Green Dreams: Why Technology Can't Save the World

Description: Casting a critical eye over green technoutopianism, this book uses fascinating case studies to explode the dangerous myth that technology will 'save the world'.

Brief description: Imre Szeman is the inaugural Director of the Institute for Environment, Culture and Society and Professor of Human Geography at the University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada.

Review Quotes:

"In Green Dreams: Why Technology Can't Save the World, Mirrlees and Szeman precisely skewer the enticing lure of green techno-optimism-the false promise, often employed by politicians, that "green" technology will save us from impending climate chaos. Techno-optimism does not threaten the status quo of capitalism and economic growth. It is a false and dangerous promise. Thankfully, Green Dreams rejects techno-pessimism and the risk of despair. Truth telling is foundational to building a new and more radical hope. As this book underscores "Ignoring earthly limits is not optimism, but delusion."
The hope for the future lies in our ability to follow Green Dreams' nine new laws of nature. Optimism stems from the human spirit and Mother Earth herself. Everything is connected to everything else, as are we all." --Elizabeth May, Member of Parliament and Leader of the Green Party of Canada

"Can Elon Musk, Bill Gates and other big-tech Prometheans tackle the climate crisis on our behalf using technologies so clever they seem like magic? No, is the emphatic answer detailed in this absorbing and alarming book. Capitalism California-style is the root of our global problems, not the source of much-needed solutions. Wake up from your 'green dreams' is the urgent message of Mirrlees and Szeman." --Noel Castree, Professor of Geography, University of Manchester, UK, & Adjunct Professor, University of Technology Sydney, Australia

"The energy landscape is shifting beneath our feet. Solar and wind power are spreading, as are right-wing movements that defend fossil fuels, allied with tech elites who demand more energy. Green Dreams is an indispensable guide through this morass. At the root of the problem, argue Tanner Mirrlees and Imre Szeman, is our widespread faith in technology as the only hope for a better future. From Hollywood to liberal environmentalists, and from AI to China's green tech boom, Mirrlees and Szeman tell a dynamic story of how techno-optimism rose to power, turned green, and remains as strong as ever. Readers will find the tools to dislodge that false hope and bring better energy dreams to life." --Cara Daggett, author of Birth of Energy

"Why is every little territory of our lives colonised by devices? And why has technology invaded the planet, as the only force capable - so we are told - of keeping it liveable and getting global warming under control? In this pellucid and pithy essay, Tanner Mirrlees and Imre Szeman strip away the illusions around dead things supposed to be green - EVs, carbon capture, clouds, AI and much more - connect them to the far right and Hollywood, write the history of the cult and critique of modern tech and, most importantly, insist on shaking off this occupation. Only if living human beings rediscover their freedom to shape the world can it become less destructive. Essential reading for an age saturated with gadgets." --Andreas Malm, author of 'The Long Heat: Climate Politics When It's Too Late', with Wim Carton"