A Prosperous Way Down: Principles and Policies (Hardcover)

~ (Author), Elisabeth C. Odum (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

Consider the future with less fossil fuel and no new natural or technological energy sources. How can it be peaceful and prosperous? More and more leaders concerned with the global future are warning of the impending crisis as the surge of unsustainable growth exceeds the capability of the earth’s resources to support our civilization. But while history records the collapse of countless civilizations, some societies and ecosystems have managed to descend in orderly stages, reducing demands and selecting and saving what is most important.

Although some scientists predict disaster, The Prosperous Way Down shows how our world can still thrive and prosper in a future where we live with less and charts a way for our modern civilization to descend to sustainable levels. The authors make recommendations for a more equitable and cooperative world society, with specific suggestions based upon their evaluations of trends in global population, wealth distribution, energy sources, conservation, urban development, capitalism and international trade, information technology, and education.

This thoughtful and provocative book will force us to confront our assumptions and beliefs about our world’s future, which is all too often taken for granted.

About the Author

Howard T Odum and Elisabeth C Odu

Product Details

• Hardcover: 348 pages
• Publisher: University Press of Colorado (June 13, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0870816101
• ISBN-13: 978-0870816109
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.4 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,290,394 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

37 of 41 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Taking the shock out of the future, March 22, 2002

By	Thomas A. Robertson (Washington, DC United States) - See all my reviews

From Enron to the September 11, 2001 disasters, it is apparent things are changing in our world, much as we would like to keep things as they were.

In "The Prosperous Way Down" H.T. Odum does not give us feel-good babble.

Instead, he delivers to us a coherent and timely way to do the hard work of knowing how our world works, the changes that are already upon us, and some of the things we may do to increase our opportunity for security and satisfaction in a world that may be very different from what we know today.

There is a lot of contention about Odum and his eMergy methodology. This is to be expected. Odum brings things together, where others are content to be expert with parts.

The bottom line is that with the intellectual tools Odum lets us discover, we can learn to manage far more complexity than any would normally think possible. He lets us first recognize the problems we have with the signals our society sends out through economic and other circumstances of social behavior. And then the tools he provides let us clean up those signals, so we may make better use of the energy and other resources, the environment, and all the benefits (and problems) inherent in our diverse cultures.

The difficulty in all this is indicated by the fact that there is no Nobel prize for looking at the whole of our world. Those fabulous awards go to those who are very good at knowing parts, with very little idea of how the parts come together.

Instead, there is the very quiet Crafoord Prize for those who try to let us know more about the systems of our world--which of course H.T. Odum and his brother Eugene won back in the early 1980s.