A trailblazing exploration of how we can plan better for the future-our own, our families', and our society's.
Bina Venkataraman is a columnist at The Washington Post covering the future. Before joining the Post, she served as the editorial page editor of The Boston Globe, overseeing the news organization’s opinion coverage and editorial board. Prior to that, she was senior adviser for climate change innovation in the Obama White House. She has also taught in the program on science, technology, and society at MIT and at Harvard. An alumna of Brown University and the Harvard Kennedy School, Venkataraman grew up in a small town in Ohio and has since lived on three continents.
“How might we mitigate losses caused by shortsightedness? Bina
Venkataraman, a former climate adviser to the Obama administration,
brings a storyteller’s eye to this question. . . . She is
also deeply informed . . . heed Venkataraman’s impassioned
call for making a commitment to future change.” —The New York
Times Book Review
“Bina Venkataraman zeroes in on the heart of [the] problem… with
vivid anecdotes, Venkataraman musters all the optimism she can
manage to suggest how we might be able to overcome something that
feels like plain old human nature.” —NPR, Best Books of 2019
“Venkataraman vividly depicts what happens when we don’t plan ahead
and what we can do about it, on our own and together.” —The
Washington Post
“In pacy prose that’s easy to digest but offers concrete examples
of change . . . this book offers hope that we can take back some
control of our own destinies and aim for a better future.” —The
Financial Times
“Most of us only see the future after it becomes the past. The
Optimist's Telescope is here to change that. It's a rare read
that's as fascinating as it is important. In it, Bina Venkataraman
brings together powerful narrative, cutting-edge behavioral
science, and the rich experience of a high-impact career.” —Adam
Grant, author of Originals
“The unknown can always be scary. But in this wise, eye-opening,
and hopeful book, Bina Venkataraman shows us the ways we can think
more clearly and strategically about the future - in our
communities, our families, and in our own lives.” —Arianna
Huffington
“Bina Venkataraman illuminates how we can make better decisions for
ourselves, our communities, and Earth itself. She introduces us to
an array of colorful and unexpected characters, from ancient
philosophers to tech entrepreneurs, all while distilling the
science of foresight into practical advice we can all use. A timely
and valuable book.” —Anne-Marie Slaughter, author of Unfinished
Business
“The Optimist's Telescope is a noble and important book. Through
stories of people who have made a difference and an acute awareness
of how things can be made better, Bina Venkataraman shows how we
can effect change and make the world a better place. She is the
good parent this planet so desperately needs.” —Errol Morris,
Oscar-winning filmmaker and author of Believing Is Seeing
“[Venkataraman] explores all sorts of ways that businesses,
governments, and communities have learned to be better
planners-ahead. . . . She also writes beautifully about how we can
all ‘be better ancestors.’” —The Grist
“A timely reminder that time is not on our side without long-term
thinking.” —Kirkus Reviews
“A thought-provoking and eminently readable debut…Venkataraman’s
thoughtful and clear-eyed assessment of how to teach oneself to
make more carefully considered decisions should prove a valuable
tool for anyone wishing to think less in the short term and more
toward the future.” —Publishers Weekly
“An intriguing look at strategies for the long-term with citations
from business executives, sociologists, and philosophers; highly
recommended.” —Library Journal
“Chinese peasants once got paid by the piece to find dinosaur
bones; soon they took to smashing the bones into tiny pieces to
boost their income. This book is a sobering compendium of the many
ways in which ill-conceived short-term incentives undermine
valuable long-term goals. The stakes go way beyond busted
fossils: think rising sea waters, treatment-resistant pathogens,
collapsing infrastructure, disappearing topsoil . . . A grim list
and grounds for pessimism unless, that is, it gets read in the
context of this book, for Bina Venkataraman has assembled a
remarkable repair kit, full of tested tools for harmonizing the
lure of present reward with the foresight we need if we are to
build a durable future.” —Lewis Hyde
“The Optimist’s Telescope will help you think about the biggest
decisions you face in your life and that humanity faces in this
historical moment. Everyone should read this book.” —Gary Knell,
chairman of National Geographic Partners
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