Whole Earth Discipline: A Commentary of the Ecopragmatist Manifesto (Chapter 0)
Stewart Brand is a conservationist and technologist. He's had a large impact on culture in America and today is still relatively unknown. Environmentalism as we know it today is in part due to him; he doesn't care much for fame but is more interested in using tools to solve problems.
Stewart Brand wrote a book, and he's struck the right chord that resonates with my spirit. After doing so much - creating the Whole Earth Catalog, driving the Furthur bus, and building the 10,000 year clock (well, starting to at least) - he compiled his thoughts and ideas on the future he will be leaving us with, and how we should solve the problems we might face. I really enjoyed this book, took lots of notes and thought I'd share them with the world, chapter by chapter, here.
Stewart has summed up his lifelong learnings into a book about technologies called Whole Earth Discipline: An Ecopragmatist Manifesto
The book breaks down the solutions to the environmental problems we face into these four axioms:
- Cities are green.
- Nuclear power is green.
- Genetic engineering is green.
- Geoengineering is probably necessary.
I want to make a commentary on this book, chapter by chapter, to 1: challenge myself as a writer 2: expand my understanding of ecopragmatism and 3: because I like thinking about this stuff and this is a good excuse to think about this stuff.