Grand Transitions Book Summary - Grand Transitions Book explained in key points
Listen to the Intro
00:00

Grand Transitions summary

Vaclav Smil

How the Modern World Was Made

4.3 (240 ratings)
23 mins
Table of Contents

    Grand Transitions
    Summary of 8 key ideas

    Audio & text in the Blinkist app
    Key idea 1 of 8

    The major transitions that have taken place across the world have had mixed results.

    The arc of a grand transition can be summed up in the story of a single person.

    A girl is born in rural China in 1945. Her family is desperately poor. But this girl is one of the lucky ones. She survives a devastating famine that kills her family, friends, and neighbors. She grows up, gets married, and has a son.

    The incredible pace of change in China – a result of economic reforms – opens up a world of opportunity for this woman and her family. In the 1990s, her adult son graduates from university, and then gets a job in the burgeoning market of electronics manufacturing. He makes a fortune and buys multiple properties. He starts a family of his own.

    In the twenty-first century, the man’s adult son drives a sports car and enjoys a life of luxury and international travel. The family has come a long way from the grandmother’s humble origins.

    Although this story is fictional, it could well be true. For many people in China, life changed beyond recognition in just two generations. It’s a story of progress. Or is it?

    The key message here is: The major transitions that have taken place across the world have had mixed results.

    China was transformed by interdependent transitions: population change, economic change, agricultural change. Similar transitions have happened across the world on different scales. For example, the improvements in quality of life that took place in twentieth-century China happened earlier for many Europeans, but over a longer period. In poorer parts of the world, such as sub-Saharan Africa, the transition is still ongoing.

    Many of the changes in the world have been undeniably positive. Your chances of survival are infinitely higher than those of your ancestors. And just think of the astonishing advances in technology. Thanks to the internet, you have access to unlimited information – something that would have been unthinkable not so long ago.

    But other recent changes have been far less benign. Aging populations in Japan and Europe pose economic challenges for the next generation. Antibiotic-resistant bacteria are a ticking time bomb. Then there’s the environment – a victim of human progress.

    Our existence has quite literally shaped the world, for better and worse. In the next blinks, we’ll look at these transformations in depth.

    Want to see all full key ideas from Grand Transitions?

    Key ideas in Grand Transitions

    More knowledge in less time
    Read or listen
    Read or listen
    Get the key ideas from nonfiction bestsellers in minutes, not hours.
    Find your next read
    Find your next read
    Get book lists curated by experts and personalized recommendations.
    Shortcasts
    Shortcasts New
    We’ve teamed up with podcast creators to bring you key insights from podcasts.

    What is Grand Transitions about?

    Grand Transitions (2020) offers a sweeping overview of global transitions, from population growth to environmental changes. It examines the ways that we’ve shaped the world, for better or worse, and looks at the challenges facing humanity in the decades to come.

    Who should read Grand Transitions?

    • People who want to understand world history, and how we got where we are today
    • Environmentalists, and anyone interested in the state of the planet
    • Realists looking for a future forecast based on facts

    About the Author

    Vaclav Smil is a Distinguished Professor Emeritus in the Faculty of Environment at the University of Manitoba, Canada. His interdisciplinary research encompasses many fields. He was once named one of Foreign Policy magazine’s Top 100 Global Thinkers. Smil is the author of more than 40 books.

    Categories with Grand Transitions

    Books like Grand Transitions

    People ❤️ Blinkist
    Sven O.

    It's highly addictive to get core insights on personally relevant topics without repetition or triviality. Added to that the apps ability to suggest kindred interests opens up a foundation of knowledge.

    Thi Viet Quynh N.

    Great app. Good selection of book summaries you can read or listen to while commuting. Instead of scrolling through your social media news feed, this is a much better way to spend your spare time in my opinion.

    Jonathan A.

    Life changing. The concept of being able to grasp a book's main point in such a short time truly opens multiple opportunities to grow every area of your life at a faster rate.

    Renee D.

    Great app. Addicting. Perfect for wait times, morning coffee, evening before bed. Extremely well written, thorough, easy to use.

    People also liked

    Start growing with Blinkist now
    27 Million
    Downloads on all platforms
    4.7 Stars
    Average ratings on iOS and Google Play
    91%
    Of Blinkist members create a better reading habit*
    *Based on survey data from Blinkist customers
    Powerful ideas from top nonfiction

    Try Blinkist to get the key ideas from 7,000+ bestselling nonfiction titles and podcasts. Listen or read in just 15 minutes.

    Start your free trial