HAVE you learned your carbon ABCs? Can you speak knowledgeably of bagasse, Jamaica, Petratherm or xerophily? Beyond Al Gore and Tim Flannery, can you identify Dame Anita Roddick or Vincent Serventy? Are you at a loss in discussions about cap-and-trade, carbon capture or coke?

Author Ken Hickson

To the rescue comes Ken Hickson, journalist, consultant, author, and governor of WWF Australia, and creator of the weekly ABC Carbon Newsletter. His latest book endeavours to bring all the critical information on climate change together in one place in order to put everyone on the same page, so to speak.

Entitled The ABC of Carbon, the author explores carbon’s role in its myriad forms; from diamonds to coal, from trees to books, from Bucky Balls to biofuels and beyond. Hickson’s work also encompasses notable
events in climate history, key players, businesses new and old, scientific terms, places of interest and so much more.

With web references for each entry, further research can be done, but most significantly, you can verify the information for yourself rather than relying on second or third-hand knowledge as you would with other publications.

For a taste of what’s inside the virtual covers of this eclectic mix, read on:

A is for Arrhenius Svante, winner of the Nobel Prize for Chemistry, who first coined the term ‘greenhouse effect’ in 1895 for his theory of the effects of carbon dioxide on climate.

G is for Gothenburg, a Swedish city aiming to be carbon free by 2050 by encouraging in part the use of tram-transport; the city’s energy company is also working with Volvo on building the first zero-carbon factory in the world.

N is for Neco, Australia’s premier online eco store, selling only those high quality products that are proven to be superior to existing products currently available.

V is for VegieCars, promoting the carbonfriendly use of waste vegetable oils in cars to reduce carbon output while waiting for the next generation of transport.

A book which covers 26 chapters of alphabetised topics would be hard to classify as anything but an encyclopaedia, yet this compendium is neither dry nor dull: the topics are short, concise, and couched in
everyday language. Ken Hickson has created a carbon primer, giving readers the ability to intelligently
understand, and therefore engage in, one of the most crucial dialogues of our time.

The ABC of Carbon is available online at the pre-publishing discount price of $25. It will also be available in future from selected bookshops.