Climate Change Begins at Home
Life on the Two-Way Street of Global Warming
new foreword from Mark Lynas
by Dave Reay
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Shortlisted for the Times Higher Young Academic Author of the Year Award
Reviews
"A sparky journey through the connections between global climate and everyday decisions - and how to change them." Joe Smith, Open University
"I think it’s the most important book I've ever read." Nick Crane, presenter BBC Coast
"Dave Reay has done a good job of answering the question: What can I do?. You will learn everything you need to know about cutting your contribution to emissions of greenhouse gases, and some good ideas for turning climate saving into a communal activity." Times Higher Educational Survey
"Brilliant work - I am a fan" Penney Poyzer of BBC2's 'No Waste Like Home'
"Someday your grandchildren will ask why our generation lived as if fossil fuels were problem-free. Dave Reay's book might help you answer their question." Northern Sky News
"Take one gas-guzzling, patio-heated, SUV-in-the-front-yard family. And change them. That is Reay's task in this excellent primer on how to cut your contribution to climate change. The average person in the rich world, he says, can cut their greenhouse gas emissions during their lifetime by a thousand tonnes. With politicians unwilling to act to save the planet, it seems that direct action is the only way." Fred Pearce, NewScientist's environment consultant writing in BBC Focus Magazine
"This is one of the most easily readable popular science books I've seen in several years, it's practical rather than ridiculous, it puts the case without being preachy - it really is a wonderfully effective description of the realities of climate change, how it will effect us and our families, and what we as individuals can do about it. So go out and buy one. In fact, buy two and send one to the world leader or large company CEO of your choice." www.popularscience.co.uk
'Dave Reay has succeeded where so many scientists, academics and environmentalists have failed - in bringing climate change down to the level of the ordinary family. If you're not convinced about climate change, this book will change your mind. It may even change your life.' Mark Lynas author of High Tide.
'How can David Reay be this wise, and still so funny? If you want to get to grips with your own CO2 emissions - from air- freighted grapes to the family runaround - this Edinburgh boffin has written a brilliant, incredibly motivating book. Read it and see.' Nicola Baird, Friends of the Earth
Description
Climate change is one of the greatest threats that humankind faces in the 21st century. The next hundred years could see coastlines and islands submerged, and a surge in heatwaves, hurricanes, droughts, floods and therefore in pests, disease, famine and displacement. This book
argues that while government and industry dither, we could all cut our personal greenhouse gas emissions by 60% - the level necessary to halt the current trend according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. After summarizing today's state of affairs, scientifically and politically, climatologist Dave Reay explores the climate impact of housing, gardening, food, money, work, transport, death even. Packed with provocative case studies, calculations, and lifestyle comparisons, this entertaining and authoritative book makes the complexities of climatology understandable and challenges readers to rethink their notions of 'doing their bit'.
Author Biographies
DAVE REAY is a Research Fellow at Edinburgh University. He studies greenhouse gas emissions in environments ranging from the Southern Ocean to evil-smelling drainage ditches. He has written numerous academic and popular articles about his work and is Editor of the leading climate change website
www.ghgonline.org. He lives in a house well above sea level.