In February, Bill Gates published his book, How to Avoid A Climate Disaster. I took the time to read through it in detail because he has been willing to study the issue in depth and invest major funds through his foundation looking for technological answers and breakthroughs.

He understands that if we want to address poverty around the world we need to provide them with energy without releasing more greenhouse gases. And he also acknowledges that he may not be the best spokesman since we lives in a 66,000 square foot home and owns a private-jet company.

The subtitle of his book explains his vision: the solutions we have and the breakthroughs we need. If you take the time to read his book, you realize the enormous challenges before us in order to reach his goal of zero carbon emissions by 2050.

In the middle of his book, he starts a section with a quick quiz. Which of these contains the most energy: a gallon of gasoline, a stick of dynamite, or a hand grenade? The answer is a gallon of gasoline. Which of these in the cheapest in the United States: a gallon of milk, a gallon of orange juice, or a gallon of gasoline? Once again the answer is a gallon of gasoline. This illustrates the challenge of moving this country away from fossil fuels, which are both energy dense and remarkably cheap.

I may not agree with some of the policies Bill Gates has proposed in the past, but I appreciate that he lives in the real world. He understands the significant challenges we would face to reduce carbon emissions while also trying to raise the standard of living of the poorest countries in the world.

I can think of a number of environmental activists, as well as members of Congress, that need to read the book. It is an antidote to the cheap environmental cliches tossed around these days.