colin_cox's review
5.0
In the opening pages of Green Gone Wrong, Heather Rogers interrogates the efficacy of contemporary green markets when she writes, “The new naturalists don't reject the free market for its reckless degradation of the air, water, and soil as their forbearers did. Instead, they aspire to turn the forces of economic growth and development away from despoliation and toward regeneration. Couched in optimism that springs from avoiding conflict, the current approach asks why taking care of ecosystems must entail a Spartan doing without when saving the planet can be fun and relatively easy.” Rather than moving beyond capitalism to address what many agree is a clear and present ecological danger, progressive contemporary consumers turn to capitalist markets to fix this problem. In effect, they support a synthesis of ecological hand-wringing with the capitalist injunction toward profit and accumulation. The irony is unmistakably apparent. While the industrial revolution and the post-revolution markets that followed created the conditions for material prosperity for a vast number of people, they simultaneously engaged in ecologically destructive practices that ravished our planet while failing to recognize the unavoidable costs of those practices.
However, should we be so hard on them? Should they have known better? The latter of those questions obscures the single, guiding principle at the root of capitalism: accumulation. Capitalism is a system that is tricky to check, but the very notion of checking capitalism is anathema to how it functions. Therefore, it is deeply troubling to see contemporary environmentalists turn to capitalism instead of turning away from it (or moving beyond it). This dynamic is the question at the core of Rogers’ book whether she is writing about hybrid cars or perishable goods like food and coffee. How, for example, do Organic labels and Fair Trade seals “obscure ongoing destructive practices,” even as these “trust market” emblems seemingly confirm capitalism’s move toward morally-inclined practices? As these gestures suggest, accumulation is not capitalism’s only game; willful obscurantism is necessary as well, and that is what this eco-friendly turn within capitalism represents.
Rogers is quick to highlight how these problems are not the exclusive purview of capitalist markets; governments are in on the game as well. The HACCP (Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point), for example, “Introduces procedures that, when carried out well, could improve food safety,” but, “the regulations were shaped by and for industrial-scale processors to the detriment of their small-scale competitors.” While it is not unique to acknowledge that government regulations too often benefit large-scale capitalist markets, Rogers suggests that supporting robust government programs, as an anecdote to capitalism, also needs to include a thorough reevaluation of regulatory practices. For now, fixing ecological problems can only work if we fix the regulatory infrastructure that encourages a particular sort of market of a particular scale.
Near the conclusion of Green Gone Wrong, Rogers meditates on what she learned during her research: “What I learned is that the outcome of industrial organic, commodity biofuels, and CO2 offsetting isn’t authentic protection and stewardship of the environment. What’s transpiring is a tailoring of environmental crises so they can be dealt with in ways today’s economic and political structure deem least threatening to the status quo.” Rogers stresses the degree to which these capitalist injunctions continue to dominate the terms of discourse later in this chapter when she writes, “Even as big automakers mass-produce eco-friendly machines…technologies that are least profitable, whether they’re environmentally sound or not, will have to wait.” Once again, if we fail to reckon with the principles and impulses that underpin capitalism, then we will only see changes along the margins, if at all.
One Last Thing
Rogers' book is not a wholesale refutation of green initiatives. There are several thoughtful chapters about actions in Germany which aim to build better, more sustainable housing and community infrastructures. These chapters show what green initiatives can look like when executed effectively.
However, should we be so hard on them? Should they have known better? The latter of those questions obscures the single, guiding principle at the root of capitalism: accumulation. Capitalism is a system that is tricky to check, but the very notion of checking capitalism is anathema to how it functions. Therefore, it is deeply troubling to see contemporary environmentalists turn to capitalism instead of turning away from it (or moving beyond it). This dynamic is the question at the core of Rogers’ book whether she is writing about hybrid cars or perishable goods like food and coffee. How, for example, do Organic labels and Fair Trade seals “obscure ongoing destructive practices,” even as these “trust market” emblems seemingly confirm capitalism’s move toward morally-inclined practices? As these gestures suggest, accumulation is not capitalism’s only game; willful obscurantism is necessary as well, and that is what this eco-friendly turn within capitalism represents.
Rogers is quick to highlight how these problems are not the exclusive purview of capitalist markets; governments are in on the game as well. The HACCP (Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point), for example, “Introduces procedures that, when carried out well, could improve food safety,” but, “the regulations were shaped by and for industrial-scale processors to the detriment of their small-scale competitors.” While it is not unique to acknowledge that government regulations too often benefit large-scale capitalist markets, Rogers suggests that supporting robust government programs, as an anecdote to capitalism, also needs to include a thorough reevaluation of regulatory practices. For now, fixing ecological problems can only work if we fix the regulatory infrastructure that encourages a particular sort of market of a particular scale.
Near the conclusion of Green Gone Wrong, Rogers meditates on what she learned during her research: “What I learned is that the outcome of industrial organic, commodity biofuels, and CO2 offsetting isn’t authentic protection and stewardship of the environment. What’s transpiring is a tailoring of environmental crises so they can be dealt with in ways today’s economic and political structure deem least threatening to the status quo.” Rogers stresses the degree to which these capitalist injunctions continue to dominate the terms of discourse later in this chapter when she writes, “Even as big automakers mass-produce eco-friendly machines…technologies that are least profitable, whether they’re environmentally sound or not, will have to wait.” Once again, if we fail to reckon with the principles and impulses that underpin capitalism, then we will only see changes along the margins, if at all.
One Last Thing
Rogers' book is not a wholesale refutation of green initiatives. There are several thoughtful chapters about actions in Germany which aim to build better, more sustainable housing and community infrastructures. These chapters show what green initiatives can look like when executed effectively.
plumrain's review
4.0
A quick easy read that would be a good introduction to the idea and critiques of green capitalism. My favorite part was the middle section that discussed various sustainable living arrangements in Germany which were a nice example of alternatives to American car-based urban arrangements.
grubnubble's review against another edition
3.0
I felt like I took a journey through Heather Rogers’ writing career with this book! It was researched and written over several years and while it was originally published in 2010, much of what it presents is still relevant today. The first three parts of the book are dense and gave me the impression of a research paper you’d write in undergrad. At times tedious, with moments of personal touch, it is a great reference for organic food, biofuels, and green architecture. I initially wished that the Assessment portion had been sprinkled throughout the beginning parts, but then preferred it separate - Assessment and Notes on the Possible are much more personable and engaging. It’s just plain better quality writing.
If you can get a copy that was published after 2012, do it! The Afterword was my absolute favorite part. It had a distinctly different flavor from the rest of the book. It is easier to follow, it’s more down to earth, and it surprised me with the poignancy of the questions it posed.
Instead of trying to offer a vague solution as many books that point out the negative do, Rogers offers several takes on possible solutions, but points out the flaws in each, making the very wise statement that we are and will always be human and thus cannot produce a fully functional, perfect, fully fleshed out solution to the problem of our future — that is, the problem of capitalism. I think any good socialist will agree that this is the real cure. We as workers have to win power in order to make decisions first, and we will figure out the minute details once we get there.
If you can get a copy that was published after 2012, do it! The Afterword was my absolute favorite part. It had a distinctly different flavor from the rest of the book. It is easier to follow, it’s more down to earth, and it surprised me with the poignancy of the questions it posed.
Instead of trying to offer a vague solution as many books that point out the negative do, Rogers offers several takes on possible solutions, but points out the flaws in each, making the very wise statement that we are and will always be human and thus cannot produce a fully functional, perfect, fully fleshed out solution to the problem of our future — that is, the problem of capitalism. I think any good socialist will agree that this is the real cure. We as workers have to win power in order to make decisions first, and we will figure out the minute details once we get there.
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