Introduction:
Hot, Flat and Crowded: The book was released in July 2008 by Farrar, Straus and Giroux. It discusses about the effect of globalization, industrialization and the increasing population on the natural resources and the world economies. The authors discusses in depth some of the important issues of today related to the energy shortage, the food shortage, the global warming and the impact of rise of Indian and China as manufacturing and outsourcing hubs. Enthusiast
Author: Thomas Lauren Friedman is an American journalist and a columnist with the New York Times. He has authored many books and articles in Global Trade, the Middle East, The Environment issues and global energy challenges. He is a winner of some important international awards for writing including the Pulitzer Prize for his International reporting and his Commentary on Global issues.
Content:
The book is divided into five parts which discuss in sequence the present state of affairs, the reasons for the present problems, how we can move forward and what China and America must do to move forward
Where we are?
This part discusses about the state of affairs between the US and the world post 9/11. This created barriers between itself and other countries in the world after the attacks. This lead to isolation of the US on some fronts as well. When the US became over protective and started taking too many precautions, it started losing friends, the visits of foreign people t US also decreased. The Americans started looking with suspicions at the Muslim World and people with certain type of appearance and names. The people of these countries also in turn started suspecting the Americans of their motives.
This is compounded by the fact that the countries in this world are so much interrelated to each other than they were in the past. The consumption of fossil fuels by America makes it even more dependent on the OPEC countries. The Big Three auto companies in the US have been supplying fuel guzzling cars and SUVs to the American population. These auto companies have been very aggressive in defeating any attempts to improve the mileage of the SUVs. They even went to the extent of making sure that the law states that the SUVs are small trucks and not cars. This nexus of politicians and car manufacturers had created a huge demand of fossil fuels in America and given the OPEC countries a leverage point.
The ever increasing oil demand has been increased by the industrialization of India and China. The sudden increase in the industries in these countries created a huge demand for energy and fossil fuels. An industry like the Oils producing industry takes time to adjust to demand shocks. The biggest hindrance is the availability of heavy machinery for oil extraction. The expansion in the oil drilling capacity has to be planned well in advance and it was unable to meet the sudden demand by India and China. Also, there is shortage of skilled personnel for such operations. Once the oil producing countries were unable to meet the increased demand, the oil prices started rising so much so that they raised to 160$ a barrel. A rise in oil prices always impacts other sectors as well. Industrial produce, aviation and transport industry which depends heavily on oil also got affected. Russia on the other hand rose to prominence due to the high oil demand and prices. The dependence of countries on Russia increased substantially. This gave Russia political power in the world affairs as well. Almost every year Russia flexes its muscles in the winters when the energy demand for eastern European country is at its peak.
Some countries like Denmark explored other options for their energy requirements and were successful in reducing their dependence on the oil producing countries. Denmark has not only been successful to meet its own energy demand but also is a big supplier of wind turbine to other countries.
How we got here?
The entire developing world and the underdeveloped countries want to emulate America. They have seen America prosper on the basis of the industrial manufacturing and big business setups. Now when India, China, Middle east has started to rise, they have started to invest huge amounts in their infrastructure. Indians and Chinese want to be there where America already is. They are taking the same path to progress. This path is heavily dependent on the high consumption of fossil fuels and other natural resources.
The availability of cheap labour and natural resources in Indian and China and other such countries has prompted America and other developed countries to shift their production bases to these countries. For the manufacturing and other related industrial activities, these countries are investing in infrastructure. The huge industrial setups coming in these countries has increase the carbon output of these countries. Thus, they are doing a great harm to the environment as well.
In a clear demographic shift, lakhs of people are shifting from rural areas to urban cities in India and China. This is putting more pressure on the resources available in these cities. Thus the already stretched resources are being stretched more.
If the whole of the developing and the under developed world catches up with the America, it will put a huge pressure on the environment and natural resources. The Fossil fuels prices will skyrocket and ay finish earlier than expected.
Already the fuel prices are very high and this has made the income of the OPEC countries to surge. The result is that we have a set of super rich countries and kingdoms which are thriving only on the oil production and sale. This has created an imbalance in the wealth of these nations. Here too much money is concentrated in the hands of too few people. The Middle East countries have huge piles of cash (trillions of dollars) lying idle. The oil has increased the purchasing power of these countries by leaps and bounds.
How we move forward?
The industrial activities, the lifestyle of the people and some irrational use of natural resources by people have done a good deal of harm to the earth. The good part is that people have come to realise that the earth is in danger. The bad part is that most of the people don’t not even still know what to do to save earth. Some are not even willing to change their ways to make amends to the damage done to the natural environment. Some countries and companies have started manufacturing flex-fuel cars. This means that these cars can use the ethanol mix gasoline. In some countries, the proportion of ethanol is as high as 50%. This has reduced the dependence on fossil fuels as well as has increased the growth of plants to manufacture ethanol and in turn get huge government subsidies. This has again caused the imbalance of crops in some parts of the world.
The rate at which the world is producing carbon from the use of fossil fuels, by the mid century, the production of carbon will reach 200 Billion tonnes. The simplest way to reduce the reliance on fossil fuels is the use of solar energy. This form of energy is abundant and affordable.
The US spends 0.15% of the total revenues on R and D in the Electrical utilities sector whereas it spends 8-10 percent on an average for other industries. If the amount spent on the RnD to be increased, the inventors could increase the efficiency of the electrical appliances. This will help us to meet the ever increasing demand of energy and decrease our reliance on oil.
The rise in the prices of oil has increased the demand for Prius (the hybrid vehicle from Toyota). So much so that Toyota has planned three plants to produce Prius in the U.S.
The talk for Green Energy or Clean Energy is gaining momentum. Some even say it is at its peak. But, consider this: In the year 2007, the total venture capital money was less than % 5 Billion. In the dot-com boom in 2000, the total VC money was more than $ 80 Billion. If similar money is pumped into clean energy, it will become a bigger and more important sector than the IT.
The author is happy that the high prices of oil have made people to explore the opportunities for alternate energy. The rooftops of factories and households can be sites for putting solar panels for generating electricity. The consumers can have their own energy generation. This might not be able to meet 100% demand but still will help in deducing the dependence on electricity and fuels.
China:
The author starts the part on China by saying that the Chinese people have started speaking more fluently and breathing with more difficulty. This is because though China has increased its exposure to the world, it has also made a huge impact on its environment due to the ruthless set up of industries. The biggest problem in China is the sheer size and scale. Identifying the problem is one part of the story. Setting it right is another. The major task at hand for the Chinese leadership is to pave way for green energy. As China progresses, it creates a huge demand of electricity. Approximately one third of the electricity in China is used in Air Conditioning. If China is able to somehow make progress in having clean and green energy for its Air Conditioning needs, it will be a breather to the energy needs. As a first step, China has ordered its provincial Governments to replace 50 million traditional incandescent lamps with heavily subsidized energy efficient lights. There is a plan of replacing 150 million bulbs over the next 5 years. This will not only reduce the demand for electricity but also reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 60 M tonnes.
Thus, given the size and scale of industries and households in China, it is very important to achieve energy efficiency in China.
America:
The biggest problem with America is its huge dependence on oil for transportation. This is compounded by the use of fuel guzzling SUVs. Americans have a fad for big cars and SUVs. This was fuelled by the Big Three auto makers who supplied the public with ever bigger cars and engines. One thing that US has to focus on is to build fuel efficient cars. This will reduce the fuel consumption in US. Also, it will reduce the dependence of US on the oil producing countries. Now, some of the states like California have started to pursue steps for clean energy. At this moment, the amount of money going into research for clean fuels is a fraction of what is required. If there is an increase in the money allocation, there can be huge strides in the energy saving efforts. The VCs also do not invest much in the green energy sector as the returns are not immediate. Once it gets started up and people get to see the returns, they start investing in it. For example, due to California’s renewable energy drive, many people have started investing in wind power. The wind power is easier to set up and gives immediate returns.
Conclusion:
In the conclusion, I would agree with the author that the world, is getting, flat, crowded and hot. All the countries now have access to same kind of technology and resources. Every country aspires to be America. In the race for becoming America, these developing countries are doing a major harm to the environment. The interdependence of the countries has increased to a great extent. This is also made complicated by the fact that most of these developing countries are heavily dependent on oil for their energy needs. Any change in the oil prices affects these countries to a great extent. As we progress, the world will get more and more hot, more and more crowded and more and more flat. It’s never too late to start. The world community has to step up its efforts to reduce the dependence on fossil fuels. Also, the world is getting smaller and smaller. cCountries have to collaborate with one another in anything they have to do,The world leaders have to come together to take some firm steps in the direction to make this world a better place to live.
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