Consumerism & Global Climate Change

Summer is coming earlier every year, as global temperatures continue to rise. Ocean levels are rising, too, as polar ice caps melt away. Meanwhile, the U.S economic model, with its enormous dependance on fossil fuels, proliferates around the globe. Bill McKibben’s groundbreaking book, The End of Nature, brought global warming to public attention in 1988. But was anyone listening? U.S. emissions of carbon dioxide – the key culprit in the heating up of the Earth’s atmosphere – are higher than ever. So what are the connections between this planetary crisis and hyper-consumerism?

Recorded at the Newton Public Library.