68 pages • 2-hour read
Abundance
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Index of Terms
Abundance
Abundance is a key piece of Klein and Thompson’s titular book. Klein and Thompson define abundance as a “state in which there is enough of what we need to create lives better than what we have had” (20). They do not mean abundance of “the goods that fill a house,” but instead “what’s needed to build a good life” (19). Instead of falling into the trap of consumerism that proselytizes the benefits of buying more and more material goods, Klein and Thompson advocate for an abundance centered on communal resources that make the world a better place. They seek to utilize abundance to solve the housing crisis by building more affordable housing and combatting the artificial scarcity caused by difficulty accessing public funding and overly extensive rules and regulations; they seek to utilize abundance to mitigate the climate crisis by investing in green energy infrastructure to make abundant green energy; and they seek to change the field of scientific innovation by making government resources more plentiful.
Artificial Intelligence (AI)
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is defined by IBM as “technology that enables computers and machines to simulate human learning, comprehension, problem solving, decision making, creativity and autonomy” (Stryker, Cole and Eda Kavlakoglu. “What is artificial intelligence?” IBM, 9 Aug. 2024). Klein and Thompson state that AI could be “the most important technology of the decade” (196), as tech firms are working toward computers and machines that can write, read, carry on conversations, and even generate photos and videos. Klein and Thompson utilize AI in their conversation about energy abundance and climate change. AI data centers require massive amounts of energy, and the US faces the problem of not having the energy capacity to house these centers, especially not in a carbon-neutral way. AI serves as both an example of the innovative future the US could have within the lens of abundance and a warning about the implications of scarcity. AI can lead to an innovative future for the US, but only if the US works toward creating an energy-abundant society.
Green Energy/Infrastructure
Klein and Thompson advocate for the implementation of green energy and green infrastructure to combat the climate change crisis. Examples of green energy include solar energy, wind energy, geothermal energy, hydropower, and nuclear energy. Green infrastructure is defined as “a strategically planned network of natural and semi-natural areas with other environmental features, designed and managed to deliver a wide range of ecosystem services, while also enhancing biodiversity” (“Green infrastructure.” European Commission). Examples of green infrastructure include water filtration projects, air purification projects, bioswales, and green roofs. Klein and Thompson advocate for infrastructure that will make green energy more abundant to power the US. The beginning of the introductory chapter discusses a hypothetical utopia that could be the future of the US, and much of the hypothetical scenario is devoted to the possibilities that green energy could provide.
Scarcity
Scarcity is defined as the state of being scarce, or “deficient in quantity or number compared with the demand” (“Scarce.” Merriam-Webster). Scarcity is in stark contrast to abundance, as abundance hinges on there being enough supply to meet demand. The US political system has frequently grounded itself in scarcity, as Klein and Thompson describe the ideologies of scarcity as “seductive.” People gravitate toward narratives of scarcity because some scarcities benefit the individual. For example, when housing is scarce, the houses that people already own become more valuable. Scarcity can also be manufactured, which Klein and Thompson illustrate in the case of H1-B work visas. The US only issues a certain number of visas, a number that has not changed in years to reflect the need for talented people from outside the US. This creates an unnecessary scarcity, especially of intelligent scientists. Scarcity, real or manufactured, is the antithesis of abundance, and Klein and Thompson encourage Americans to turn away from the lens of scarcity.
Zoning Laws
Zoning laws divide a jurisdiction’s areas into zones and dictate how those zones can be used. Zoning laws play an important role in Klein and Thompson’s evaluation of the housing shortage crisis, and they emerged in the 20th century in Los Angeles and then quickly spread to other cities across the US. Klein and Thompson examine how zoning laws allowed people to control what kinds of buildings were constructed in their communities. This ultimately restricted the areas in which affordable housing could be built. Historically, people utilized zoning laws to keep boarding houses out of their communities. In the modern world, people utilize zoning laws to keep affordable housing developments out of their communities. Klein and Thompson view zoning laws as an example of regulations that can serve as a hindrance to abundance.
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