Regenesis - Moé for Solarpunk Books

Paperback, 352 pages

English language

Published Dec. 21, 2022 by Penguin Publishing Group.

ISBN:: 978-0-14-313596-8

(1 review)

"What if there were a way to stop climate change and end global hunger at the same time? The way we feed ourselves is destroying the planet, and a collection of crises have brought the global food supply to its breaking point. But it doesn't have to be this way. With technology that already exists, we could sustainably provide everyone on the planet with a healthy diet. By cultivating hydrogen-eating bacteria, deep-rooted plants, and much richer communities of insects--coupled with existing technology to reduce our dependence on meat--we can dramatically reduce our carbon footprint, solve world hunger, and halt the sixth extinction at the same time. George Monbiot is an internationally renowned climate activist, widely known for bringing bold, creative thinking to the climate and ecological crises facing our planet. Now, he turns his attention to the global food system to offer a reimagining of the way we feed ourselves …

"What if there were a way to stop climate change and end global hunger at the same time? The way we feed ourselves is destroying the planet, and a collection of crises have brought the global food supply to its breaking point. But it doesn't have to be this way. With technology that already exists, we could sustainably provide everyone on the planet with a healthy diet. By cultivating hydrogen-eating bacteria, deep-rooted plants, and much richer communities of insects--coupled with existing technology to reduce our dependence on meat--we can dramatically reduce our carbon footprint, solve world hunger, and halt the sixth extinction at the same time. George Monbiot is an internationally renowned climate activist, widely known for bringing bold, creative thinking to the climate and ecological crises facing our planet. Now, he turns his attention to the global food system to offer a reimagining of the way we feed ourselves on a scale to fit the urgency of the problems we face."

1 edition

pdotb@wyrms.de reviewed Regenesis by George Monbiot

Starts off well, but fades a little towards the end

4 stars

Well-written, as one has come to expect of Monbiot, the book starts off strongly with a deep dive into soil ecology, which helps to frame later discussion of how soil should be seen as a living matrix and not just an inert substrate for plants and chemicals. The book really takes off over the next few chapters, detailing all the many problems with the current system of food production. Of particular note is the way that so much land and food production is so inefficiently mediated through meat, particularly beef. The second half of the book felt considerably weaker. Monbiot visits several unconventional farms, examining each in quite some detail and, while each seems a healthier alternative to more usual agriculture, none seemed particularly viable if scaled up to feed everyone. There's definitely lots of good stuff in here, and some of his prognoses are, frankly, a bit terrifying, but …

Well-written, as one has come to expect of Monbiot, the book starts off strongly with a deep dive into soil ecology, which helps to frame later discussion of how soil should be seen as a living matrix and not just an inert substrate for plants and chemicals. The book really takes off over the next few chapters, detailing all the many problems with the current system of food production. Of particular note is the way that so much land and food production is so inefficiently mediated through meat, particularly beef. The second half of the book felt considerably weaker. Monbiot visits several unconventional farms, examining each in quite some detail and, while each seems a healthier alternative to more usual agriculture, none seemed particularly viable if scaled up to feed everyone. There's definitely lots of good stuff in here, and some of his prognoses are, frankly, a bit terrifying, but the stronger material felt rather let down by the weaker chapters.