Japan's Tipping Point: Crucial Choices in the Post-Fukushima World [Paperback]

Mark Pendergrast (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 1, 2011

Japan's Tipping Point is a small book on a huge topic. In the post-Fukushima era, Japan is the "canary in the coal mine" for the rest of the world. Can Japan radically shift its energy policy, become greener, more self-sufficient, and avoid catastrophic impacts on the climate? Mark Pendergrast arrived in Japan exactly two months after the Fukushima meltdown. This book is his eye-opening account of his trip and his alarming conclusions. Japan is at a crucial tipping point. A developed country that must import all of its fossil fuel, it can no longer rely on nuclear power, following the massive earthquake/tsunami/nuclear disaster of March 11, 2011. Critically acclaimed nonfiction writer Mark Pendergrast went to Japan to investigate Japan's renewable energy, Eco-Model Cities, food policy, recycling, and energy conservation, expecting to find innovative, cutting edge programs. He discovered that he had been naive. The Japanese boast of their eco-services for eco-products in eco-cities. Yet they rely primarily on imported fossil fuel and nuclear power, live in energy-wasteful homes, and import 60% of their food. That may be changing in the wake of the Fukushima nuclear disaster. Maybe. But as Pendergrast documents, Japan lags far behind Europe, the United States, and even (in some respects) China in terms of renewable energy efforts. And Japan is mired in bureaucracy, political in-fighting, indecision, puffery, public apathy, and cultural attitudes that make rapid change difficult. Yet Japan is also one of the most beautiful countries in the world, with friendly, resilient people who can, when motivated, pull together to accomplish incredible things. As an island nation, Japan offers a microcosmic look at the problems facing the rest of the globe. And as Japan tips, so may the world. Mark Pendergrast, the author of books such as For God, Country and Coca-Cola, Uncommon Grounds, and Inside the Outbreaks, entertains as he enlightens. As he wrote in Japan's Tipping Point: "The rest of this account might seem a strange combination of critical analysis, travelogue, absurdist non-fiction, and call to action. It might be called 'Mark's Adventures in Japanland: Or, Apocalyptic Visions in a Noodle Shop.'"

Product Details

• Paperback: 122 pages
• Publisher: Nature's Face Publications (November 1, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0982900430
• ISBN-13: 978-0982900437
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,230,003 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I am the author of six books of critically acclaimed non-fiction. The latest is JAPAN'S TIPPING POINT: CRUCIAL CHOICES IN THE POST-FUKUSHIMA WORLD, a short book on a huge topic. Can Japan radically shift its energy policy, become greener, more self-sufficient, and avoid catastrophic impacts on the climate? In the post-Fukushima era, Japan is the "canary in the coal mine" for the rest of the world. I arrived in Japan exactly two months after the Fukushima meltdown. This book is the account of my trip and my alarming conclusions. INSIDE THE OUTBREAKS, is a history of the CDC's Epidemic Intelligence Service. The others are UNCOMMON GROUNDS, the history of coffee, FOR GOD, COUNTRY & COCA-COLA, the history of the soft drink, MIRROR MIRROR, a history of mirrors, and VICTIMS OF MEMORY, a book about so-called recovered memories. One critic called me "the ultimate freelance journalist with an eclectic mind." I suppose he meant that I write about whatever interests me. I prefer to call myself an independent scholar, since my books are heavily researched. I joke that I should have earned an honorary Ph.D for each of them in their respective subjects. What my books all have in common is that they cover subjects that matter. In my small way, I hope to make the world a somewhat saner, safer place. I'm not sure if my children's book, JACK AND THE BEAN SOUP, will make the world a better place, but I hope it makes it a bit more humorous. The book is a fractured fairytale -- basically, an elaborate fart joke, though it does explain how evil came to the earth and the origin of thunder! I live in Vermont with my wife and dog, and I like to hear from readers. For more information on my books, see www.markpendergrast.com.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The Eco Challenges Facing Japan October 19, 2011

By David Hayes

Format:Kindle Edition

After the Fukushima nuclear disaster, the eyes of the world were on Japan. In Mark Pendergrast's e-book, "Japan's Tipping Point," he makes the case for why attention should more broadly focus on the state of the island nation's overall environmental strategies. Japan is a tiny but developed country that imports all of its fossil fuels and has, at least until recently, merrily relied on nuclear power. Still, it has enjoyed a reputation for being a leader in environmentally innovative policies. (The much-hyped Eco-Model City program, for example.) But, as Pendergrast reveals, that reputation is at least partly smoke-and-mirrors. Its renewable energy initiatives lag behind Europe and North America and in some cases even China (an analogy that would be devestating to most Japanese). The story has no lack of strong characters, like Tetsunari Iida, the Ralph Nader of Japan's nuclear industry who heads the Tokyo-based Institute for Sustainable Energy Policies, and Naoto Kan, a former Prime Minister and born-again environmentalist who forced a reluctant government to introduce subsidies for wind, biomass, geothermal, solar hot water and micro-hydro development. In fact, Pendergrast believes Japan's main challenge lies in overcoming its own internal political & cultural shortcomings. Japan is important to us all, he writes, because it "is the proverbial canary in the coalmine. As an industrialized island nation, it is facing the same issues as the rest of the globe, only sooner and more urgently." A must-read for everyone interested in the daunting environmental issues facing the world.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars An important consideration of Japan's -- and the world's -- energy future October 18, 2011

By David Blittersdorf

Format:Kindle Edition

Mark Pendergrast's personable, accessible account of post-Fukushima Japan offers an excellent overview of the country's past and current industrial dilemmas, and illuminates the speed bumps slowing down what should be a rapid restructure of its national approach to energy. It also underscores Japan's importance as the proverbial coal-mine canary for the rest of the world, with regard to energy use and energy policy. For these reasons alone, Japan's Tipping Point is an important and topical book for everyone wondering how modern society at large will cope with the urgent need to reduce our crippling reliance on nuclear power and fossil fuels. But it's also a great read: Pendergrast combines systematic, investigative journalism with candid, boots-on-the-ground travelogue in equal measures, to great effect.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Surprising reasons for optimism May 23, 2012

By Tony Levelle

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

"Japanese trains run to the minute, and the country's businesses pride themselves on energy-efficiency. The Japanese boast of their eco-services for eco-products in eco-cities. Yet they rely primarily on imported fossil fuel and nuclear power, live in energy-wasteful homes, and import 60% of their food. That may be changing in the wake of the Fukushima nuclear disaster. Maybe. Japan is at a crucial tipping point. As an island nation, it offers a microcosmic look at the problems facing the rest of the globe. And as Japan tips, so may the world." Mark Pendergrast, Tipping Point (Kindle Locations 65-69).

On May 5, 2012 Japan shut down the last of its 50 nuclear reactors after the Fukashima disaster.

Japan, like the rest of the world is at a tipping point: it can go renewable or continue on its fossil/nuclear path. Pendergrast traveled through post-Fukashima Japan to survey a wide range of small-scale renewable energy projects. Tipping Point is unflinching in looking at the political and economic obstacles facing each of these projects. As I read the book, I could not help thinking that Pendergrast had found and reported on dozens of real reasons for hope. Although none of the renewable energy projects was in itself a single 'magic bullet' to solve Japan's energy crisis, when combined they may offer a profound opportunity. If Japan chooses to go renewable, each of these small projects shows a proven way to implement a workable solution within the Japanese culture and political system.

Tipping Point is a important book about a subject of critical importance to the entire industrialized world. As I read it I couldn't help but think that Japan and the world was fortunate to have a gifted reporter like Pendergrast on the scene to report on these options, and assemble them into one, short readable book. Coincidentally, all the solutions that Pendergrast describes are equally valid in other industrial nations.

I found the book surprisingly optimistic because it shows what can work, and what has worked. The question now is, will Japan accept this challenge? Will we?