Description
A global clean-energy race has emerged with astounding speed. The ability to operate without fossil fuels will define winners and losers in business―and among nations.
In Reinventing Fire, Amory Lovins and Rocky Mountain Institute offer a new vision to revitalize business models, end-run Washington gridlock, and win the clean-energy race―not forced by public policy but led by business for enduring profit. This groundbreaking roadmap reveals market-based solutions across the transportation, building, industry, and electricity sectors. It highlights pathways and competitive strategies for a 158%-bigger 2050 U.S. economy that needs no oil, no coal, no nuclear energy, one-third less natural gas, and no new inventions.
This transition would cost $5 trillion less than business-as-usual―without counting fossil fuels’ huge hidden costs. It requires no new federal taxes, subsidies, mandates, or laws. The policy innovations needed to unlock and speed it need no Act of Congress.
Whether you care most about profits and jobs, national security, health, or environmental stewardship, Reinventing Fire charts a pragmatic course that makes sense and makes money. With clarity and mastery, Lovins and RMI point out the astounding opportunities for enterprises to create the new energy era.
Drawing praise from President Bill Clinton, former National Security Advisor Robert McFarlane, and a host of others, Reinventing Fire has piqued the interest of world leaders, business leaders, and political strategists.
Mem –
The book is like brand new. I have no complaints about the quality of service. As for the subject matter, very good as well. It doesn’t read like a typical dry textbook. Yet it is still factual and informative.
Actual Customer –
Enjoyed this book as it speaks directly to self-imposed limitations and how to overcome them. Worth reading.
W. Sawyer –
For those of us who have followed Amory Lovins career, this book should be the overview of years of research on the shift to a sustainable society. It is partly that, but also a long-winded pep-talk that the transition is immenently possible in the constraints of our for-profit economic system. The book’s centerpiece is the vision at the beginning of Chapter 6 of society in 2050 in which cars are vastly lighter and more efficient, though even more peppy and fun, production processes are close to their theoretical efficiency limits thanks to innovation, food is locally grown, people live much closer to their work, the electrical grid is decentralized and more reliable, and so on, all because it costs less this way than the world we live in today. Lovely, but everyone reading the book who is aware of Amory Lovins’ 40-year career on promoting these ideas can and should ask, if it is vision is realistica, why has it not happened?The answer is not necessarily found in the book. While it abounds with success stories of people making money off of increased efficiency through introduction of currently available technologies, integrative design of buildings, rethinking of transport, and decentralization of the power grid, one cannot avoid the suspicion that these are but exceptions to the rule of our resource- and energy-intensive society. Of course, real evidence of a genuine transition can be found in some of the ~800 citations, particularly those pointing to RMI publications over the years. Thus, the reader who looks for objective view should consider this book as a starting point for extensive reading of informative (but admittedly dry) scientific articles.Lovins owes us a more introspective analysis on why this transition has not been a no-brainer and is not now in full swing. The authors have intersperse comments about this, as well as a section on “Barriers to Reinventing Fire”. Rightly so, but they would better serve their cause by writing a chapter, or better yet a full book, on these counteracting these hurdles. Consider some simple questions: o Of course there is intense passive and active resistance by actors with vested interests. How do humankind build up a critical mass of endorsement of the vision which overcomes it? o Naturally businessmen and politicians take the short-term view for quarterly profits or the next election. How to we redirect our society to demand long-term profits and leadership? o Currently, China spends about 6.5% of GDP on combatting the effects of pollution on public health (source: Rand Corporation). And despite this it is difficult for leaders to quantify the benefits of better health and education. How do we give value to these ‘intangibles’? o Many, many people would like to believe the vision, in particular the idea that the same or better quality of life can be far less damaging to the environment. But we today we are faced with consumer choices which are still carbon-intensive. How on earth is it possible to acquire more efficient options, while still enjoying the same level of mobility, life quality, and recreation, without somehow introducting a carbon tax? o And many of those people would like to join this efficiency revolution — which requires expertise across the spectrum — but we are constrained by simple realities of having to provide for your families. Where are the jobs in this multi-trillion dollar economy?”Reinventing Fire” is still a good compendium of years of research by the RMI, and makes valid arguments that there can be viable business solutions for a energy-frugal society. While the authors make it plausible, they are not still are not able to paint the path to overcome our own inertia.
Amazon Customer –
Arrived on time/AOK
Jason Forauer –
Great book. I am using it for a class.
Bill Henderson Jr. –
The book is not perfect, but its scale and the amount of work that went into it is incredible. There are over 750 references and the bibliography represents a lifetime of energy reading and research.The book provides an optimist’s vision of American and global energy generation and energy efficiency strategies leading to an ideal mix by 2050. Lovins lays out the big picture of how this is possible, economically advantageous, and even probable. Best of all, Lovins stays apolitical – my favorite quote is “we just need to stop insisting that others embrace our differing why and together get on with doing the shared what.” He stays positive throughout and insists that reducing CO2 emissions (through efficiency and smarter fuels/grids) and increasing the use of renewables is good business for America and the developing world. I hope he’s right.Lovins picks winners though, he clearly is not a believer in nuclear power’s usefulness and lays out a compelling case for his position. He also incorporates biofuels into his vision without making a solid case for how. Lovins also takes some creative liberties in applying the costs of hidden subsidies to fossil fuels – suggesting that the entire bill for CENTCOM and all conflicts in the Middle East should be added to the price of oil.The book is sometimes hard to follow with sidebars and graphics interrupting the flow. There’s also a fair amount of redundancy – some of the graphics make multiple appearances and Lovins tend to drive an idea home by repeating it over and over again. I found myself zoning out and having to repeat sections often.Overall it’s an incredible book, I would recommend it to anyone interested in the future of energy.
Kindle Customer Joel Gordes –
I have been a huge fan of Amory Lovins for decades going back to about 1976 (The Road Less Traveled) and his all time best book pertaining to energy security (with L. Hunter Lovins) Brittle Power in 1982. Reinventing Fire takes up where Brittle Power and some other works left off and presents four scenarios for consideration of just where we ought/need to go and, maybe more importantly, how we get there and where “there” will be.At the same time, it does present a bit of confusion on keeping the scenarios straight as parts of them can conflict with each other and even with the basic tenets of Brittle Power. On the one hand, harnessing large wind farms, on shore or offshore, can be very advantageous BUT on the other hand long runs of transmission are not only very expensive (and the money might be used for more local renewable generation) but if they go hundred if not thousands of miles, they are prone to not just some line losses (even using HVDC) but also any number of threats which would leave those on the distant receiving end possibly in a dire circumstances. How do we reconcile this?I do not have a good answer but Amory has always been the chief advocate for distributed power systems BUT in Reinventing Fire, some of the scenarios makes a case for this large offshore wind to supply a significant portion of load. This seems in conflict with his distributed generation position requiring short links. Additionally, in other portions of the book, he also advocates SmartGrid technology which makes lightning fast decisions without user input. Many in the cybersecurity realm would voice objection to more SmartGrid as it would increase vulnerabilities by expanding the attack surfaces. All his previous works talk about eliminating cascading failures by maintaining a high degree of user controllability. These need to be reconciled. Granted we do not live in a perfect world where all requirements for secure systems can be economically realized but more thought needs to be put into the more near term cyber threats and not just into the totally game changing climate threats. STILL, this is a book totally worth reading and in the future I look forward to one that adds additional scenarios.
Amazon Customer –
Excellent reference for energy efficiency
Bill Nussey –
Reinventing Fire is the definitive vision on clean energy, efficiency and the future of transportation. Amory Lovins is like the MacGyver of sustainability – he sees the same set of current technologies and policies as everyone else but he is somehow able to reassemble them in brilliant new ways that address the problems other see as intractable. While not every one of his ideas may will survive the test of time, the most important contribution of Reinventing Fire is the concept of Integrative Design – looking beyond the individual components of technology and policy and thinking about solutions across the entire system. Lovins teaches the reader to think about the entire solution rather than just the individual parts.
Travel Fan –
When humanity is ready to give up fossil fuels, this will be the blueprint on how to do it. We should have implemented this already, but vested interests not rushing to the new energy economy. Brilliantly charted. Should be required reading at all levels of schooling, policy, business and leadership. We will look back someday and say why did this take so long?
Bart Stuck –
incredibly deep and broad and cogent!
Buzz –
Should be a MUST READ for every high school and college student – whether focused on STEM or political science.
Howard S –
This book is a brilliant analysis of what it will take to harness economic power to drive social change and animate the life force that wants humanity to change our ways before we make our ecosystems inhospitable and even uninhabitable. The stakes have never been higher and this book elucidates clearly what it will take to survive this era.
Dean –
I was reluctant to order the Kindle edition as a reviewer had suggested is was “unreadable”. That problem apparently has been solved as of December 2015. It reads perfectly on my standard Kindle. The sidebars have a colored background. It’s easily legible, at standard or slightly larger type fonts and with a black, sepia or white background. This is a very large book, the kindle edition makes a great deal of practical sense and is a bargain. Do NOT, repeat, do NOT hesitate to purchase the kindle edition. As far as the content goes…Dr. Lovins has the sharpest critical analysis of this issue, the central one affecting our planet, completely data based, exhaustively researched, and his message is simple. Politics won’t solve our problem, capitalism just might. Put a profit margin in the problem and stand back, engineers and businessmen from around the world will attack it without mercy, and the winners will make a fortune.
ronnieB Idaho Bitcoin Group –
OMG!! I loved this book. When you read this book you immediately go from pessimistic to optimistic. It makes you just pine for the future. Amory Lovins is truly a pioneer!! After reading this book I wanted to go out and build an entire community around passive solar design and jump into the hydrogen economy.
Lawrence Baldwin –
Amory Lovins and the Rocky Mountain Institute are attempting to change the world. Many of us recognize global climate change as the greatest threat humanity faces, but feel powerless to do anything about it. Their approach is to point corporations and government organizations to ways in which it is in their economic interest to intensely lower their use of carbon-based fuels, even ignoring the benefits providing by carbon reduction.This book is well-written, well-designed, fascinating, and I consider it a must-read. You will come away from reading it educated, astonished, fascinated, and motivated. I certainly did.
Anthony A. –
This book contains the critical paths that we need to take as a culture to save the planet that we live on for ourselves and our future generations. It is well written, has wonderful supporting documentation and is a must read.
Mr. Draper –
Love this book! So amazing. Wish all businesses were forced to follow this map.
Ken –
Once you pick up this book you will be hard pressed to put it down until you have finished it.
Rondo –
This book is loaded with detailed info and insights. Side notes are in highlighted areas. The section on cars also discusses other factors, like need for better urban planning. I think more of our politicians should read this instead of blogs.