Allison Burbach- Excessive Human Habits (4/23)

Hope Jahren’s The Story of More: How We got to Climate Change is a must read for everyone. The book explains how human habits (such as meat overconsumption) have led us to our climate disaster. The chapters are extremely easy for a non-scientific audience to digest even if they include lots of data because the author makes personal connections to the topics. The readability of this book is its biggest strength. However, Hope Jahren goes a step further than most and shares hopeful solutions to reduce our emissions. The most impactful example that I read was the understanding that the volume of waste created by privileged people could provide enough for the less privileged if resources were organized and allocated appropriately. The earth can provide for a growing population if less resources are wasted and the privileged use less--energy usage is a good example of this. Resource inequality is one of the single largest threats to the well-being of all people. I believe this all speaks to the throw-away culture of wealthy countries. We have become obsessed with a convenient and fast way of life, but changing this will require a cultural shift.