How to Avoid a Climate Disaster

The book is laser focus on the topic of climate disaster, starting from introducing what exactly it is, who the culprits are and how we can achieve zero carbon.

The introduction of the five questions to ask whenever you are in a climate conversation gives a really good mental framework to understand the scale and impact of the emission or solution. It challenges the effectiveness of proposed solution so we can measure if it is worthy at all. It brings the gravity of current climate problem into the picture, making it clear that we need to focus on the problem together, only by then there is a chance we can save the climate.

The book then talks about the major emission activities which are electricity generation, manufacturing, agriculture, logistics and indoor climate control. Although there are definitely things and habit we can do or change in our daily life the minimize the carbon footprint, the problem lies in bigger institutional level. We can use our collective consumer behavior to challenge companies that emits irresponsibly and use the collective power of people to force a greener government. One of the biggest problem of solving climate change is navigating and lobbying the puzzle of government policies. Bill Gates is one of the most vocal individual when comes to affecting government policies. I hope governments would take the policies this book has provided seriously.

I like the pragmatic side of the book where it clearly shows what are the social and economical consequences of worsening climate change with facts without using sentimental tactics to appeal to a broader audience. I also like how the book frame it as 'Avoiding Climate Disaster' instead of 'Solving Climate Change'. This is a simple yet powerful phrase that serves as a warning to humanity. How to Avoid a Climate Disaster is like a facts book, where the facts literally affects lives of everyone in the planet.