Troy Vettesse

Drew Pendergrass

To save our future we must re-wild the earth! Our fossil fuel-driven society has run out of time. Only by rapidly giving up our reliance on carbon can we pay down the debt of fossil capital and buy a liveable future without a mass extinction or global warming. In this visionary and incisive manifesto, environmental scholars Troy Vettese and Drew Pendergrass outline the structural, economic, and social changes de-carbonization will require. Drawing from detailed environmental modeling of our planet's many possible futures, Vettese and Pendergrass argue that we will need to give half of the earth's land, now used for agricultural and meat production, back to nature--rewilding half the earth. The only political program that can give us a livable half-earth, they argue, is socialism: a planned socialist society can constrict the destructive industries ravaging our world--fossil fuels, cars, aviation, meat, and real estate--while expanding renewable energy systems, organic agriculture, public transport, and health and education systems. Half-Earth Socialism argues that we can consciously and democratically direct human society's interaction with nature--and in fact, we must, if we want any kind of livable future on this planet.

A Manifesto to Save the Future

Half-Earth Socialism

Troy Vettese

A Plan to Save the Future from Extinction, Climate Change and Pandemics

A plan to save the earth and bring the good life to all In this thrilling and capacious book, Troy Vettese and Drew Pendergrass challenge the inertia of capitalism and the left alike and propose a radical plan to address climate disaster and guarantee the good life for all. Consumption in the Global North can’t continue unabated, and we must give up the idea that humans can fully control the Earth through technological “fixes” which only wreak further havoc. Rather than allow the forces of the free market to destroy the planet, we must strive for a post-capitalist society able to guarantee the good life the entire planet. This plan, which they call Half-Earth Socialism, means we must: • rewild half the Earth to absorb carbon emissions and restore biodiversity • pursue a rapid transition to renewable energy, paired with drastic cuts in consumption by the world’s wealthiest populations • enact global veganism to cut down on energy and land use • inaugurate worldwide socialist planning to efficiently and equitably manage production • welcome the participation of everyone—even you! Accompanied by a climate-modelling website inviting readers to design their own “half earth,” Vettese and Pendergrass offer us a visionary way forward—and our only hope for a future.

Drew Pendergrass

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