Bill McKibben on the Power That Could Save the Planet

<p>The fight against climate change is at a crossroads.</p><p>This past year, the climate movement in the United States achieved significant success. The recently passed Inflation Reduction Act represents the single largest investment in emissions reduction in U.S. history. <a href="https://thehill.com/changing-america/sustainability/climate-change/3524659-a-look-at-state-efforts-to-combat-climate-change-in-2022-so-far/#:~:text=In%20Maryland%2C%20the%20state's%20legislature,goal%20in%20the%20United%20States." target="_blank">More than a dozen states</a> have taken some form of climate action in 2022 alone. Earlier this year, California — which, if it were a country, would have the fifth largest economy in the world — approved a record $54 billion in climate spending alongside sweeping new restrictions on fossil fuel development. These investments coincide with a wave of technological transformation: Over the past decade, the cost of solar energy has declined around 90 percent and that of onshore wind around 70 percent, making these energy sources economically competitive with fossil fuels for the first time.</p><p>“The new numbers turn the economic logic we’re used to upside down,” <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/essay/in-a-world-on-fire-stop-burning-things" target="_blank">writes</a> the climate activist and journalist Bill McKibben. To him, the import of this moment is clear: For the first time, McKibben argues, humanity has at our fingertips the tools needed to end humanity’s millenniums-long dependence on burning things for energy — and to save our climate in the process.</p><p>To those familiar with the climate movement, McKibben is a familiar name. His book “The End of Nature” has been compared to Rachel Carson’s “Silent Spring” in terms of its impact on the climate movement. He’s founded organizations like Third Act and 350.org, the latter of which is among the largest climate activist organizations in the world today. He was a key leader in the fight to block the Keystone XL pipeline. And he curre