Riders on the Storm: The Climate Crisis and the Survival of Being

Description

*Longlisted for the Wainwright Prize 2021 for Writing on Global Conservation* Significant climate change means that massive social change is essential if much of the earth can remain habitable. What needs to happen will challenge our politics, our economics and our technical capacity. But above all these, it will be a challenge to our humanity. In this succinct and passionate new book, Alastair McIntosh examines both the science and the drivers in the human psyche that have allowed unfettered consumerism to threaten the planet. He argues for a radical shift in our consciousness at this stage in our evolution in order to build the capacity for resilience and regeneration that can make us riders on the storm.

Alastair McIntosh is an independent writer, broadcaster, speaker and activist who is involved in a wide range of contemporary issues, from land reform, globalization and nonviolence to psychology, spirituality and ecology.

'It's imaginative, profound, and a reminder that the British Isles still have their own stock of indigenous wisdom to draw on ... written with wit and self-awareness' * Earthbound Report * 'the book has made me think quite deeply about these critically important issues. What more could one want?' * ShinyNewBooks.co.uk * 'This should be the end of any Scottish complacency ... Alastair conveys a heartfelt case for doing whatever you can, without succumbing to burnout and toxic indispensability' -- David Coleman * Eco-Congregation Scotland * 'McIntosh is no ideologue, he ... manages to hold in balance an exploration of the profound depths of philosophy and spirituality, with well-argued support for consensus science' -- Kat Jones of COP26 Climate Fringe 'Offers a steady, gentle voices, counterbalancing the ones which shout denial and alarm in street protests or down our timelines...McIntosh moves into his stride as a liberation theologian, peace-maker, community activist and poet' * Sunday National * 'McIntosh sees climate change as a threat which can be met. It presents us with risk and also with opportunity. This is a very good book because it is balanced and positive. There is no despair here' * Scotsman * 'This is a comforting book, and a wise one: all the more welcome for its calm insistence on asserting the validity of such qualities in a world where apocalyptic scenes seem pervasive and 'tipping points' are often presented as resting on a hair trigger' * Bella Caledonia * 'It's a good moment to pause and consider the power and politics of climate change. Alastair McIntosh's book does just that ... beautifully written and provides the essential introduction to the historical and scientific background, grounded in a deep understanding of climate change in place' * Green World * 'Seriously up to date ...always independent-minded ... McIntosh pulls of the scandalous trick of combining the insights of science, academia, poetry and eclectic spirituality ... conveys a heartfelt urgency for doing whatever you can' * Reform Magazine * 'Ecologist Alastair McIntosh's latest work could not be more timely ... Riders on the Storm offers a profusion of ideas, written with insight, honesty and wit' * The Herald * 'If you are searching for a well-reasoned, thorough and balanced review of the climate crisis, with Scotland at its core but the future of the world at its heart, you will find it here' * Farming Scotland * 'Aims to speak with authority to world leaders and the winter public on the environmental crisis. It stands out from other writing on this subject firstly for the high level of scholarship McIntosh displays, as well as the breadth of his understanding' -- Jim Corrigall * Faith and Freedom Journal * '[McIntosh] is steeped in the scholarship but at his best on the intangibles ... The age of climate denialism is over: we are now in an era of displacement, dissociation and projection. This book is a great guide' -- Gerald Taylor Aitken * Resurgence * '[a] wonderfully wide-ranging and ultimately hopefilled book, drawing on psychology and spirituality, with a narrative of experiences in the Hebrides of resilience and the recovery of human values' -- David Atkinson * Church Times * 'Solid on the science yet dedicated to the human spirit' -- Professor Katharine Hayhoe, United Nations Champion of the Earth 'Alastair McIntosh is an ecospiritual activist of deep integrity' * Paradigm Explorer * 'Alastair McIntosh has established himself as the leading voice in the UK of 'spiritual activism'. His forte is bringing together social, political and scientific analysis with engaging narratives rooted in his Hebridean upbringing, and other life experiences... McIntosh takes us close to the very heart of Christian and ecclesial calling' * Modern Believing *