More from Less：The Surprising Story of How We Learned to Prosper Using Fewer Resources―and What Happens Next

FromthecoauthoroftheNewYorkTimesbestsellerTheSecondMachineAge,acompellingargument—masterfullyresearchedandbrilliantlyarticulated—thatwehaveatlastlearnedhowtoincreasehumanprosperitywhiletreadingmorelightlyonourplanet.Throughouthistory,theonlywayforhumanitytogrowwasbydegradingtheEarth:choppingdownforests,foulingtheairandwater,andendlesslydiggingoutresources.SincethefirstEarthDayin1970,thereigningargumenthasbeenthattakingbettercareoftheplanetmeansradicallychangingcourse:reducingourconsumption,tighteningourbelts,learningtoshareandreuse,restraininggrowth.Isthatargumentcorrect?Absolutelynot.InMorefromLess,McAfeearguesthattosolveourecologicalproblemswedon’tneedtomakeradicalchanges.Instead,weneedtodomoreofwhatwe’realreadydoing:growingtechnologicallysophisticatedmarket-basedeconomiesaroundtheworld.Howcanhepossiblymakethisclaim?Becauseoftheevidence.America—alarge,high-techcountrythataccountsforabout25%oftheglobaleconomy—isnowgenerallyusinglessofmostresourcesyearafteryear,evenasitseconomyandpopulationcontinuetogrow.What’smore,theUSispollutingtheairandwaterless,emittingfewergreenhousegases,andreplenishingendangeredanimalpopulations.And,asMcAfeeshows,Americaisnotalone.Othercountriesarealsotransformingthemselvesinfundamentalways.Whathasmadethisturnaboutpossible?Onething,primarily:thecollaborationbetweentechnologyandcapitalism,althoughgoodgovernanceandpublicawarenesshavealsobeencritical.McAfeedoeswarnofissuesthathaven’tbeensolved,likeglobalwarming,overfishing,andcommunitiesleftbehindascapitalismandtechprogressraceforward.Butoverall,MorefromLessisarevelatory,paradigm-shiftingaccountofhowwe’vestumbledintoanunexpectedlybetterbalancewithnature—onethatholdsoutthepromiseofmoreabundantandgreenercenturiesahead.