Paul Roberts is an American journalist and author of three non-fiction books, including '' The End of Oil'' (2004) and ''The End of Food'' (2008). He had before been a regular contributor to ''

Harper's Magazine ''Harper's Magazine'' is a monthly magazine of literature, politics, culture, finance, and the arts. Launched in New York City in June 1850, it is the oldest continuously published monthly magazine in the United States. ''Harper's Magazine'' has ...

'' and writes primarily about "the complex interplay of economics, technology, and the natural world."Book jacket of ''The End of Oil'', Mariner Books edition

Books

''The End of Oil'' (2004)

In his book-length debut, ''The End of Oil'', Roberts gave an analysis of the various problems associated with humanity's reliance on oil and other

fossil fuel A fossil fuel is a flammable carbon compound- or hydrocarbon-containing material formed naturally in the Earth's crust from the buried remains of prehistoric organisms (animals, plants or microplanktons), a process that occurs within geolog ...

s such as

coal Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other Chemical element, elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen. Coal i ...

and

natural gas Natural gas (also fossil gas, methane gas, and gas) is a naturally occurring compound of gaseous hydrocarbons, primarily methane (95%), small amounts of higher alkanes, and traces of carbon dioxide and nitrogen, hydrogen sulfide and helium ...

. The book received a number of positive reviews from American newspapers and review publications. Notably, environmentalist

Bill McKibben William Ernest McKibben (born December 8, 1960)"Bill Ernest McKibben." ''Environmental Encyclopedia''. Edited by Deirdre S. Blanchfield. Farmington Hills, Mich.: Gale, 2009. Retrieved via ''Biography in Context'' database, December 31, 2017. is a ...

, in an article for ''

The New York Review of Books ''The New York Review of Books'' (or ''NYREV'' or ''NYRB'') is a semi-monthly magazine with articles on literature, culture, economics, science and current affairs. Published in New York City, it is inspired by the idea that the discussion of ...

'', described it as "perhaps the best single book ever produced about our energy economy and its environmental implications."

''The End of Food'' (2008)

In 2008, Roberts published his second book, titled ''The End of Food''. It is similar in fashion to ''The End of Oil'' in that Roberts attempts a comprehensive analysis of food production with its intricacies and weaknesses. As a theme, Roberts asks whether modern

agriculture Agriculture encompasses crop and livestock production, aquaculture, and forestry for food and non-food products. Agriculture was a key factor in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created ...

, as it has emerged since the

Green Revolution The Green Revolution, or the Third Agricultural Revolution, was a period during which technology transfer initiatives resulted in a significant increase in crop yields. These changes in agriculture initially emerged in Developed country , devel ...

, will be able to feed a growing

world population In demographics of the world, world demographics, the world population is the total number of humans currently alive. It was estimated by the United Nations to have exceeded eight billion in mid-November 2022. It took around 300,000 years of h ...

. ''The End of Food'' was described by Michael Pollan, a professor of science and environmental journalism at the

University of California The University of California (UC) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university, research university system in the U.S. state of California. Headquartered in Oakland, California, Oakland, the system is co ...

and himself an author of food-related non-fiction, as "the best analysis of the global food economy you are likely to find."Book jacket of ''The End of Food''

''The Impulse Society: America in the Age of Instant Gratification'' (2014)

In 2014, Roberts published his third book, titled ''The Impulse Society: America in the Age of Instant Gratification''. The book was described by Elizabeth Gilbert as “tracing the country's many, disparate ills to the same source: as a nation, we've abandoned the common good. His analysis is smart, provocative, and timely. The Impulse Society compels us to reexamine what it is that we really want."

Personal life

Roberts lives in Washington State.

Bibliography

*Editions of ''The End of Oil'' :* :* :* * *

References

External links

Interview with Roberts about ''The End of Oil''
at

National Public Radio National Public Radio (NPR) is an American public broadcasting organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It serves as a national Radio syndication, syndicator to a network of more ...

on May 6, 2004 (audio)
Interview with Roberts about ''The End of Food''
at

on June 11, 2008 (audio) * at the

Commonwealth Club of California The Commonwealth Club World Affairs of California is a non-profit, non-partisan educational organization based in Northern California. Founded in 1903, it is the oldest and largest public affairs forum in the United States. Membership is open to ...

on June 18, 2008 (video, with audio available for download)
VIDEO: Paul Roberts keynote talk
at the Organicology Conference in Portland, Oregon, on February 27, 2009. {{DEFAULTSORT:Roberts, Paul American non-fiction environmental writers Living people Year of birth missing (living people) Harper's Magazine people Writers from Washington (state)