The conservation imperative: energy limits to growth and the path to sustainability – part II

By Richard Heinberg, originally published by Museletter / Global Public Media

February 24, 2009

This content is no longer available. It was a pre-publication draft of a section of “Energy Limits to Growth,” a report that will be published in expanded form by Post Carbon Institute and International Forum on globalization in May.

Richard Heinberg

Richard passed away unexpectedly in July 2026. Read this rememberance by Asher Miller.

Richard Heinberg was regarded as one of the world’s foremost advocates for a shift away from our current reliance on fossil fuels. He was the author of fourteen books, including some of the seminal works on society’s current energy and environmental sustainability crisis. Richard was Senior Fellow of Post Carbon Institute for nearly twenty years.

Richard authored hundreds of essays and articles that have appeared in such journals as Nature and The Wall Street Journal; delivered hundreds of lectures on energy and climate issues to audiences on six continents; and was quoted and interviewed countless times for print, television, and radio. His monthly MuseLetter was published for 400 consecutive months starting in 1992, and was included in Utne Magazine’s annual list of Best Alternative Newsletters.

Full bio at postcarbon.org.

Tags: Biofuels, Biomass, Coal, Consumption & Demand, Electricity, Energy Policy, Fossil Fuels, Geothermal, Hydropower, Industry, Marine Energy, Natural Gas, Nuclear, Oil, Photovoltaic, Renewable Energy, Shale Oil, Solar Energy, Solar Thermal, Tar Sands, Tidal Energy, Wave Energy, Wind Energy

gratitude

Gratitude in the Great Unraveling

By Richard Heinberg, Resilience.org

If collective survival is possible, there will be a lot of work ahead. We’ll be more effective in that work if we’re unburdened by hate and recrimination, and are instead rooted in gratitude for life, nature, and community.

July 31, 2026

What Donald Trump’s view of public lands reveals about his environmental agenda

By Jim Pattiz, More Than Just Parks

A man who sees a forest as an unswept floor, who calls coal “beautiful,” who believes offshore wind is driving whales insane and making foxes obese, isn’t just someone with unusual opinions about nature. He’s someone who doesn’t understand the natural world on a fundamental level and doesn’t care to.

July 30, 2026

French climate lawsuit offers a window into the next round of the global legal fight

By Aminta Ossom, The Conversation

In the TotalEnergies case, the company acknowledged that its own activities result in emissions that pose risks to the environment.

July 29, 2026