When 45 announced his exit from the Paris climate agreement, I joined the chorus of outrage and heartbreak. Though expected, this colossally short-sighted, strategically idiotic and cravenly corrupt move remains shocking. Fortunately, “A Climate of Hope,” by former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and former Sierra Club Executive Director Carl Pope, was already on my night table. 

The book’s upbeat message can be summed up as: Yes we can, yes we are and yes we will. “Beyond Coal,” their joint initiative successfully decommissioning scores of aging coal plants, reminds us how much progress is being made right under the noses of fossil-fueled politicians.

The plummeting costs of generating renewable electricity means that in many places around the world, the cheapest new power source is wind or solar. Bloomberg knows profit potential when he sees it; smart business is betting on carbon-light tech. 

Bloomberg believes in cities. With higher densities of population and infrastructure, they provide essential services more efficiently. Mass transit facilitates going car-free or at least car-light. The sharing economy, like Craigslist, car-share services or the new Weavers Way Tool Library, thrive when a critical mass of like-minded people lives near one another. 

Philadelphia is one of nearly 250 American cities, along with a dozen-plus states, pledging membership in the U.S. Climate Alliance, which is committed to upholding the Paris accords even if the U.S. government is not. Bloomberg is our alt-president, organizing American participation in the international Paris Agreement. 

A second fascinating volume, “Drawdown,” edited by entrepreneur and environmentalist Paul Hawken and subtitled “The most comprehensive plan ever proposed to reverse global warming,” ranks the top 100 worldwide carbon reducing strategies. A team of researchers compiled their data without preconceived conclusions, and the results may surprise you. Many will be familiar to environmentally minded readers; others are cool innovations. Cumulatively, they map the ways forward.

Weavers Way working member Betsy Teutsch is working on a new book, “100 Under $100: Tools for Reducing Post-Harvest Losses.” Share ideas for Weavers Way ride-sharing with her at bpteutsch@comcast.net.