For the last fifteen years, in nation after nation, changing the way energy is produced and consumed has proved the case again and again. Companies are realizing dramatic savings through retrofits and clean energy, and creating high-paying jobs in the process. Intelligent national investments in green energy are giving countries faster growth and lower unemploy- ment rates than their peers. Most places have not even come close to reaching their potential in this area, and it should be on the top of every government’s to-do list.
The embrace of sustainable economies is too episodic and fragmentary. We need a global commitment, and thanks to continuing advances in science and technology, we have the capacity to do it.
In the pages that follow, Johan Rockström and Mattias Klum argue powerfully that we must reinvent our relationship with planet Earth. Along with compelling scientific data, The Human Quest showcases world-class photography to remind us just what is at stake. The authors demonstrate that with collective action, humankind can still bend the curves of negative environmental change toward a resilient and prosperous future—but there’s no time left to waste.
In my lifetime, I’ve never worked on an issue that at once held so much peril and so much promise. It’s up to all of us to choose the path of promise.