[Vision2020] Brookings Press: Talbott's: "Fast Forward : Ethics and Politics in the Age of Global Warming"

[Ted Moffett]

http://www.brookings.edu/research/books/2011/fastforwardrevised
Fast Forward : Ethics and Politics in the Age of Global Warming,
Revised edition

*Fast Forward* is equal parts science primer, history lesson, policy
prescription, and ethical treatise. This pithy and compelling book makes
clear what we know and don't know about global warming; why the threat
demands prudent and urgent action; why the transition to a low-carbon
economy will be the most difficult political and economic transaction in
history; and how it requires nothing less than a revolution in our sense of
civic responsibility.

William Antholis <http://www.brookings.edu/experts/antholisw.aspx> and Strobe
Talbott <http://www.brookings.edu/experts/talbotts.aspx> guide the reader
through two decades of climate change politics and diplomacy, explaining
the national and international factors that have influenced and often
impeded domestic climate legislation and global negotiations. Recent United
Nations–sponsored summits have demonstrated that the world cannot wait for
a binding global treaty. Instead, the authors believe that the "Big Four"
of America, the European Union, China, and India must lead the way forward.
They recommend a new international mechanism modeled on the General
Agreement on Tariffs and Trade that would monitor national commitments and
create incentives for other countries to coordinate their efforts to cut
emissions.

Antholis and Talbott put their recommendations for legislative and
diplomatic action into the larger context of our obligation to future
generations, echoing a theme stressed by a diverse coalition of religious
leaders calling for ambitious action on climate change. The world we leave
to our children and grandchildren is not an abstraction, or even just a
legacy; we must think about what kind of world that will be in deciding how
we live—and act—today.

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Praise for *Fast Forward:* "William Antholis and Strobe Talbott brilliantly
explode the economic and scientific myths about climate change while
elevating the political debate to a transgenerational moral crisis. Their
synthesis of science, economics, religion, and philosophy is a clarion call
to action for anyone interested in the future of the planet—which means all
of us."—Andrea Mitchell, *NBC News*

"In their very timely and fast-paced account of where we are today on the
politics of global warming, the authors see Copenhagen as having pointed up
the futility of relying on the United Nations as the only vehicle through
which to tackle climate change."—Ed Luce, *Financial Times*

"Strobe Talbott and Bill Antholis have made an admirable and important
effort to move beyond the recent political rancor in Washington. They have
a plan for leaders who want to be serious about energy and
climate."—Senator Richard G. Lugar (R-Ill.)

"*Fast Forward* makes the case in clear, concise, and compelling terms for
urgent action and American leadership in addressing the threat that global
warming poses to our nation and our planet."—Senator Dianne Feinstein
(D-Calif.)

"Succinct and sweeping in scope, despite its brevity, this is the book for
briefing busy CEOs and prime ministers contemplating whether this 'climate
thing' is real and, if it is, how should we deal with it."—William K.
Reilly, former administrator, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

Book Excerpt: *Leaving a Good Legacy*

On May 12, senators John Kerry and Joe Lieberman introduced the American
Power Act. The proposed law — crafted with the help of Republican Senator
Lindsey Graham — brought together a number of elements proposed by
environmental groups and businesses to set the country on a new,
clean-energy path. As the bill is considered, Kerry and Lieberman will
focus on the need to create jobs after the Great Recession and to promote
alternatives to fossil fuels. Those who support the legislation will
generally play down a politically more complicated purpose: fighting global
warming.

Surprisingly, perhaps, it is Graham who has been most forceful in making
the case for effective steps to counter climate change. "I have been to
enough college campuses to know — if you are 30 or younger, this climate
issue is not a debate," he told New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman in
February. "It's a value ... From a Republican point of view, we should buy
into it and embrace it and not belittle them."

Graham is a tough partisan, and he was making a point about the future of
the GOP, which he thinks needs younger people in its ranks. Crucially, he
also believes that lowering the risk to the planet and the human race from
climate change qualifies as a conservative cause. His exhortation, if taken
to heart, could prompt Republicans and Democrats to compete for young,
environmentally conscious voters. At a time of partisan squabbling, that
would benefit us all.

Read More »<http://www.brookings.edu/opinions/2010/0607_global_warming_talbott_antholis.aspx>

Interview: Coauthor William Antholis discusses the book and the global
impact from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill on *ABC News World
View<http://www.abcnews.go.com/International/video/bp-oil-catastrophe-10859916>
*. Antholis answers the question, “Who is to Blame?”

Select Reviews: "Strobe Talbott and Bill Antholis–head and senior fellow
respectively of the Brookings Institution, and former stalwarts of the
Clinton administration–prefer to describe Copenhagen as a "useful
disappointment". In their very timely and fast-paced account of where we
are today on the politics of global warming, the authors see Copenhagen as
having pointed up the futility of relying on the United Nations as the only
vehicle through which to tackle climate change.

"Instead, they argue, the world’s most important powers, particularly the
US, China, India and the European Union, should supplement multilateralism
with "minilateralism", since the number of participants is inversely
related to the speed of what a process can deliver. But that still leaves a
lot of players. And the domestic politics have, if anything, become even
less favourable in Washington and Europe since last December.

"Indeed, as the authors observe, it was fashionable in the midst of last
February’s snowstorm in Washington for Republicans to make jokes about the
onset of global warming. Jim DeMint, a famously sceptical senator from
South Carolina, even built an impromptu igloo on Capitol Hill to highlight
the punchline."

Read the complete review at FT.com
»<http://www.ft.com/cms/s/2/68f3a9c0-6115-11df-9bf0-00144feab49a.html>
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Vision2020 Post: Ted Moffett
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