Tag Archive for: Jonathon Porritt

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Love, Anger and Betrayal | Jonathon Porritt

In his powerful account of a year spent talking to young Just Stop Oil protesters, the veteran campaigner Jonathon Porritt paints a deeply personal and urgent portrait of a new generation of climate activists. Weaving the broader origins and evolution of the protest movement with the intimate profiles and testimonials of young adults prepared to sacrifice their liberty for the cause, what emerges is a powerful narrative of compassion, inter-generational struggle and solidarity.

Highlighting how the media and our political systems have systematically misrepresented and marginalized activists, Porritt connects the struggle of young JSO activists with the historical legacy of movements like the Suffragettes, whose bravery and moral clarity was scorned by most of the country’s most powerful men, yet ultimately recognized as a catalyst for vital change. Framing Just Stop Oil’s activism as an act of love and deep empathy with future generations, Porritt’s book is a reminder that it is the young who continue to bear the emotional and political weight of challenging a status quo locked into environmental destructiveness —and that we owe them far more than we may ever know.

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Hope In Hell: A decade to confront the climate emergency | Jonathon Porritt

Hope in Hell Book Cover

 

The message in this book is one of hope. Porritt, and many other experts believe that this decade will be crucial if we are to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees C above pre-industrial levels. Porritt argues that there is reason to be hopeful because we already have the knowledge and solutions required to address climate change in ways that could halve global emissions by 2030.

The first part of Hope in Hell summarises the science behind the state we are in, who is responsible, and what the consequences might be if we do not act now. The second part explores the knowledge and technology already available to us that we could use to mitigate these consequences. The big solution Porritt proposes is a massive ramping up of the renewables sector.

In this book Porritt authoritatively summarises our current perilous state and suggests how it must be addressed right now, through technical solutions and political activism. He says, “I’ve come to the conclusion that we have no choice: without mass civil disobedience, at this very late stage, I cannot see any other way of avoiding that threat of runaway climate change.”