Skip to main content
PBS logo
 
 

Search - List of Books by Lester R. Brown

Lester Russel Brown (born March 28, 1934 in Bridgeton, New Jersey) is an American environmentalist, founder of the Worldwatch Institute, and founder and president of the Earth Policy Institute, a nonprofit research organization based in Washington, D.C. BBC Radio commentator Peter Day calls him "one of the great pioneer environmentalists."

Brown is the author or co-author of over 50 books on global environmental issues and his works have been translated into more than forty languages. His most recent book is Plan B 4.0: Mobilizing to Save Civilization. Klaus Schwab of the World Economic Forum describes it as "a great book which should wake up humankind." Brown summarized many of the major issues confronting civilization in the May, 2009 issue of Scientific American, stressing that "the biggest threat to global stability is the potential for food crises in poor countries," and one that could "bring down civilization."

The recipient of 26 honorary degrees and a MacArthur Fellowship, Brown has been described by the Washington Post as "one of the world's most influential thinkers." As early as 1978, in his book The Twenty-Ninth Day, he was already warning of "the various dangers arising out of our manhandling of nature...by overfishing the oceans, stripping the forests, turning land into desert." In 1986, the Library of Congress requested his personal papers noting that his writings “have already strongly affected thinking about problems of world population and resources.”

In the mid-1970s, Brown helped pioneer the concept of sustainable development, during a career that started with farming. Since then, he has been the recipient of many prizes and awards, including, the 1987 United Nations Environment Prize, the 1989 World Wide Fund for Nature Gold Medal, and the 1994 Blue Planet Prize for his "contributions to solving global environmental problems." In 1995, Marquis Who's Who selected Brown as one of its "50 Great Americans." He was recently awarded the Presidential Medal of Italy and was appointed an honorary professor at the Chinese Academy of Sciences. He lives in Washington, D.C.

Early Life   more

Education   more

Career As Environmental Activist   more

Environmentalist and Author   more

Books (selection)   more

Awards and Recognition   more

Bibliography   more

This author page uses material from the Wikipedia article "Lester R. Brown", which is released under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share-Alike License 3.0
Total Books: 89
The Great Transition Shifting from Fossil Fuels to Solar and Wind Power
Breaking New Ground A Personal History
2013 - Breaking New Ground a Personal History (Hardcover)
ISBN-13: 9780393240061
ISBN-10: 0393240061
Genres: Biographies & Memoirs, Science & Math
  ?

Full Planet Empty Plates The New Geopolitics of Food Scarcity
World on the Edge How to Prevent Environmental and Economic Collapse
A Pivotal Moment Population Justice and the Environmental Challenge
2009 - A Pivotal Moment Population Justice and the Environmental Challenge (Hardcover)Paperback
ISBN-13: 9781597266611
ISBN-10: 1597266612
  ?

Plan B 40 Mobilizing to Save Civilization
2009 - Plan B 40 Mobilizing to Save Civilization [Substantially Revised] (Hardcover)Paperback
ISBN-13: 9780393071030
ISBN-10: 0393071030
Genres: Business & Money, Science & Math, Engineering & Transportation, Politics & Social Sciences
  ?

Plan B 30 Mobilizing to Save Civilization Third Edition
2008 - Plan B 30 Mobilizing to Save Civilization Third Edition (Hardcover)Paperback
ISBN-13: 9780393065893
ISBN-10: 0393065898
Genres: Nonfiction, Outdoors & Nature
  ?

Plan B 30 Mobilizing to Save Civilization Third Edition
Plan B 20 Rescuing a Planet Under Stress and a Civilization in Trouble
Plan B 20 Rescuing a Planet Under Stress and a Civilization in Trouble
Plan B Rescuing a Planet under Stress and a Civilization in Trouble
Plan B Rescuing a Planet under Stress and a Civilization in Trouble
The Earth Policy Reader Today's Decisions Tomorrow's World
2003 - The Earth Policy Reader Today's Decisions Tomorrow's World (Paperback)
ISBN-13: 9781853839702
ISBN-10: 1853839701
  ?

The Earth Policy Reader
EcoEconomy Building an Economy for the Earth
2001 - Ecoeconomy Building an Economy for the Earth (Paperback)Paperback, Hardcover
ISBN-13: 9780393321937
ISBN-10: 0393321932
Genres: Business & Money, Science & Math, Outdoors & Nature
  • Currently 4.6/5 Stars.
 4

EcoEconomy Building a New Economy for the Environmental Age
La Plus Belle Histoire de la Terre
2001 - La Plus Belle Histoire De La Terre (Paperback)
ISBN-13: 9782020513081
ISBN-10: 2020513080
  ?

State of the World 2001
2001 - State of the World 2001 [Worldwatch Institute Books] (Hardcover)Paperback
ISBN-13: 9780393048667
ISBN-10: 0393048667
Genres: Business & Money, Science & Math, Engineering & Transportation, Outdoors & Nature
  ?

Vital Signs 20002001 The Environmental Trends That Are Shaping Our Future
Vital Signs 2000 The Environment Trends That are Shaping our Future
Vital Signs 1999 The Environmental Trends That Are Shaping Our Future
1995 - Who Will Feed China Wakeup Call for a Small Planet [Worldwatch Environmental Alert Series] (Hardcover)Paperback
1994 - Full House Reassessing the Earth's Population Carrying Capacity [Worldwatch Environmental Alert Series] (Hardcover)
1994 - State of the World 1994 [State of the World Paperback] (Paperback)
1982 - Building a Sustainable Society [A Worldwatch Institute Book] (Hardcover)
Increasing World Food Output [World Food Supply Ser.] (Hardcover)
Reversing Africa's Decline [Worldwatch Paper, 65] (Paperback)