THIS IS OUR HOME

Romer presents a game plan for an environmentally sustainable future in this nonfiction work.

The author, an operating partner in a private equity firm focused on environmental, social, and governance issues, uses an autobiographical lens to flesh out a practical vision of sustainability intended to lead humanity into a more environmentally healthy future. Romer reflects on his boyhood in Nassau, New York and grounds much of his book in his experiences working his property on Nassau Lake. He describes his personal conflict of promoting environmental responsibility while also running the family business manufacturing plastic products (“To survive financially, I might have to sacrifice the preservation of the environment,” he writes. “To play my part in preserving the planet, I might have to sacrifice our company”). From these stories about his background and life with his family (including his wife and their three sons) in Nassau, Romer builds a model of sustainability around what he calls an “aspirational zero waste” ethos, a “circular economy” that aims to eliminate as much waste as possible. “Pollution is a disease with no cure,” Romer writes, “it can only be prevented.” He details methods of prevention including recycling, composting, reusing, and rethinking landfills; his discussion of these practices is a very winning combination of idealism and hard facts (“The time–CO2 emissions graph looks like an ever-rising Olympic ski jump hill. We are presently at the top, but looking up instead of down”). He’s especially convincing about recycling, explaining that it must meet three criteria: efficient collection, efficient processing, and “viable end markets.” The author’s decision to ground so much of his book in autobiography can occasionally lead to tediously predictable passages (“we kids filled our days with stick ball, football, swimming, wiffle ball”), but the idealism easily wins out. When Romer writes, “Knowledge provides personal power. Applying it empowers others,” similarly idealistic readers will be inspired.

A pragmatic but genuinely uplifting guide to greater sustainability.