The IPCC's 2018 report told us in no uncertain terms that the world has just 10 years to at least halve our greenhouse gas emissions if we are to have a hope of holding global warming to a 1.5 degrees celsius increase. Canada is nowhere near meeting its climate mitigation targets, and radical change to the way we live and work must happen at high speed, but how are we ever to do this?
Well, we've actually done it before. During the Second World War, Canadians and their government completely remade the economy -- retooling factories, transforming the workforce, and creating common cause among Canadians for the war effort.
In A Good War, author and activist Seth Klein looks at the WWII strategies and shows how they can be repurposed today for a rapid transition. He demonstrates that this change can create jobs and reduce inequality while tackling our climate obligations. From enlisting broad public support to new economic models, from new job creation to investment in green infrastructure, Klein shows us a bold, practical policy plan for a zero-carbon Canada.
Plot:
During World War Two, Canada changed its economy to support the war, support soldiers who fought, supply economic means for those who stayed behind and could contribute to the world, and how William Lyon Mackenzie King did not follow the rules and was able to keep Canada afloat during these hard times. Seth Klein uses their knowledge about World War Two and applies it to current-day Canada as we are facing the climate war. Because Climate Change is a war, one we are all fighting, and one that needs strong leadership to get us through it. This book is not science-based, more policy, as Kelin takes readers through the political heroes of World War Two, how average Canadians helped through victory gardens, and how these lessons from the past can help Canada currently, as we [as a nation] need to undergo a change to do our part in the IPCC’s mission to prevent climate change.
Thoughts:
A much-needed novel for every Canadian, Seth Klein does an excellent job connecting past actions to what we currently need to happen. Klein starts the novel by talking about what they have done, their previous work in activism, their avoidance of history to then loving the subject and wrote this book to explain how the past, especially World War Two, can help change the future. Yes, another book about climate change, with this one has Klein straying away from the actual science and moving more into the policy side of this new war we are facing. Climate change is no longer a scientific theory, it’s happening and we can see it, now it is a political movement that requires governments to shake up the system. Using the work of C.D. Howe and William Lyon Mackenzie King, Klein’s rationale that we need leaders who are not afraid to go against the norm and push our country towards the best it can be. With twelve chapters within four parts, Klein’s latest copy includes an epilogue on the COVID-19 pandemic, and how it is affecting the climate and governments to how they conduct business. For this book, it is good if you like history, want to see a new take on what World War Two has taught the world, an environmentalist, or simply a person wanting to know more. Klein’s easy writing makes this large novel fly by quickly and can change your mind on how you see the government, the climate, and how the mobilization of everyday citizens can change the world.
