This book, written by Lester Brown, prez of the nonprofit research org Earth Policy Institute, let me know that entire waterbodies in Cali’ve disappeared! Owens Lake, which covered 200 sq mi when the last century began, went kaput in the 1920s after its water got diverted to LA. LA also made Mono lake drop by 35 feet since 1941, when we started diverting of water from its tributaries.

Luckily, Plan B 2.0’s all about working toward solutions, as I found out in the later chapters. The book’s totally informative, and while it’s more ’bout conveying info than entertaining the reader, it’s a v. rewarding read. Plus, this Lester guy’s kinda eco-nerd cute; he notes quirky details, i.e. “On my bike I estimate that I get easily 7 miles (11 kilometers) per potato.”

I especially liked how Lester puts basic social goals — eradicating hunger and poverty, for ex — alongside environmental goals. Too often, people ignore the fact that the two go hand in hand.

Lester’s challenge to the reader at the end of the book: “Sit down and map out your own personal plan and timetable for what you want to do to move the world from a path headed toward economic decline to one of sustained economic progress.”

Damn. I’ll be doing that in the next week or so, and sharing them here — Maybe you’ll do the same?