The End of Energy Obesity: Breaking Today's Energy Addiction for a Prosperous and Secure Tomorrow [Hardcover]

Peter Tertzakian (Author), Keith Hollihan (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 29, 2009

Praise For The End of Energy Obesity

"Peter Tertzakian has succeeded once again. He outlines a visionary approach to meeting the serious challenges of the world's projected population growth, continued economic growth, and increasing living standards. This book is a clarion call to policymakers, business leaders, and energy consumers everywhere."
—Guy Caruso, Senior Advisor, CSIS, Washington, D.C. (former Administrator, U.S. Energy Information Administration)

"Peter Tertzakian is one of the great energy thinkers of our time. In this compelling book, he examines the factors that will drive global energy demand and addresses the critical energy issue of our time: How can mankind bring its ever-growing demand for energy under control?"
—Hal Kvisle, CEO, TransCanada Corporation

"Anyone interested in understanding the forces that drive conflict and instability when it comes to energy should read Peter Tertzakian's important book, The End of Energy Obesity. Mr. Tertzakian makes it clear that the road ahead is difficult but not impossible. For those interested in how to attack the energy problem today for a better future, this is a must-read book."
—General John P. Abizaid (Ret.), former Combatant Commander, U.S. Central Command, and member of the SAFE Energy Security Leadership Council

"The End of Energy Obesity is a fresh look at a pressing problem . . . thought-provoking writing that's a must-read for those concerned about the way forward for the industrialized world."
—The Honourable Peter MacKay, Minister of Defence and Minister for the Atlantic Gateway, Government of Canada

"Peter Tertzakian's prose is fun to read, and the analogies are so apt. For anyone concerned about how we go on an energy diet, this book is a must-read."
—Matthew R. Simmons, Chairman, Simmons & Company International, author of Twilight in the Desert: The Coming Saudi Oil Shock and the World Economy

"This book explores the critical role networked IT solutions play in changing the way energy is used and delivered. The network truly becomes a platform for monitoring and managing energy consumption in a much more efficient way, and we expect the benefits to accelerate as the network becomes more pervasive. Tertzakian shows the reader how networked collaboration technologies such as TelePresence can enable powerful, face-to-face interactions while reducing our energy appetite and carbon footprint."
—John Chambers, Chairman and CEO, Cisco  

Editorial Reviews

From the Inside Flap

Is it any wonder that our energy needs are so great? Nearly everything that defines our way of life requires energy-consuming devices, from cars, planes, trains, and air conditioning to lights and computers. And our global appetite for energy keeps growing as population and wealth obliges consumption on an unfathomable scale.

Over the years, we've made our devices more efficient, only to find, ironically, that it's made us consume even more energy. We've periodically cut back our energy use only to revert back to bad habits. We've added more renewables only to find that fossil fuels still dominate. Now we are energy obese. How can the world reduce its energy appetite and change its diet of fuels for a prosperous and secure tomorrow?

In The End of Energy Obesity, energy expert and bestselling author Peter Tertzakian explores solutions to this question by analyzing the role of technology and circumstance on our energy use. Throughout the book, Tertzakian focuses on the most practical options that provide the highest leverage for resolving our energy problems and reveals how evolving habits, lifestyles, mind-sets, and innovations—that might seem improbable now—will help curb our insatiable energy appetite.

Divided into three comprehensive parts—The Making of Our Energy Appetite, Elusive Solutions, and Thinking Out of the Box—The End of Energy Obesity:

• Examines what Tertzakian calls the First Principle of Energy Consumption, the powerful 6,000-year-old connection between increases in wealth, standard of living, and energy use. Can this principle be broken?
• Explains why conventional strategies and policies for resolving our energy problems are lacking, and discusses how societies are vulnerable to three harmful effects of energy obesity. Should we be treating the symptoms or the cause?
• Probes into where the greatest leverage lies for mitigating society's energy-related problems, and shows how surprisingly powerful technological trends will reshape our energy appetite and diet—sooner than you may think!

Filled with in-depth insights and practical advice, The End of Energy Obesity puts the world's serious energy issues in perspective, exposes misconceptions, and introduces us to the new technologies that, in the next ten years, will reshape our lifestyles and, for the very first time, make it possible to decrease our overall energy consumption while increasing wealth and the standard of living. The future of energy is likely to surprise you.

About the Author

PETER TERTZAKIAN is Chief Energy Economist of ARC Financial Corporation and bestselling author of A Thousand Barrels a Second: The Coming Oil Break Point and the Challenges Facing an Energy Dependent World. Passionate about the history and direction of energy in society, Tertzakian blends three decades of experience in geophysics, economics, technology, and finance to analyze energy trends. Over the years, his prescient advice to corporate leaders, policymakers, and students has earned him many accolades for his work, including an asteroid in his name. Always questioning the consensus view, Tertzakian writes a weekly journal, is often quoted or seen in the media (including an appearance on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart), and is a sought-after speaker at events around the world.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 296 pages
• Publisher: Wiley; 1 edition (June 29, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0470435445
• ISBN-13: 978-0470435441
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.3 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #635,830 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The title got me., June 23, 2009

By 

Deb Graham (Calgary, Alberta) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The End of Energy Obesity: Breaking Today's Energy Addiction for a Prosperous and Secure Tomorrow (Hardcover)

As a Western Canadian living near the Athabasca tar sands I'm very concerned about the impacts of the energy sector (i.e oil industry) activity on the environment. I picked up a copy of The End of Energy Obesity because of the optimistic-sounding title. Canadians, Americans and other developed nations are consuming energy at an unsustainable rate. The developing world is striving to emulate our very energy inefficient lifestyle. I'm skeptical about the author's belief that we can grow our economies indefinitely, while at the same time reducing our "energy appetite", but at least he supports his ideas with plausible arguments. The key appears to lie in changing transportation behavior, which includes the way in which wealthy (i.e. "energy obese") societies rely on huge amounts of fossil fuel for the daily suburban commutes and transglobe business trips of its citizens. The book describes how the information revolution causes the need for much of this transportation to fall to the wayside as new-fangled communication tools make online collaborative work ever easier. The social implications of this Brave New World with its threat of ever-deepening social isolation is a little frightening, but the benefits of "energy fittness" to our global environment outweigh the dangers of one collapsing from an "energy cardiac arrest". Interesting ideas.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Well Reasoned Primer on How to Curb Our Energy Appetite, November 3, 2009

By 

Nick Gretener (Calgary, Alberta, Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The End of Energy Obesity: Breaking Today's Energy Addiction for a Prosperous and Secure Tomorrow (Hardcover)

Tertzakian sensitized us to our enormous energy appetite (western world) in A Thousand Barrels a Second (what a title!). He introduced in that work, the concept of energy break points. Historical periods when mankind has experienced disruptive events forcing a change in how energy is used (burned up all the wood, had to move to coal). Now, in Energy Obesity, he lays out two fundamental energy principles. The First Principle of Energy Consumption simply holds that throughout our history, improved quality of life has been directly related to greater energy consumption. The Assymetry Principle takes what is traditionally considered an energy problem, the efficiency losses from source of production to point of consumption, and stands it on its head. He makes the case that for each barrel of oil equivalent we don't have to consume (by making more intelligent choices about our energy consumption and maximizing technology), we save six or more barrels from having to be produced, with all the environmental savings that go along with that. An incredibly powerful way of looking at the benefits of energy conservation - which many agree is key to a sustainable future (in conjunction with technologial innovation). It is this need for conservation (reduction in wastemaking) that is referred to as the Third Commandment of the Human Revolution in The Vanishing of a Species? - another study of mankind's material demands on planet earth and how to curb them to provide a chance at a sustainable future.

Tertzakian has an interesting writing style, sprinkling personal observations and anecdotes throughout the scientific material used to make his case. An easy read, and one that presents a hopeful view of the future in the face of significant challenges facing us over the next few decades in terms of our energy appetite. Highly recommended.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Finally : a sensible approach, July 10, 2009

By 

Judith McDougall (Cheticamp, Cape Breton,NS) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The End of Energy Obesity: Breaking Today's Energy Addiction for a Prosperous and Secure Tomorrow (Hardcover)

Finally, a book that offers a really sensible approach to dealing with the world's energy problems: stop just focusing on new sources of supply and start looking for ways to decrease demand! Many may react to this book's proposal in the same of knee-jerk manner and suppose that any reduction in energy demand, i.e. consumption, is always going to reverse economic growth. And it's in part because of this attitude that we're forced to dig for oil and gas in the most inhospitable corners of the planet. The belief that we must "supply" ourselves out of our energy problems comes from "The First Principle of Energy Consumption". The book describes this as the rule that if energy consumption goes up so too does GDP and human comfort levels. But the book shows that this rule can be broken. To no surprise, it talks about energy conservation and improving efficiency. But what I didn't expect in the book was talk about the trend toward "virtualization" and how this is the real game changer in the energy sector. Slowly but surely, the way that people live, work and play is changing because of rapidly evolving communication technology. It all started with the telephone and telegraph, but today the platform of our long distance interaction with others is shifting over to Skype, videoconferencing and telepresence- to name a few of these new technologies. Transportation is the big glutton in energy demand and so much of it-from daily commutes to business travel- is being made redundant. The long and short of the book's message is that we can free ourselves from the belief in the connection between prosperity and energy demand growth. We can become economically more productive while burning less and less fuel if we start taking advantage of these communication tools. It's a straightforward and optimistic message.