How to Avoid a Climate Disaster: The Solutions We Have and the Breakthroughs We Need
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- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2022-07-25 06:53:05
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Bill Gates
- ISBN：0141993014
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Summary
In this urgent， authoritative book， Bill Gates sets out a wide-ranging， practical - and accessible - plan for how the world can get to zero greenhouse gas emissions in time to avoid a climate catastrophe。
Bill Gates has spent a decade investigating the causes and effects of climate change。 With the help of experts in the fields of physics， chemistry， biology， engineering， political science， and finance， he has focused on what must be done in order to stop the planet's slide toward certain environmental disaster。 In this book， he not only explains why we need to work toward net-zero emissions of greenhouse gases， but also details what we need to do to achieve this profoundly important goal。
He gives us a clear-eyed description of the challenges we face。 Drawing on his understanding of innovation and what it takes to get new ideas into the market， he describes the areas in which technology is already helping to reduce emissions， where and how the current technology can be made to function more effectively， where breakthrough technologies are needed， and who is working on these essential innovations。 Finally， he lays out a concrete， practical plan for achieving the goal of zero emissions-suggesting not only policies that governments should adopt， but what we as individuals can do to keep our government， our employers， and ourselves accountable in this crucial enterprise。
As Bill Gates makes clear， achieving zero emissions will not be simple or easy to do， but if we follow the plan he sets out here， it is a goal firmly within our reach。
Bill Gates has spent a decade investigating the causes and effects of climate change。 With the help of experts in the fields of physics， chemistry， biology， engineering， political science， and finance， he has focused on what must be done in order to stop the planet's slide toward certain environmental disaster。 In this book， he not only explains why we need to work toward net-zero emissions of greenhouse gases， but also details what we need to do to achieve this profoundly important goal。
He gives us a clear-eyed description of the challenges we face。 Drawing on his understanding of innovation and what it takes to get new ideas into the market， he describes the areas in which technology is already helping to reduce emissions， where and how the current technology can be made to function more effectively， where breakthrough technologies are needed， and who is working on these essential innovations。 Finally， he lays out a concrete， practical plan for achieving the goal of zero emissions-suggesting not only policies that governments should adopt， but what we as individuals can do to keep our government， our employers， and ourselves accountable in this crucial enterprise。
As Bill Gates makes clear， achieving zero emissions will not be simple or easy to do， but if we follow the plan he sets out here， it is a goal firmly within our reach。
Reviews
Harish Sriram
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 The book starts with the case for getting to net zero emissions and why the current track we are on is unsustainable。 It goes on to expand on the scale of our total emissions， and shows which human activities are responsible for what percentage of the total emissions， for eg: moving around （transportation sector） causes 16% of overall emissions， growing food causes 19% of total emissions， making things （making steel， cement， etc） causes 31% of total emissions and so on。The book then highlights t The book starts with the case for getting to net zero emissions and why the current track we are on is unsustainable。 It goes on to expand on the scale of our total emissions， and shows which human activities are responsible for what percentage of the total emissions， for eg: moving around （transportation sector） causes 16% of overall emissions， growing food causes 19% of total emissions， making things （making steel， cement， etc） causes 31% of total emissions and so on。The book then highlights the advancements are in low carbon tech so far， the current "Green Premiums" on low carbon alternatives across sectors and then goes on to expand on the different breakthroughs and innovations needed to drive down these Green Premiums。 The rich countries have a major role to play in driving down these premiums and make the low carbon options appealing to the middle and low income countries as well。In the second half， it emphasizes the importance of international collaboration and role of the government policies， research institutions， private sectors and the markets in driving the transition to net zero。 Overall， the book does a great job in highlighting the scale of the problem and breaking it down into small parts。 It also provides a roadmap on what we need to do as governments， industries， as well as as citizens to drive this transformation。 。。。more
Spoorti Shetty
，
This is the first book I read on climate change。 Gates writing is so simple to understand + satisfies the nerd in you。 I might've liked it， more because it helped with my gaps in knowledge about a lot of carbon negative alternatives/ green house gases/ green premiums etc。 Also， He talks a lot about policy changes and what the government ought to do， （which， even I had been pondering about since a while）。 He does throw in a few words about reuse/ recycle lifestyle changes。 A little disappointed t This is the first book I read on climate change。 Gates writing is so simple to understand + satisfies the nerd in you。 I might've liked it， more because it helped with my gaps in knowledge about a lot of carbon negative alternatives/ green house gases/ green premiums etc。 Also， He talks a lot about policy changes and what the government ought to do， （which， even I had been pondering about since a while）。 He does throw in a few words about reuse/ recycle lifestyle changes。 A little disappointed that enough emphasis wasn't given to rampant consumerism/ minimal waste life style。 As that is what we can focus at individual level。。。ofcourse other than writing petitions on policy change。A good easy informative read I'd say。。 。。。more
Zhi Yi
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Not sure if we can really reach net zero carbon by 2050
Aran O'Sullivan
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Though nothing truly groundbreaking for anyone familiar with the climate crisis， this book fulfills its role as a comprehensive， easy-to-follow guide through the solutions needed to avoid disaster。 I may have my reservations about Bill Gates， but I would recommend this book to anyone looking to learn more about climate change and what steps they can take to promote a livable future。
Ana Paulino
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Very knowledgeable， not like what people say
Fero
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Povinne citanie pre kazdeho
Michelle
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Sigh。 The sky is red！ And many people in today's society would believe it。 This society is totally brainwashed- just as much as any other in any previous regime if so many people believe that arguably one of the biggest individual polluters on the planet who btw is a psychopathic creep of epic proportions gives one flying F about the environment。 Sure， just like Hitler loved the Jews， and Pavelic loved the Serbs， and Columbus loved the Native Americans。。。。Sure。。。Right。。。。The dude is more morally Sigh。 The sky is red！ And many people in today's society would believe it。 This society is totally brainwashed- just as much as any other in any previous regime if so many people believe that arguably one of the biggest individual polluters on the planet who btw is a psychopathic creep of epic proportions gives one flying F about the environment。 Sure， just like Hitler loved the Jews， and Pavelic loved the Serbs， and Columbus loved the Native Americans。。。。Sure。。。Right。。。。The dude is more morally bankrupt than all the mafias put together and has emitted more carbon dioxide single handedly than probably a handful of small countries。 He also actively for years shorted Tesla too- all because he loves the environment。 Buy this book for 29。99 or whatever price the crook wants。 The kool aid must be comforting- it's also lethal。 Read Vandana Shiva instead。 A woman who is not a megalomaniac imperialist billionaire twat。 She's an Indian environmentalist who focuses on a holistic approach。 。。。more
H S
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A must read for all who wish to leave better and livable climate for future generations to come。
Liam Anthony
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Was really excited to read the '1% use significantly less' chapter but it never came up :（ I guess the title is actually significantly more informative about the book than expected - this is literally about the mechanisms needed at a business （read: profitability） level and how that， together with government procurement and R&D budget， will push green tech beyond where it could ever be otherwise。I was half expecting a bit more focus on the actual consequences of climate change rather than the sy Was really excited to read the '1% use significantly less' chapter but it never came up :（ I guess the title is actually significantly more informative about the book than expected - this is literally about the mechanisms needed at a business （read: profitability） level and how that， together with government procurement and R&D budget， will push green tech beyond where it could ever be otherwise。I was half expecting a bit more focus on the actual consequences of climate change rather than the synthetic wholesale price of petroleum and the max。 capacity of long-storage salt batteries but actually the thing I got was way more interesting。 。。。more
Geoff Winegar
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Nice refresher/updated material from college， with a few nice highlights of key numbers that are helpful for keeping things in perspective。
Eivind
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This book is a nice introduction to climate change and what we can do to fight it from， and for， an American perspective。 It'd be a good thing if people who this far have somehow managed to not learn anything about climate change would read this book。It's still only a 3-star to me though。 Good， but nothing exceptional， and too many problems and inaccuracies to deserve a higher ranking。Bill Gates is a programmer turned business-man。 He's not an expert on any of the topics relevant to climate chan This book is a nice introduction to climate change and what we can do to fight it from， and for， an American perspective。 It'd be a good thing if people who this far have somehow managed to not learn anything about climate change would read this book。It's still only a 3-star to me though。 Good， but nothing exceptional， and too many problems and inaccuracies to deserve a higher ranking。Bill Gates is a programmer turned business-man。 He's not an expert on any of the topics relevant to climate change -- neither the actual physics of it， nor the technology needed to combat it or the political system that would have to implement many of the changes。 And it shows in many ways， big and small。 Rarely in ways bad enough to completely invalidate the point made， but often in ways that make the text feel sloppy and approximate。If you want to read only one book on climate change from a US perspective， I'd recommend this one instead: Unsettled: What Climate Science Tells Us， What It Doesn’t， and Why It Matters -- if you'd like a more international angle then I recommend this one: Net Zero: How We Stop Causing Climate Change 。。。more
Rodrigo
，
This book only scratches the surface of what climate change is and it tries to explain you the situation as if you were a 5-year-old child。 I truly believe that serious topics like climate change should be explained with the most up-to-date scientific evidence。 The true art of science communication lays in presenting science in a way that is understandable to everyone and not in watering it down to a point where most of the information is lost。 Regarding the suggested solutions， I agree that we This book only scratches the surface of what climate change is and it tries to explain you the situation as if you were a 5-year-old child。 I truly believe that serious topics like climate change should be explained with the most up-to-date scientific evidence。 The true art of science communication lays in presenting science in a way that is understandable to everyone and not in watering it down to a point where most of the information is lost。 Regarding the suggested solutions， I agree that we need to decarbonize electricity to decarbonize many other sectors。 However， most of the solutions proposed by Gates are ambiguous and do not consider that the Earth is finite。 Besides that， I had the feeling that this book is mainly trying to push an agenda: nuclear energy。 If you would like to learn about climate change， I would like to suggest you to read the Assessments Reports of the IPCC instead。 Those are the biggest compendiums of scientific evidence on climate change that humanity has。 。。。more
Southy
，
A well researched foray into the topic of green innovation。 Logic of green premiums is a useful framework。
Kelly
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As someone who knows very little about this issue other than I’m interested in being a part of the solution， this book was so educational。 The solutions are well thought out and consider positive and negative impacts on society。 Bill Gates provides great recommendations down to the individual level。
Daniel Caballero
，
Con este libro he aprendido muchas cosas， desde los problemas del cambio climático desde una perspectiva mas alejada a la que estamos acostumbrados， los paises menos desfavorecidos padeceran sus efectos mas drasticamente sin ser ellos los mas responsables en probocarlo。Me ha ayudado a conocer otra cara de ese dueño de Microsoft tan millonario el enemigo de muchos， ahora veo que esta haciendo cosas para ayudar al planeta， pese que sigue viajando con su jet privado， el cambio climático tiene una s Con este libro he aprendido muchas cosas， desde los problemas del cambio climático desde una perspectiva mas alejada a la que estamos acostumbrados， los paises menos desfavorecidos padeceran sus efectos mas drasticamente sin ser ellos los mas responsables en probocarlo。Me ha ayudado a conocer otra cara de ese dueño de Microsoft tan millonario el enemigo de muchos， ahora veo que esta haciendo cosas para ayudar al planeta， pese que sigue viajando con su jet privado， el cambio climático tiene una solución muy compleja y al menos leer este libro te ayuda a conocer los desafios que debemos superar en un futuro。Recomiendo este libro es cortito y muy bueno。 。。。more
Ansi
，
Żeńska forma jest miłą odmianą， książka długa i ciągnąca， ale zawiera dużo ciekawych informacji
Nadine Biene
，
Definitely worth reading！ So much usefull and important information collected and written in an understandable and intetesting manner！ Wish more people would read it。
Grace Gimon
，
A must read。 The book is very pedagogical and a good intro to climate change， the current status and what needs to be done。 Surprisingly， it isn't a pessimistic book。 It gives tools to understand climate policies and actions from government and companies。 A must read。 The book is very pedagogical and a good intro to climate change， the current status and what needs to be done。 Surprisingly， it isn't a pessimistic book。 It gives tools to understand climate policies and actions from government and companies。 。。。more
Suzy
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An inspiring book that I wish everyone would read。 Highly recommended and I hope that many important decision makers will read this and enact its advice。 Well researched and well written。
Chris Pearson
，
This book provided exactly the overview I was hoping it would。 It describes why global warming is an issue， it ranks the causes of global warming by size， provides an overview of active Green investments/projects， and towards the end discusses what individuals， businesses， investors and governments can do to help the cause。
Beau Frigault
，
Really appreciated his insight on a lot of climate change issues and presented a seemingly pragmatic approach to addressing this very urgent crisis。 A lot of concepts I had already heard of， but I did still learn some things。
Sigmund Hennum
，
I really like how he conveyes his message！ It doesn't depressing at all， and I should probably read factfulness and talk to politicians。I think it might be the book I want most people to read， I think my view of climate change cleared up a lot。 I really like the hard numbers he sets， and I really believe that the necessary changes can happen！To be fair， it's not a literary masterpiece， but in a larger context it works really well and that's probably the main reason for 5 stars。 Maybe 4。5 is more I really like how he conveyes his message！ It doesn't depressing at all， and I should probably read factfulness and talk to politicians。I think it might be the book I want most people to read， I think my view of climate change cleared up a lot。 I really like the hard numbers he sets， and I really believe that the necessary changes can happen！To be fair， it's not a literary masterpiece， but in a larger context it works really well and that's probably the main reason for 5 stars。 Maybe 4。5 is more accurate 。。。more
Isabel
，
Very good introduction to the climate change problem。 Informative and scary 。。。 Worth reading。The translated spanish version is not well done， I'm sure is easiest to read it in english。 Very good introduction to the climate change problem。 Informative and scary 。。。 Worth reading。The translated spanish version is not well done， I'm sure is easiest to read it in english。 。。。more
B。A
，
Küresel ısınmaya neden olan bütün faktörleri sınıflandırmış ve rakamsal olarak okuyucuya sunmuş。 Çok teknik olmayan ama konuyu da gayet iyi anlatan bir kitap。 Ayrıca her bir faktör için olabilecek potansiyel çözüm yollarını da kitapta mevcut。
Jakub Pavlík
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Great book to set climate change into reasonable way。
Joshua
，
In terms of a general overview of climate change and factors that contribute， this is an easy to digest version and probably among the better renditions of the research。 The primary argument of the book is that to avoid a climate disaster technological innovation。 I came into this book after a degrowth focused book which has made me increasingly sceptical of the technology predominat solution and I don't find the arguments put forward here as particularly convincing， though I don't think expect In terms of a general overview of climate change and factors that contribute， this is an easy to digest version and probably among the better renditions of the research。 The primary argument of the book is that to avoid a climate disaster technological innovation。 I came into this book after a degrowth focused book which has made me increasingly sceptical of the technology predominat solution and I don't find the arguments put forward here as particularly convincing， though I don't think expect it to be for a mass market book。I think I would recommend most to read this to understand the problem predominately 。。。more
Patrick
，
Climate change for dummies。 Gates does a good job of explaining the causes and potential solutions to climate change。 For those new to the subject this is a helpful primer。
Maria Font
，
Must！
Miguel
，
My interest in the book rests in the fact that it summarizes where pollution comes from in today's world - mainly the firsts parts of the book。Afterwards， the solutions presented are mainly connected to changes in politics that could allow very expensive technologies that can reduce pollutant emissions to "survive" and， one day， be used on a daily basis at a cheap/reasonable price。 In his opinion， what we can do is to lobby/support for these technologies in order to our governments to support th My interest in the book rests in the fact that it summarizes where pollution comes from in today's world - mainly the firsts parts of the book。Afterwards， the solutions presented are mainly connected to changes in politics that could allow very expensive technologies that can reduce pollutant emissions to "survive" and， one day， be used on a daily basis at a cheap/reasonable price。 In his opinion， what we can do is to lobby/support for these technologies in order to our governments to support them， with our tax-payers money， hoping that they to could evolve， in the future， to a cheaper version。 On a small scale we can do some difference （like riding an electric car） but the big picture can only be changed by government/large scale decisions。 。。。more
Eric Williamson
，