series of interviews adapted from her weekly radio show, If You Love This Planet. The book is a treasure trove of anecdotes featuring high-profile politicians, academics, and celebrities, including Martin Sheen, Lily Tomlin, Bob Herbert, and Lester Brown. Caldicott tells Sheen of visiting President Ronald Reagan in a downstairs library at the White House and explaining the scientific complexities of nuclear weapons with regards to their impact on humans and the Earth, after which she “quickly established a doctor-patient relationship with him.” Alongside the celebrity sightings runs the thread of a growing urgency to change our energy, environmental, and military policies in the United States and on a global scale. Surprising statistics about nuclear waste storage, rising sea levels, and military spending serve as an alarm, but Caldicott and her collaborators also offer many innovative solutions. Though Caldicott’s extensive expertise in this area can sometimes hinder her interviewing skills (she sometimes asks leading questions and stays within her own realm of experience), the book is an informative and powerful motivator for change. Agent: Faith Hamlin, Sanford J. Greenburger Associates. (Sept.)

Publishers Weekly

"The book is a treasure trove of anecdotes featuring high-profile politicians, academics, and celebrities, including Martin Sheen, Lily Tomlin, Bob Herbert, and Lester Brown. . . .Alongside the celebrity sightings runs the thread of a growing urgency to change our energy, environmental, and military policies in the United States and on a global scale. Surprising statistics about nuclear waste storage, rising sea levels, and military spending serve as an alarm, but Caldicott and her collaborators also offer many innovative solutions."
—Publishers Weekly

“Without fail, Caldicott asks thoughtful, deeply nuanced questions, and her subjects respond with intense and often personal reflections on many important issues. With a level of intellectual discussion all too absent in our national discourse, this is a worthy collection that educates with each turn of the page.”
—Booklist

From the Publisher

Activist and environmentalist Caldicott (Nuclear Power is Not the Answer, 2006, etc.) publishes 25 transcripts of the interviews she conducts on her regular radio show. Those selected include celebrities (Lily Tomlin and Martin Sheen), academic researchers (Michael Klare and Vini Gautam Khurana) and activists and think-tankers (Lester Brown and Bill McKibben). Some of the selections analyze different aspects of the nuclear issue, whether military or industrial; environmental lawyer Diane Curran characterizes the industry as the "prodigal son of the weapons industry…totally paid for, a socialized industry." Toxicologist Janette Sherman-Nevinger provides a major service tracking down, translating for publication and editing non-English language source material on the 1986 Chernobyl disaster. Equally well done is photographer Carole Gallagher's contribution on nuclear testing in Nevada and the effects of fallout and radiation on the population "down-wind." Like other contributors--e.g., Curran and film director Michael Madsen--Gallagher draws attention to the long-term consequences of nuclear byproducts. It is thus disappointing to find continuing alarmist attention to evacuation planning related to New Hampshire's Seabrook reactor and no discussion of the matter of decommissioning such aging facilities. Khurana's research on electromagnetic radiation and cellphones is both interesting and frightening, and Chris Hedges, fired from the New York Times because of his opposition to the second Iraq War, talks about his views on war and the principles on which he tries to base his life. There are also contributions on deforestation, land use and alternate energy policy. A nice--but not necessary--collector's item and reference work for readers of a specific bent.

Kirkus Reviews