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| This Changes Everything | |
|---|---|
| Name | This Changes Everything |
| Author | Naomi Klein |
| Language | English |
| Country | Canada |
| Genre | Nonfiction |
| Publisher | Simon & Schuster |
| Pub date | 2014 |
| Pages | 576 |
| Isbn | 9781451697391 |
This Changes Everything is a 2014 nonfiction book by Canadian author Naomi Klein that links climate change to neoliberal policies and global capitalism. The work argues for systemic transformation, critiques market-based solutions, and calls for large-scale political mobilization drawing on movements associated with figures like Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and institutions such as Greenpeace and 350.org. Klein situates her thesis amid histories involving actors like The World Bank, International Monetary Fund, and events including the 2008 financial crisis and the Paris Agreement.
Klein wrote the book after earlier works including No Logo and The Shock Doctrine, engaging networks around organizations such as Extinction Rebellion, Sierra Club, and Friends of the Earth. The project was incubated through collaborations with activists from Idle No More, policymakers in offices of figures like Al Gore, and scholars affiliated with universities such as Harvard University and University of Toronto. Simon & Schuster published the book amid debates sparked by reports from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and policy discussions at forums like the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and summits including the COP21 meeting in Paris. The publication coincided with media coverage from outlets like The New York Times, The Guardian, and The Globe and Mail.
Klein claims that neoliberal policies promoted by institutions like World Trade Organization and Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development have entrenched fossil-fuel interests represented by corporations such as ExxonMobil, Royal Dutch Shell, and BP. She critiques market mechanisms advocated by proponents including Christiana Figueres and institutions like Goldman Sachs and contests carbon trading schemes with reference to initiatives from Chicago Climate Exchange and policies debated in the European Union. The book foregrounds social movements—citing campaigns from Black Lives Matter, Movement for Black Lives, and labor unions including United Steelworkers—as agents for structural change, and draws historical parallels to struggles involving figures like Martin Luther King Jr. and moments such as the New Deal era reforms under Franklin D. Roosevelt.
Klein advances the argument that solutions require public investments comparable to initiatives spearheaded by administrations like Franklin D. Roosevelt and policies championed by politicians such as Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren. She advocates for technological transitions referencing work by researchers at Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Stanford University while emphasizing place-based resistance led by Indigenous leaders connected to movements like Idle No More and legal frameworks such as rights affirmed by courts like the Supreme Court of Canada. The narrative engages economists including Joseph Stiglitz and Amartya Sen in debates over growth models and social welfare.
Critical response spanned outlets such as The New Yorker, The Washington Post, and The Economist. Supporters praised Klein’s synthesis of activism and scholarship, aligning her with organizers from 350.org and commentators like Naomi Oreskes. Critics from journals including National Review and voices linked to think tanks such as Cato Institute challenged her assessments of market solutions, carbon pricing endorsed by economists like William Nordhaus, and feasibility claims about rapid decarbonization. Academic reviewers at institutions like Oxford University and Columbia University debated her use of case studies involving companies like Chevron and events such as protests at Standing Rock Indian Reservation.
Legal scholars and environmental historians compared Klein’s prescriptions to policy models proposed by politicians including Jair Bolsonaro opponents and allies of Angela Merkel in European climate politics. Some commentators questioned empirical claims relating to infrastructure investments analogous to projects by U.S. Department of Transportation and public-works programs under administrations like Lyndon B. Johnson.
The book galvanized activists affiliated with coalitions such as Sunrise Movement and influenced platforms advanced by elected officials including members of Democratic Socialists of America and legislators in bodies like the Canadian Parliament. It informed curricula at universities including York University and McGill University, and shaped NGO strategies at groups like Rainforest Action Network and policy proposals discussed within European Parliament committees. Policymakers in municipal governments such as the City of Vancouver and City of New York cited its framing when articulating plans for green jobs and infrastructural transition.
Think tanks like IPPR and research centers including Rocky Mountain Institute engaged with the book’s claims, yielding conferences that brought together experts from Princeton University, Yale University, and University College London. Klein’s framing contributed to legal actions invoking precedents from cases adjudicated in tribunals like the International Court of Justice and domestic courts handling environmental litigation.
Klein’s book inspired a documentary film produced with collaborators connected to filmmakers who have worked with organizations such as Participant Media and festivals including Sundance Film Festival. Related media include podcasts featuring guests from The Intercept, interviews broadcast on networks like BBC Radio and NPR, and panel discussions at institutions such as Columbia University and London School of Economics. Adaptations extended into translated editions distributed by publishers with ties to markets in United Kingdom, France, and Brazil, and sparked companion works by authors including Bill McKibben and reports produced by coalitions linked to Friends of the Earth and research groups such as World Resources Institute.
Category:2014 books