Ernst Ulrich von Weizsäcker Book order

Current worldwide trends are not sustainable. The Club of Rome’s warnings published in the book Limits to Growth are still valid. Remedies that are acceptable for the great majority tend to make things worse. We seem to be in a philosophical crisis. Pope Francis says it clearly: our common home is in deadly danger. Analyzing the philosophical crisis, the book comes to the conclusion that the world may need a “new enlightenment”; one that is not based solely on doctrine, but instead addresses a balance between humans and nature, as well as a balance between markets and the state, and the short versus long term. To do this we need to leave behind working in ”silos” in favor of a more systemic approach that will require us to rethink the organization of science and education. However, we have to act now; the world cannot wait until 7.6 billion people have struggled to reach a new enlightenment. This book is full of optimistic case studies and policy proposals that will lead us back to a trajectory of sustainability. But it is also necessary to address the taboo topic of population increase. Countries with a stable population fare immensely better than those with continued increase. Finally, we are presenting an optimistic book from the Club of Rome.

On the occasion of the 75th birthday of Ernst Ulrich von Weizsacker this unique anthology presents thought-provoking texts from 1970 to 2013, spanning several disciplines and combining science and practice. Among them are three Reports to the Club of Rome that Weizsacker lead-authored, a new university curriculum system to promote interdisciplinary studies and a proposal for a five-fold increase in resource productivity, which would make it possible to shut down nuclear and fossil power plants, avoiding dangerous climate change impacts. Weizsacker is Co-President of the Club of Rome and Co-Chair of UNEP s Resource Panel. He has served as a Professor of Biology, President of Kassel Univ., Director of the UN Centre for Science and Technology and of the Institute for European Environment Policy, President of the Wuppertal Institute for Climate, Environment and Energy, as a Member of the Bundestag, as Chair of its Environment Committee and as Dean of the Bren School for Environmental Science and Management, Univ. of California, Santa Barbara, USA."

Limits to Privatization is the first thorough audit of privatizations from around the world. It outlines the historical emergence of globalization and liberalization, and from analyses of over 50 case studies of best- and worst-case experiences of privatization, it provides guidance for policy and action that will restore and maintain the right balance between the powers and responsibilities of the state, the private sector and the increasingly important role of civil society.The result is a book of major importance that challenges one of the orthodoxies of our day and provides a benchmark for future debate.

An answer to the 1971 report by the Club of Rome, arguing for a more efficient use of essential resources, already possible at a negative cost. The authors show examples of how this may be achieved by combining technical resources, and rewarding efficiency.