Apocalypse Never: Why Environmental Alarmism Hurts Us All

Michael Shellenberger is the founder and president of Environmental Progress, “a hero of the environment” according to TIME magazine, the recipient of the 2008 “Green Book” award from the Science and Technology Research Center at Stevens Institute of Technology, and a invited expert reviewer of the IPCC assessment report.

For 20 years he has written articles on energy and the environment for leading publications around the world. Climate change is real—but it’s not the end of the world. And it’s not even the most serious environmental problem. Often the loudest people panicking about environmental issues are also inclined to oppose their obvious solutions.

Although media attention has focused on ecology for decades, many of us still don’t know the basic facts. Carbon dioxide emissions have peaked and in most developed countries they’ve been falling for more than ten years. Mortality from extreme weather events—even in poorer countries—has dropped by 80% over the last 40 years. And the risk of Earth’s atmosphere heating up to very high temperatures is becoming less likely due to slowed population growth and abundant natural gas. Michael Shellenberger has spent decades fighting to make our planet greener. He saved the last redwood trees in the world, became a co-author of the predecessor of today’s Green New Deal, and together with climate scientists and activists made enormous efforts to keep nuclear power plants running—efforts that helped prevent a sharp rise in harmful emissions.

When rumors spread in 2019 that “billions of people will die,” and panic seized the public, Michael decided that, as a seasoned environmental activist, a leading energy expert, and the father of a teenage daughter, he needed to contribute to separating science from fiction. The result of his research was the book “There Is No End of the World.” “Michael Shellenberger methodically dismantles the principles of apocalyptic thinking that are so widespread in environmental discourse. Covering everything from Amazon wildfires to plastic in the ocean, ‘There Is No End of the World’ offers readers data from modern science, clear arguments, a humane empathy-filled spirit—and powerful counterweights to the kind of runaway panic you might otherwise fall into. You may not agree with many things the book claims—so it’s all the more important to read it,” wrote Paul Robbins, dean of the Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies at the University of Wisconsin–Madison.

“In this journey through science journalism, Michael Shellenberger uses interviews, personal experience, and stories to show that environmental science offers a path from hysteria to humanism. This excellent book uncovers and explains the facts and forces behind deforestation, climate change, species loss, conservation, industrial agriculture, and other environmental problems—and shows how they can be solved,” said Mark Sagoff, author of “The Economy of the Earth.”

“Environmental problems are often muddled by conflicting and, for the most part, extreme viewpoints—on both sides fueled by ideological bias, ignorance of facts, and misconceptions. A balanced and refreshing book, Michael Shellenberger’s takes a deep look at a range of environmental issues and identifies situations that have been distorted by scientists and environmental organizations, highlighting biases caused by financial interests. All his conclusions are backed by examples, compelling arguments, facts, and original source documentation. ‘There Is No End of the World’ may be the most important environmental book ever written,” Tom Wigley, a climate scientist at the University of Adelaide, former senior scientist at the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR), and a research scientist at the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS).

“We must protect the planet. But how? Some environmental organizations are bogged down in sermons about sin and doom, and that position is counterproductive, anti-human, and not very scientific. Shellenberger argues for a more constructive approach to protecting the environment—one that will help solve the most frightening problems and shows what concrete actions we should take,” said Steven Pinker, the Johnstone Family Professor of Psychology at Harvard University and author of “Enlightenment Now.”