BOOKS: AN OPTIMISTIC ENVIRONMENTALIST
B.C. writer gives refreshing perspective on state of the world’s environment
The Optimistic Environmentalist is a breath of fresh air. We’re always hearing negative stories about the environment and how we humans have ruined it, but in this book, author David. R. Boyd also tells inspiring stories about how humans have also saved it.
“... I want to be crystal clear: our society faces serious environmental challenges, including climate change, toxic pollution, and the declining diversity and abundance of plant and wildlife species. The scientific evidence is irrefutable,” Boyd writes. “But, based on humanity’s track record over the past 50 years, the ready availability of effective solutions, and the potential of future innovations, I also believe that today’s environmental challenges can be overcome.”
Good to know, and good to hear.
Boyd is an environmental lawyer and an adjunct professor in resource and environmental management at Simon Fraser University and a former Trudeau Scholar at the University of British Columbia. He lives on Pender Island and is the co-chair of Vancouver’s Greenest City Action Team along with Mayor Gregor Robertson.
This fall, he’s promoting two books; as well as The Optimistic Environmentalist: Progressing Towards a Greener Future, he has also written Cleaner, Greener, Healthier: A Prescription for Stronger Canadian Environmental Laws and Policies, published by UBC Press.
The Environmental Optimist was conceived after a conversation between Boyd and his daughter, who had just learned about climate change at school. Boyd didn’t want to lie to her, but he also wanted to shelter her from the harsh truth about the world we live in. In his search for a hopeful answer, he realized what he already knew: that human beings are very good at solving problems.
He also recognizes the significance of being optimistic, saying negativity “breeds real harm” and that human beings are “hardwired for optimism.”
“... Optimism is more than just a kind of sunny disposition that makes a person pleasant company. Optimism is a powerful causal factor in shaping outcomes and futures,” Boyd writes, adding that optimists are more likely to recover from cancer and better able to limit the effects of other chronic illnesses.
He’s written this book to give people a sense of hope that humans will restore the Earth to “flourishing levels of diversity and abundance.”
He’s managed that with The Environmental Optimist, writing an accessible book that is interesting, well-researched and always hopeful. Boyd’s inspiring stories include a chapter on the many species that were once endangered but now thrive, including the bald eagle, the peregrine falcon, the grey whale, grizzly bear, grey wolf and, specific to Canada, the white pelican, Baird’s sparrow and the Caspian tern.
He writes about renewable energy, saying its use is expanding much faster than experts predicted, and that the economics of the shift away from fossil fuels add up. Further, he writes that pollution is down from the 1950s, thanks to clean air laws and better and unleaded car fuels and emissions. The elimination of chlorofluorochemicals (CFCs) is another success story Boyd writes about, something that came about thanks to scientific research and the quick action of politicians.
Boyd’s argument is that human beings have had successes before, and we can do it again. “There’s an enduring myth that society must choose between environmental protection and economic well-being,” he writes. “But will going green really require costly sacrifices and decreases in our standard of living? No. This myth has been debunked by piles of academic studies, and more importantly by the experiences of communities, companies and countries around the world. ... The benefits of protecting the environment dwarf the costs.”