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A Chicken Can’t Lay a Duck Egg: How Covid-19 Can Solve The Climate Crisis (Resetting Our Future Book 1) Kindle Edition

by Graeme Maxton (Author), Bernice Maxton-Lee (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 20 ratings
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Vast swathes of the current economic system have to be dismantled to secure humanity’s future. Until recently that was thought impossible. Covid-19 proves this wrong. It is possible to shut polluting businesses overnight and pay people during a transition. Because Covid-19 has done half the job for us, a sustainable future is finally within our grasp. This book explains how societies can embrace this unique chance to build a future where people live with decency, and in balance with nature.

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  1. Part of series
    Resetting Our Future
  2. Print length
    136 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Sticky notes
    On Kindle Scribe
  5. Publisher
    Changemakers Books
  6. Publication date
    October 30, 2020
  7. File size
    559 KB
  8. Page Flip
    Enabled
  9. Word Wise
    Enabled
  10. Enhanced typesetting
    Enabled
  11. See all details
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Total Price: $29.95
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From the Publisher

climate crisis, climate crisis, the environment, conservation, planet saving, carbon emissions

climate crisis, climate crisis, the environment, conservation, planet saving, carbon emissions

climate crisis, climate crisis, the environment, conservation, planet saving, carbon emissions

climate crisis, climate crisis, the environment, conservation, planet saving, carbon emissions

climate crisis, climate crisis, the environment, conservation, planet saving, carbon emissions

Editorial Reviews

From the Author

  1. For decades, most of the economically dominant governments of the world have failed in their obligations to the majority of their citizens. Anticipating their flailing, incompetent response to Covid-19 was easy. It followed a well-established pattern.
  2. It is not possible to reform the economic, political, and social systems of these countries to make them function in the interests of most people. A chicken cannot lay a duck egg.
  3. In the coming decade, humanity will be overwhelmed by a series of self-inflicted, interconnected ecological crises. Climate change's impact will completely overshadow the consequences of Covid-19.
  4. There is no market-based solution to these problems. Solar panels, Teslas, and some as-yet-undefined technology will not save humanity.
  5. Only a people's movement and structural reform will work.
  6. Covid-19 makes this possible.

From the Inside Flap

To slow the pace of climate change, the fossil fuel industry, aviation sector and auto business have to be dismantled. Until recently that was thought impossible. Covid-19 proves this wrong. The Coronavirus shows that it is possible to shut businesses overnight, cut greenhouse gas emissions and pay people during a transition. Because Covid-19 has done half the job for us, a sustainable future is finally within our grasp. This book shows how societies can embrace this unique chance for change and build a future where people can live in balance with nature."Read and act on the wisdom of this book now. In another decade itwill be too late." Dr Susan George, President, Transnational Institute."A must read for every thinking person." Prof PaulShrivastava, Penn State University."Passionate about the realities; clear about the changes; funnywhen it needs to be. This book takes us from chaos to opportunity."Martin Palmer, Secretary General, Alliance of Religions and Conservation.The time for governments to act is not when the consequences of their negligence and folly have become overwhelming. It is now. Societies have very little time to introduce the radical changes that are needed.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B08JX75WVK
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Changemakers Books (October 30, 2020)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ October 30, 2020
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 559 KB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 136 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 20 ratings

About the authors

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Previous page
  1. Graeme P. Maxton

    Graeme P. Maxton

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    Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

    Graeme Maxton is the author of seven internationally acclaimed books on climate change, economics, and the automotive industry. Until 2018 he was the Secretary General of the Club of Rome.

    See more on the author's page
  2. Graeme Maxton

    Graeme Maxton

    Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
    Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

    Graeme Maxton is the author of seven internationally acclaimed books on climate change, economics, and the automotive industry. He is an Advisory Board Member on the UNECE Energy Pathways Project, and of Population Matters. He was previously Secretary General of the Club of Rome.

    See more on the author's page
  3. Bernice Maxton-Lee

    Bernice Maxton-Lee

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    Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

    A former director of the Jane Goodall Institute, Bernice Maxton-Lee lectures on climate change and deforestation at the Technical University in Vienna and is a Research Associate at ETH University in Zurich.

    Her latest book, co-written with best-selling author Graeme Maxton, is A Chicken can’t lay a Duck Egg: How Covid-19 can solve the climate crisis.

    The book explains how Covid-19 can be a spring-board for the rapid changes needed to solve the climate emergency. The authors show that to slow the pace of climate change, the fossil fuel industry, aviation sector and auto business need to be dismantled. Until recently that was thought impossible but Covid-19 proves that it is possible to shut businesses overnight, cut greenhouse gas emissions and pay people during a transition. Because Covid-19 has done half the job for us, a sustainable future is finally within our grasp. This new book shows how societies can embrace this unique chance for change and build a future where people can live in balance with nature.

    “The time for governments to act is not when the consequences of their negligence and folly have become overwhelming. It is now”, says Maxton-Lee. “Societies have very little time to introduce the radical changes that are needed.”

    “The change needs to be led by young people, and those who have not been brainwashed by the economic virus killing the planet”, says co-author Graeme Maxton. “It is time for a new political leadership to build a different, less selfish future for humanity.”

    See more on the author's page
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Customer reviews

4.5 out of 5 stars
4.5 out of 5
20 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Tim Ward
5.0 out of 5 stars A welcome slap to the head
Reviewed in the United States on November 5, 2020
Verified Purchase
This is one of the most sobering books I have ever read - a wake up call as slap in the face. And yet, I feel so grateful. The World Economic Forum recently put out a statement something to the effect of" "Capitalism has got us into this mess (of Climate Change), so only Capitalism can provide the solution!" The stupidity of this statement is fully revealed in this book's title:" A Chicken Can't Lay a Duck Egg." The system that encourages consumption and bows down to the alter of never-ending growth can not provide a solution that requires cutting consumption and prioritising global sustainability over accumulating wealth. Okay, slap received. Now, how do we get here from there? The authors provide a great blueprint for the way forward, and they rightly pin their hopes on the coming generation - those who will be facing retirement in the 2070s. Do they want to be living on a sustainable planet or a hellhole of climate catastrophes, and global extinctions? Read this book, and get on board with resetting our future.
One person found this helpful
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Stephanie Miller
5.0 out of 5 stars This book will make you think!
Reviewed in the United States on May 22, 2021
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The authors make a compelling case for why business as usual won’t cut it if we are to avoid a planetary climate disaster. Societies and governments must act more radically and with more urgency “every day from now for the next decade.” And this change will need to come from a new generation of leaders. The message of the book is sobering.
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Tom Bowman
5.0 out of 5 stars Refreshingly Honest
Reviewed in the United States on November 19, 2020
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When you get past the amusing title, you quickly discover that this is a no-punches-pulled read. It's compelling too. A time of crisis is an excellent time to dig deeper and take stock of the assumptions and systems that got us here. This book is sobering, but highly useful.
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Joseph F Duffy, author of Being a Supervisor 1.0
5.0 out of 5 stars This book will get your attention
Reviewed in the United States on November 8, 2020
Graeme Maxton and Bernice Maxton-Lee’s book is a brutally honest description of the global climate crisis, a disheartening one, that to many is on a hopeless downward spiral. Yet, the authors posit that a lesson learned in this Covid-19 Pandemic time (that we can pivot and drastically change behavior on a dime) can be our new best hope to slow down, stop and begin the reversal of that spiral, affording us the opportunity, through a collective (global) and concerted effort, restore balance in nature and allow us to live in harmony with each other and our environment. The authors pull no punches in describing the origins of global warming, and sharing the blame for it, and the failure to stop it. But... they layout with no sugar-coating, that now is the time, and perhaps our last best chance to save the planet and assure it will be there and sustainable for our children and their children for generations to come. The authors offer a blueprint for action. They urge us to develop new systems of governance and living, supportive of the common good, and lay it out for us, individually and collectively. The system they offer is radical, driven by the goal of slowing the pace of climate change, as fast as possible. It is worthy of thought, discussion, and action. This book is a disturbing but necessary and very useful read. You might want to read chapter 14 first. It is a fact list enumerating the consequences of our failure to act now in the short term. The list and the final sentence “almost everyone on earth needs to urgently change the way they live, whether they want to or not” are what the first 13 chapters are all about. Get your copy, share it with family and friends and demand your elected leaders and leaders all around the world read it and act on it.
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Top reviews from other countries

DAH
5.0 out of 5 stars Radical. Far from the hypothetical scenarios our leaders try to sell us to keep us calm.
Reviewed in France on November 17, 2020
Verified Purchase
A POWERFUL read. Our democracy and economic system, even the basis of our culture, are being gamed. And the people who are benefitting will not change it, even if it threatens us all. 'Our' system rewards them too well and even makes us want to emulate them. The scale of human activities causing climate change, that we see for ourselves every day, is nothing compared to the what we will witness when our climate tips into a state not seen since mammels evolved on earth. We will live to witness it and no-one will be blamed. Of course when no-one is to blame, we are all to blame. It is time to act if we all want to change the last chapter of the story we our currently living. The tipping point we need is politcal, not our climate. The book is radical. A long way from the hypothetical policy scenarios that our leaders try to sell us to keep us calm. Denis.
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Dave B.
5.0 out of 5 stars Unsettling but hugely important book
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 14, 2020
Verified Purchase
This book lays out some brutal truths about what it will take to tackle the climate emergency. The current system is not going to cut it and we need a radical overhaul in order to avert catastrophe.
The authors write compellingly about what needs to be done. A lot of it seems unfeasible when you look at the corporate interests of those currently wielding the power - but that's exactly why this book needs to be read by as many people as possible: to make the unfeasible feasible and enable us to break free from the conditioning to which we in the West have been subjected: ie that neoliberalism and capitalism are the only viable systems and that economic growth is the only goal worth chasing. The Covid pandemic has proven there is another way.
Engaging, thoughtful and thought-provoking, this book is a vital tool in the armoury if we are to stand any chance of avoiding disaster.
2 people found this helpful
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Lino
5.0 out of 5 stars Recommendation
Reviewed in Germany on November 1, 2020
Verified Purchase
DE: Vorab eine kurze Bemerkung an alle deutschsprachigen Leser, die sich, wie ich zuvor, vielleicht Sorgen machen, der Text könnte unverständlich geschrieben sein: Der Schreibstil ist sehr lebendig und leicht zugänglich, Englisch auf Schulniveau sollte hier also ausreichen...

ENG:
At the beginning of what appears to be the second wave of Covid-infections in most industrialized countries, the authors of this small book fill certainly the most important gap in the public discourse about the pandemic: The unique opportunity to shape our current policy of pure reaction in a more long-term manner, and thus to reduce the almost unimaginable suffering that climate models predict for the coming decades.
I recognized it as a book full of ideas and constructive arguments, which I would warmly recommend to anyone who is willing to deal with this problem of such enormous importance. The analytical approach of the authors involved and the constant orientation towards strategies that can actually be carried out, testify to a great deal of specialist knowledge and experience in this area. It must be seen as problematic that most of the media coverage on the climate collapse seems to be increasingly moving away from a scientifically and productive perspective. Therefore, the active examination of actual options for action is all the more relevant both on the part of the experts, as has been splendidly undertaken in this book, and for each individual, for example by reading and disseminating such considerations...
I learned to appreciate this easily and well-written book after just a few pages...
One person found this helpful
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