Synopses & Reviews
Ever since quitting her job teaching pediatrics at Harvard Medical School in 1980, Helen Caldicott has worked tirelessly for a safe, sustainable, nuclear-free planet, most recently by hosting a weekly radio show featuring environmentalists and leading activists from around the globe.
Together with some of the most brilliant thinkers and inspiring advocates of our time, Caldicott—whom Meryl Streep has called “my inspiration to speak out”—scrutinizes our unsustainable dependence on nuclear energy; explores how the United States could transition to renewable energy; and raises awareness about a host of other planetary issues, from deforestation and sea-level rise to nuclear arms and the potential health effects of cell phone radiation. Extending well beyond the scope of conventional environmental discussions, these stirring conversations give us Martin Sheen on grassroots movements and unionized labor; Chris Hedges on the costs of standing up for your morals; and award-winning actress Lily Tomlin on contemporary politics, in a sarcastic and witty exchange that is at once hilarious and inspiring.
Loving This Planet offers an accessible overview of the chief environmental and social issues of our time and includes captivating interviews with twenty-five contributors, including Maude Barlow, Bill McKibben, Jonathan Schell, Daniel Ellsberg, and Bob Herbert, among others.
Review
"The book is a treasure trove of anecdotes featuring high-profile politicians, academics, and celebrities, including Martin Sheen, Lily Tomlin, Bob Herbert, and Lester Brown. . . .Alongside the celebrity sightings runs the thread of a growing urgency to change our energy, environmental, and military policies in the United States and on a global scale. Surprising statistics about nuclear waste storage, rising sea levels, and military spending serve as an alarm, but Caldicott and her collaborators also offer many innovative solutions."
Publishers Weekly
Without fail, Caldicott asks thoughtful, deeply nuanced questions, and her subjects respond with intense and often personal reflections on many important issues. With a level of intellectual discussion all too absent in our national discourse, this is a worthy collection that educates with each turn of the page.”
Booklist
Synopsis
Ever since quitting her job as a pediatrician at Harvard Medical School in 1980, Helen Caldicott has worked for a safe, sustainable, nuclear-free planet, most recently by hosting a weekly radio show featuring environmentalists and leading activists from around the globe.
Together with guests including Naomi Klein, Daniel Ellsberg, Maude Barlow, Lester Brown, and Martin Sheen, Caldicott, whom Meryl Streep has called my inspiration to speak out,” scrutinizes our unsustainable dependence on nuclear energy and the absurdity of nuclear arms, as well as raising awareness about other planetary issues, including deforestation, sea level rise, and privatization of water reserves. We learn from Miriam Pemberton that the United States spends more money per year on military bands than on its entire diplomatic corps, and we learn from Janette Sherman that the IAEA and WHO have drastically underestimated the number of deaths caused by the 1986 Chernobyl fallout, and that its true number comes close to one million people.
Loving This Planet collects the key interviews from Caldicotts popular radio show for the first time and offers an informative and accessible overview of the chief environmental issues critical to our well-being.
About the Author
Lannan Award winner Dr. Helen Caldicott is a co-founder of Physicians for Social Responsibility and was named one of the most influential women of the twentieth century by the Smithsonian Institute. She is the author of numerous books, including Nuclear Power Is Not the Answer (The New Press). She lives in Australia.