Leon Gaillard

Towards a green economy: in search of sustainable energy policies for the future

pathway to survival. Simple improvements in planning and design cannot stave off the crises. According to Gleeson, ‘a time of stress and rationing is inevitable’ (p. 13). Cities are the problems but also the solutions, with the suburbs as the front lines. Dramatic changes in social and political course can transform the vulnerable cities into lifeboat cities which can, under the leadership of a ‘guardian state’ (p. 115), carry everyone through the hard, fearful path to safety, ‘until we see the land, until we have learned to see the Earth for what it is: our offended friend, but ultimately our best and necessary companion’ (p. 89). In the last part of the book, Gleeson concludes by sketching some speculations for the distant future*the new world where lifeboat cities have passed through the worst, where continued efforts are needed to build a new Australia with a compact social form and a reliable political dispensation focusing on care, resilience, solidarity, and a more harmonious relationship with the Earth. Despite a great deal of content addressing the current pessimistic situation of cities, the tone of the book as a whole is hopeful. Unlike in the film ‘2012’, where only the rich and the powerful board the arks, perhaps reflecting the absence of fairness in current neoliberal social milieu, Gleeson offers hope for everyone. It is possible to make the hope a reality only if people can awaken from the Promethean neoliberal dream, which substitutes nature with the market mechanism, and act immediately. Brendan Gleeson, a geographer active in the field of urban planning and governance, urban social policy and environment and policy, has authored, coauthored and co-edited several books. He is one of the most challenging thinkers on urban sustainability. Lifeboat cities introduces provocative thinking and observations. The intention of this book, as Gleeson states in his introduction, is that ‘it will bring a few ideas that I regard as compelling into wider public discussion’ (p. 10) and contribute to ‘the renewal of political culture and to the discovery of thoughtful purpose in Australia’ (p. 10). Lifeboat cities would be of particular interest to environment and politics researchers, planners and policy makers, academics and people involved in managing urban systems. Given that the topic concerns urban lives and our future, the book is worthy reading for everyone living in Australian cities, and for a wider international audience of readers who care about cities, justice and the future of our planet.