Reviews

This book provides a comprehensive overview of the causes of global warming and what can be done to stop the current runaway. It includes solid facts and makes persuasive arguments for change, but avoids political extremism. This is essential background for both the general public and decision makers.

The book leaves nothing out and despite a complete and alarming review of the science and the severity and extent of the problem the authors remain optimistic. This was encouraging and I especially liked the focus on solutions, which we don’t hear enough about in most climate change books and the media. Also interesting and encouraging to see very successful men of business taking on climate change. Enjoy if you and afford it.

This is an amazing book! In Reaching Net Zero, authors Fletcher and Smith have produced a well-organized, clearly written, easily understood, and authoritatively supported resource that every government official, policy maker, politician, economist, journalist, college professor, student, and business leader should have and make use of – if he or she is seriously interested in life on this planet, doing something about it, and motivating others. Here you will find technical, economic, engineering and scientific findings, coupled with authoritative background data, assembled for the purpose of fact-based clear and decisive thinking, communications, and action plans on the intertwined, and all too often confounded, issues of: life on this planet, global warming, the problem with carbon, greenhouse gasses, energy sources, energy conversion and use, land use, economics, economies, and technologies.

Weighing in on the topic of Net Zero, Bill Gates says in the August 4, 2020 issue of his GatesNotes publication, “If you want to understand the kind of damage that climate change will inflict if we do not eliminate the world’s [net] carbon emissions, look at COVID-19 and spread that pain – the loss of life and economic misery – over a much longer period of time.”

Reaching Net Zero addresses that looming problem with motivational facts and documented trends, a common vocabulary for dialog about global warming, the metrics of net zero carbon, references, examples, and clear, straightforward thinking. A helpful feature of this book is a set of authoritative definitions of terminology including what exactly is meant by Net Zero, greenhouse gasses (GHGs), greenhouse gas equivalents, carbon footprint, ocean acidification, energy alternatives, and the significance of international policy-shaping efforts such as The Montreal Protocol, The Paris Agreement, and the IPCC report. It also features benchmarks for success with case examples of successful initiatives to be referenced, examined, and emulated.

This is a book with a concrete, quantitatively supported five-point plan of action for zero net global carbon emissions that should serve to focus the attention of all parties involved in addressing the problem of carbon and global warming on what’s important and what’s doable. That five-point plan involves what to do with: 1) Efficiencies, 2) Coal, 3) Renewable energy sources, 4) Electric vehicles, and 5) Afforestation and land use.

I like Reaching Net Zero: What it takes to solve the global climate crisis and feel empowered after reading it. For the last several years, I have been an avid reader of articles on climate change. Articles, whether in a newspaper, magazine or technical journal, typically cover only one aspect of climate change. This book brings it all together in an easily understood, conscience format. A perfect balance between easy to read and technical data.

If someone wants to advance themselves on this topic and become a well-informed citizen who can discuss and debate with others in a knowledgeable way, plus vote; this book is an essential read. My only regret is that this book is not available to the public in a less costly manner.

Reaching Net Zero is an excellent resource for understanding the anthropogenic causes and effects of climate change. It provides numerous figures and charts of data showing evidence of global warming and other climate consequences that have taken place since the industrial revolution and have accelerated in recent decades. The data is well sourced and thoroughly cited. As a person who has worked in the energy industry for several decades and studied many research papers and voluminous reports on climate change, I really appreciate the concise presentation of the key evidence in a single, easy-to-read book. It is a must-read for anyone who has questions about humankind’s influence on global warming, and is a valuable resource for people already well versed in the subject. One of the most important aspects of the book is its practical solutions and realistic expectations for what can be accomplished to reduce greenhouse gas emissions over the next thirty years. Now, let’s get to work!