Michael Shellenberger

Michael Shellenberger
Shellenberger in 2024
Born (1971-06-16) June 16, 1971
Colorado, U.S.
EducationEarlham College (BA)
University of California, Santa Cruz (MA)
Political partyDemocratic (before 2022)
Independent (2022–present)
MovementEcomodernism
SpouseHelen Lee
Children2
AwardsStevens Institute of Technology's Center for Science Writings Green Book Award (2008)
Writing career
SubjectEnergy, global warming, human development
Website
Official website

Michael D. Shellenberger (born June 16, 1971) is an American author and journalist. He is the first endowed professor at the University of Austin, serving as CBR Chair of Politics, Censorship, and Free Speech. Considered a prominent heterodox thinker, whose writing has provoked debate on topics including climate change and homelessness, Shellenberger also founded the online newsletter Public.

Shellenberger has been active in critiquing the environmental movement, offering alternative views on climate threats and policies. He contends that while global warming is a concern, it is "not the end of the world", and advocates for the use of genetically modified organisms (GMOs), industrial agriculture, fracking, and nuclear power as tools for environmental protection. Shellenberger ran for governor of California in 2018 and 2022, but was unsuccessful in both campaigns.