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How to Spend a Trillion Dollars: The 10 Global Problems We Can Actually Fix
If you had a trillion dollars and a year to spend it for the good of the world and the advancement of science, what would you do? It's an unimaginably large sum, yet it's only around one per cent of world GDP, and about the valuation of Google, Microsoft or Amazon. It's a much smaller sum than the world found to bail out its banks in 2008 or deal with Covid-19.
But what could you achieve with $1 trillion?
You could solve the problem of the pandemic, for one, and eradicate malaria, and maybe cure all disease. You could end global poverty. You could settle on the Moon and explore the solar system. You could build a massive particle collider to probe the nature of reality like never before. You could build quantum computers, develop artificial intelligence, or increase human lifespan. You could even create a new life form.
Or how about transitioning the world to clean energy? Or preserving the rainforests, or saving all endangered species? Maybe you could refreeze the melting Arctic, launch a new sustainable agricultural revolution, and reverse climate change?
How to Spend a Trillion Dollars is the ultimate thought experiment but it is also a call to arms: these are all things we could do, if we put our minds to it - and our money.
But what could you achieve with $1 trillion?
You could solve the problem of the pandemic, for one, and eradicate malaria, and maybe cure all disease. You could end global poverty. You could settle on the Moon and explore the solar system. You could build a massive particle collider to probe the nature of reality like never before. You could build quantum computers, develop artificial intelligence, or increase human lifespan. You could even create a new life form.
Or how about transitioning the world to clean energy? Or preserving the rainforests, or saving all endangered species? Maybe you could refreeze the melting Arctic, launch a new sustainable agricultural revolution, and reverse climate change?
How to Spend a Trillion Dollars is the ultimate thought experiment but it is also a call to arms: these are all things we could do, if we put our minds to it - and our money.
320 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2021
60 people are currently reading
823 people want to read
About the author
Rowan Hooper
11 books18 followersRowan Hooper is Managing Editor of New Scientist magazine, where he has spent more than ten years writing about all aspects of science.
He has a PhD in evolutionary biology, and worked as a biologist in Japan for five years, before joining the Japan Times newspaper in Tokyo, and later taking up a fellowship at Trinity College Dublin.
Two collections of his long-running column for the paper have been published in Japan, and his work has also appeared in The Economist, Guardian, Wired and the Washington Post.
He lives in London with his partner and two daughters.
He has a PhD in evolutionary biology, and worked as a biologist in Japan for five years, before joining the Japan Times newspaper in Tokyo, and later taking up a fellowship at Trinity College Dublin.
Two collections of his long-running column for the paper have been published in Japan, and his work has also appeared in The Economist, Guardian, Wired and the Washington Post.
He lives in London with his partner and two daughters.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 49 reviews
May 17, 2022
An invigorating assessment of global problems based on a simple premise: what can you achieve with $1 trillion? As the author notes, this isn’t as crazy as you might think - the US alone spends that on its military in 1.5 years…
Presenting 10 costed solutions to global problems, we see how what we lack the most is the will - rather than the means - to solve the most pressing injustices in our world today.
But, most of the individual solutions cost in the tens or hundreds of billions; while trillions are out of the question, that sort of money could be found by governments (or certain obscenely wealthy private citizens…) but we simply lack the political will to do so.
We can, and should, do more - and this book tells us how.
Presenting 10 costed solutions to global problems, we see how what we lack the most is the will - rather than the means - to solve the most pressing injustices in our world today.
But, most of the individual solutions cost in the tens or hundreds of billions; while trillions are out of the question, that sort of money could be found by governments (or certain obscenely wealthy private citizens…) but we simply lack the political will to do so.
We can, and should, do more - and this book tells us how.
September 5, 2022
Exploring micro and macroeconomics, in addition to a few extraterrestrial concepts, Hooper's altruistic thought experiment is inherently unstable. Social problems such as poverty need a fundamental basis upon which humanity as a whole can recognise how to suppress the human vice of greed. For example, if I gave a poor community $2000 per person, with the intention for them to build a better society, the crime rates would likely rise by 10% per day, as people realise wealth is temporary; ultimately, a new social hierarchy of violence would form. If the money was given to the government, or an institution, whether scientific or educational, there is still the chance of embezzlement. To achieve equity or the illusory ideal of peace, humanity, or at least most of humanity, would need to form a general consensus. Which is impossible. Perhaps with evolution, in a few billion years these ideals will be within reach. Plus, I'd get taxed a few hundred billion before the projects could even begin.
Ignoring the current social structure, the thought experiment itself is stimulating. The aim of the book is to introduce hope and the courage to change. If Hooper does get his hands on a trillion dollars, I hope he invests the money into security first.
Ignoring the current social structure, the thought experiment itself is stimulating. The aim of the book is to introduce hope and the courage to change. If Hooper does get his hands on a trillion dollars, I hope he invests the money into security first.
May 4, 2023
An interesting thought experiment.
I found the chapter on lifting people put of poverty (via cash transfers and educating women) most convincing, and it's what I'd spend the $1tn on - but the chapter on geoengineering etc. was also intriguing - it's an approach to the climate crisis that doesn't really seem to be discussed often (although I'm not sure how feasible the ideas actually are, or whether pumping sulphates into the clouds is such a great idea). Greenhouse gas removal engineering looks promising, and certainly growing more kelp appears surprisingly powerful. Need to find some more reading on this.
I found the chapter on lifting people put of poverty (via cash transfers and educating women) most convincing, and it's what I'd spend the $1tn on - but the chapter on geoengineering etc. was also intriguing - it's an approach to the climate crisis that doesn't really seem to be discussed often (although I'm not sure how feasible the ideas actually are, or whether pumping sulphates into the clouds is such a great idea). Greenhouse gas removal engineering looks promising, and certainly growing more kelp appears surprisingly powerful. Need to find some more reading on this.
February 22, 2022
An exercise that hopefully, by and large, doesn't stop as just that; with what seems like bummer after bummer appearing all around us, Hooper arrives with a book that aims to convince that all is not lost (yet). There's not only time to fix things, but many of the seemingly-impossible issues are quite fixable, given that we all work together.
It's broken into 10 chapters/ways to spend the trillion, each with its own allure and reward. From the obvious (fix climate change) to something you might not have thought about in a while (expand our concept of reality), it's consistently thought-provoking material.
Rather than lay rows of statistics at the reader's feet and trust that it completes the labor of convincing, Hooper lays out his "pitches" in a fairly casual manner, which successfully makes this work feel more passionate, personal, and engaging (which is what you want in a book trying to save the world, right?).
You'll learn a lot about what people are doing *currently* to help fix these problems without the benefit of a trillion dollar investment (the "getting the world to go vegan" chapter was particularly illuminating) and what some extra funding could do to help things out.
As a reader, I feel more informed, empowered, and aware of my impacts.
Many thanks to NetGalley and The Experiment for the advance read.
It's broken into 10 chapters/ways to spend the trillion, each with its own allure and reward. From the obvious (fix climate change) to something you might not have thought about in a while (expand our concept of reality), it's consistently thought-provoking material.
Rather than lay rows of statistics at the reader's feet and trust that it completes the labor of convincing, Hooper lays out his "pitches" in a fairly casual manner, which successfully makes this work feel more passionate, personal, and engaging (which is what you want in a book trying to save the world, right?).
You'll learn a lot about what people are doing *currently* to help fix these problems without the benefit of a trillion dollar investment (the "getting the world to go vegan" chapter was particularly illuminating) and what some extra funding could do to help things out.
As a reader, I feel more informed, empowered, and aware of my impacts.
Many thanks to NetGalley and The Experiment for the advance read.
June 5, 2021
I started this book quite intrigued by the premise, that throwing a certain, (even if large) amount of money at a problem might solve it, but ended up skimming the remainder of the book, disappointed at the shallow analysis, and stupid recommendations such as an endorsement of nuclear energy as part of the solution for the climate catastrophe we are headed for, as a result of the cluster of wrong-headed policies that call for subsidies for fossil fuel consumption, sidelining of solar, wind and other renewable sources, and the hiding of military subsidies in the history of nuclear energy development. Solving old problems needs first principles thinking not evident in this book.
February 5, 2023
A relatively comprehensive list of things that could be done to improve human society and save the planet.
Unfortunately there was a disappointing lack of original thought m with somewhat weak suggestions of how to spend the money in question.
Got rather tedious towards the end and I struggled to finish it despite the interesting topic.
Unfortunately there was a disappointing lack of original thought m with somewhat weak suggestions of how to spend the money in question.
Got rather tedious towards the end and I struggled to finish it despite the interesting topic.
August 31, 2023
It's a good premise but the sort of milquetoast, neoliberal viewpoints and assumptions kind of took the wind out of the sails for me.
December 20, 2024
Compelling, thoughtful, intelligent.
January 22, 2023
Incredible book, a fairly easy read if it’s your thing, or you have a strong interest.
Saying the positives, there was negatives. I did start reading this extremely positive, but I suddenly (like many other reviewers) got to a point where I was no longer interested. Though, as the author is a fellow scientist, I give the benefit of the doubt and I thoroughly enjoyed the last 3rd of this book.
It’s full of rich scientific background, rich ideas, some ideologies and ultimately solutions to major global problems. Is it worth it? Yes.
Saying the positives, there was negatives. I did start reading this extremely positive, but I suddenly (like many other reviewers) got to a point where I was no longer interested. Though, as the author is a fellow scientist, I give the benefit of the doubt and I thoroughly enjoyed the last 3rd of this book.
It’s full of rich scientific background, rich ideas, some ideologies and ultimately solutions to major global problems. Is it worth it? Yes.
February 10, 2021
3.5
It's a great concept and I wish more books in the 'How to save the world' genre were brave enough to put a price tag on what they are advocating for. Money, for all its flaws, does provide us a universal value system by which to compare apples and oranges, or in this case moonbases (£120 billion) and universal health care in Ethiopia (£100 billion).
These costs though are the issue, the figures are often arbitrary or based on minimal research. each chapter ends with a shopping list, which felt quite gimmicky.
The 10 topics covered are very disparate which meant my interest varied wildly from each chapter. I would still recommend the book, but maybe just skip the chapters you're not that interested in.
It's a great concept and I wish more books in the 'How to save the world' genre were brave enough to put a price tag on what they are advocating for. Money, for all its flaws, does provide us a universal value system by which to compare apples and oranges, or in this case moonbases (£120 billion) and universal health care in Ethiopia (£100 billion).
These costs though are the issue, the figures are often arbitrary or based on minimal research. each chapter ends with a shopping list, which felt quite gimmicky.
The 10 topics covered are very disparate which meant my interest varied wildly from each chapter. I would still recommend the book, but maybe just skip the chapters you're not that interested in.
May 26, 2022
Meh. It started out really strong but it soon became clear that the bulk of this book was about the environment. Other topics weren't really given the time they deserved.
I apparated that the author considered the costs and realities of the more extreme environmental proposals.
More time should have been spent comparing the different proposals to one another to decide what the best use of money was
I apparated that the author considered the costs and realities of the more extreme environmental proposals.
More time should have been spent comparing the different proposals to one another to decide what the best use of money was
January 6, 2025
To be honest the exact rating would be around 3.7. It went well at the beginning but from mid to end I felt like it delved too deep into the space, physics, and AI exploration, feeling a bit like it was included to avoid being lost opportunities getting hypothetically funded by a humongous amount of money rather than being actual urgent things we should do to save the world. One that could've been elaborated further instead was the issue of education and capacity development, that unfortunately ended up getting mentioned only at the epilog despite it being universally one of the major problems and root of inequality. It also deliberately avoided all political nuances, only mentioning it here and there within theme specific contexts, thus rendering this fun fantasy project solely as a mental gymnastics since 1 Trillion dollars is currently politically challenging, if not impossible. But I personally adore the book so much and recognize that this is a giant work with a lot of experts involved. It maps out the general idea of the important things we as a humanity should consider, so this can definitely be used for further reference later. The elaboration on each theme is also pretty detailed despite me having conflicted feelings about chosen themes. Although I also feel like the way the numbers are calculated are still major oversimplification. Interesting book overall!
June 25, 2022
As a scientist, I found this book engrossing. Rowan Hooper is a writer for New Scientist, but took some time out to put together this fascinating amalgamation of several 'save the world'-type projects, organised around the somewhat ludicrous concept in the title. As other reviewers have commented, it was frequently quite arbitrary - the budget list at the end of each chapter was almost laughable. But as a device to hold the whole book together, I understood why it was used - and it was a great excuse for exploring some genuinely interesting topics.
I was surprised at how badly edited the book was (I gave up counting typos), and I didn't find it especially easy to read (it's sufficiently well-researched that there's a lot of data communicated in each chapter). But as an insight into the forefront of an array of scientific endeavours, it was absolutely captivating.
This isn't really a book about saving the world; for all of the hope it offers, it underestimates the perpetual self-defeating greed of humanity. But it is a book about scientific potential, and the current frontiers of human endeavour - and I'm sure there are many who'd find that an interesting read.
I was surprised at how badly edited the book was (I gave up counting typos), and I didn't find it especially easy to read (it's sufficiently well-researched that there's a lot of data communicated in each chapter). But as an insight into the forefront of an array of scientific endeavours, it was absolutely captivating.
This isn't really a book about saving the world; for all of the hope it offers, it underestimates the perpetual self-defeating greed of humanity. But it is a book about scientific potential, and the current frontiers of human endeavour - and I'm sure there are many who'd find that an interesting read.
October 27, 2024
A fascinating book that explores some of the world’s biggest issues. Rowan Hooper has throughly researched all the topics he covers, and explains in detail how it is possible for the human race to tackle some of the greatest challenges of our time.
Coming from a scientific background, this book feels a bit too technical for me and I felt quite overwhelmed by how much information the author has managed to consolidate into 300 pages. It starts out quite grounded, dealing with political issues and discussions of capitalism and sustainability. However, it quickly becomes pretty abstract with its discussions of space and climate. I would have much preferred the whole book to be grounded in real world politics, but if you are into climate science and astrophysics, those sections will not bother you as much.
Coming from a scientific background, this book feels a bit too technical for me and I felt quite overwhelmed by how much information the author has managed to consolidate into 300 pages. It starts out quite grounded, dealing with political issues and discussions of capitalism and sustainability. However, it quickly becomes pretty abstract with its discussions of space and climate. I would have much preferred the whole book to be grounded in real world politics, but if you are into climate science and astrophysics, those sections will not bother you as much.
May 30, 2023
Wow. Wow. Wow. This book is incredible. Rowan Hooper takes us on an incredible journey of deciding how to spend $1 trillion dollars on some of the world's most pressing issues. Hooper's writing is clear, concise and easy to read. You do not need to have a background in science to understand the high level concepts that he so graciously breaks down. I'm refraining from spoiling the book because I truly believe it is worth the entire read. To sum up my brief review: This book will give you hope! In a world filled with dauting headlines and eco-anxiety, this is a much needed glimmer of hope. As humanity, we can beat the climate crisis - this is my main takeaway from the book. I implore you, give it a read!
March 6, 2022
An excellent 'starter for 10' on how the people of the world could go about fixing problems that impact us all - at different intensities, depending on where you fit on the global 'rich scale - and our future generations. While I wasn't so interested in a couple of the chapters the breakdown on how relatively easily some of these issues could start to be effectively tackled is encouraging - and scary that I don't think, despite the relative ease, those is likely to happen. The book is another welcome call to arms (metaphorically?) for us all to practice change and push for it at every opportunity.
April 8, 2023
A nice survey of things we can do with a lot of money! Well, first of all I agree that climate change and poverty need to be tackled first. However I don’t feel that the author really understands the statement that there can be a second genesis and generation of consciousness through a robot material. This is beyond the scope of empirics but pseudoscience. Mimicry is not reality.
On the whole, a riveting read but not essential. You may get deja vu reading it as you may have been previously exposed to it content in other books and articles. It’s still nice though.
On the whole, a riveting read but not essential. You may get deja vu reading it as you may have been previously exposed to it content in other books and articles. It’s still nice though.
September 11, 2023
Absolute hog wash tbh, estimates on what to spend money on are made based on complete pie in the sky figures from scientists trying to get funding for projects which will in reality turn out 10x more expensive. He even mentions previous examples of this issue but fails to realise the fact it undermines his entire book.
Also his chapter on AI has laughable aged like milk since it was written 2 years ago.
Also his chapter on AI has laughable aged like milk since it was written 2 years ago.
January 30, 2024
A fun casual read, like a really interesting Youtube video or Article fleshed out and explained in more depth.
Fun to imagine future possibilities of the world and learning a little about some fields of science in a ppop-science way, not overly deep but great for casual learners switching between different fields but maybe not so specific that experts in each field couldn't find issues with each chapter individually.
Fun to imagine future possibilities of the world and learning a little about some fields of science in a ppop-science way, not overly deep but great for casual learners switching between different fields but maybe not so specific that experts in each field couldn't find issues with each chapter individually.
September 3, 2024
I like the ideas but I just feel like we aren't going to convince the RIGHT people to get on board. But a girl can dream. You know. I think a lot of people know, believe and understand what this book is trying to get across. But the problem is that this issue is not going to be solved on an individual level.
Anyway. I still think, as the author says, we should try. We all have a part to play (or so they say).
Anyway. I still think, as the author says, we should try. We all have a part to play (or so they say).
October 30, 2022
The book gives a nice overview about the most pressing problems humanity currently faces and, more importantly, presents approaches how they can be tackled. Of course it stays on the surface (no one expects an in-depth analysis of solutions to ten major problems in 280 pages), but provides much food for thought and starting points for further research.
April 5, 2023
This is a 4.5/5. It truly makes you realise that so many of the world's most pressing problems could be solved with (relatively) small amounts of money. While I believe that some of the estimates are not realistic (in particular curing diseases), this is a very informative and thought provoking book.
November 27, 2023
Nice concept for a book and not badly sourced, but honestly way too much smug virtue-signalling. I found the line so cringe and pathetic when the author tried to claim he is way too noble and magnificent to ever name a moon crater after Ernest Shackleton, because it's too "imperial", apparently. Cringe, cringe, cringe.
September 21, 2024
Calls into issue many of the issues that plague modern society (extreme poverty, climate change, etc.) and points out what may be done to tackle them.
The book really highlights that the issue isn’t really lack of resources that prolongs these issue but rather a lack of will to make significant changes to address them.
The book really highlights that the issue isn’t really lack of resources that prolongs these issue but rather a lack of will to make significant changes to address them.
July 9, 2022
Great educational book! It reminds me of Freakonomics; different themes and ways of treating me, but it is as fascinating and educating.
I also got to know a lot of research and companies doing good things!
I also got to know a lot of research and companies doing good things!
October 4, 2022
Credit where credit is due, I thought Rowan Hooper did a very good job of covering such a broad range of issues. As well as covering the issues I think he does a great job of providing insight in developments within the areas, making it easy to grasp scientific concepts easily.
October 11, 2022
How to spend a trillion dollars is a comprehensible yet academic account of how we could spend a (fairly) small amount of money to benefit human expansion and survival. It is meticulously written and well worth a read.
March 31, 2023
Struggled with chapters 9 and 10 but enjoyed the others and very interesting ideas for saving the world in different ways. Problem is bits of the book become out of date quickly as the world is ever changing
April 14, 2021
Inspirational instead of frivolous or depressing.
September 29, 2021
clearly need to be read by someone with a trillion dollars
Displaying 1 - 30 of 49 reviews