The SQUEEZE: There are many crises facing humanity today. From global warming and environmental destruction to political destabilization and economic breakdown, these problems are daunting to say the least. But where there is a problem, there is an answer. Jeffery D. Sach’s Common Wealth: Economics for a Crowded Planet provides a solution to today’s challenges, suggesting that we already have the tools and resources at our disposal. Sachs examines economic data, demographic trends, and the current climate. Sachs recommends low-cost remedies such as allocating current Pentagon spending to fund anti-malaria programming in Africa. This is just one of many suggestions Sachs offers as a unilateral, militarized approach to multiple international problems. Sach’s Common Wealth is an important contribution to the current debate on solutions that promote peace and prosperity for a growing population.

Notable Endorsement: "Lucid, quietly urgent, and relentlessly logical... this is Bigthink with a capital B." -The New York Times Book Review

Common Q’s Answered by this Book:

• What are examples of national challenges that are creating a global economic breakdown?
• How has political destabilization affected the current climate?
• What low-cost remedies are central for promoting peace in developing and undeveloped nations?

About the Author: Jeffrey D. Sachs is an American economist. Sachs is the director of The Earth Institute at Columbia University. Sachs is one of the youngest economics professors at Harvard University, becoming known as an adviser to Eastern European and other developing country governments during the transition from communism to a market-based system. Sachs is currently known for his work on economic development, environmental sustainability, debt cancellation, poverty alleviation, and globalization. Sachs is currently a professor of sustainable development at Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs. Sachs is also a professor of health policy and management at Columbia’s School of Public Health. Sachs completed studies at Harvard University. For more information, visit: http://www.earth.columbia.edu/articles/view/1770.

Book Vitals:

Publisher: Penguin Books (February 2009)