The Author’s Digest recently named Dr. John Carvalho “The Renaissance Scholar” because he has led an extraordinarily diverse life that has covered academia, politics, human rights work, world travel, and even the entertainment industry. Now, with the publication of his new book “The Crisis Of Our Time” (2014), Carvalho can add “author” to his repertoire. Already, “The Crisis Of Our Time” has made waves in the literary and Hollywood community, earning its author a Pulitzer Prize submission, an AIMA Best Literary Writer Nomination, and a national Barnes & Noble book tour. In addition, there is talk of turning some of the chapters into a Hollywood film. This week John Carvalho sat down with the National Monitor to discuss his work and its relevance for our world.

Give our readers a brief synopsis of what your new book is about.

“The Crisis Of Our Time” is a discussion of the problems we face in our world today and my philosophical resolutions to them. As also a memoir, the book reveals how my life and career has intersected with these problems and what I have learned from my personal experiences that relates to our world today. In the new book, I address the key issues presently plaguing our society: global health and spread of infectious diseases, economic recession, planetary climate change, fiscal austerity, and the personal, psychological stress that we encounter while we try to find meaning amidst a world of apparent purposelessness.

What are some of the themes that you highlight in this new book?

Well, there are a number of key themes. For one, I ask whether there is one, underlying cause that is a source of all the problems we face.

And is there?

Yes, when we as a society and as individuals glorify the mediocre rather than strive to excel. I present key examples of such in my new book. I also introduce the theme of “causal circular systems”, an idea that has its roots in biology and public health. In this theory, causes, which have mediocrity as their foundation, feed off and exacerbate effects, which, in turn, reinforce those same causes. The example par excellence is demonstrated in public health, like with HIV/AIDS. When we look at disease and poverty, for example, we see that poverty can cause disease because a community may have little healthcare infrastructure, educational resources, knowledgeable doctors, etc. However, new disease cases can feed back on and exacerbate poverty because sick people cannot work and improve their family incomes and contribute to the tax base of governments. Essentially, I show how “causal circular systems” lay at the root of many problems in the world today.

So where do you see our world right now?

Well, as a scientist and scholar, I have seen some incredible changes over the years. We can take the example of global climate change. I have discovered real changes that have occurred these past decades. For instance, I remember when it would hit 100 degrees Fahrenheit in the desert southwest and make national news back in the 1980’s. Now, meteorologists in Nevada are seeing upwards of 110-degree temperatures many more days per year and it is just considered “typical.” I present many examples of the state of our present world in the book and it is clear to me, and probably the reader as well, that many things are not going well.

It sounds like the book is “doom and gloom!”

[Laughing] Well, in some ways it might be interpreted that way, but I would ask readers to reflect a little more. For example, we have made some serious headway on certain world problems. Take the case of polio. I never thought I would see the day that India would be polio free. But, it is. And that is a great achievement of medical science and public health. This point reveals that there are some problems that we can tackle and completely resolve, so we are indeed making some progress. Other challenges, like climate change, however, we might not be able to solve totally, but we might be able to mitigate so that they are not as bad as they could be. I analyze each of the key present problems on earth to discuss what we can do now to make a better world.

Give an example of one of the resolutions you discuss.

Let’s take the California water crisis. Here is a problem that we have known about for a long time and one that we probably can only “mitigate” rather than resolve entirely. Obviously, conservation would be helpful. We would also need to change the way we use water in agriculture. For example, one almond takes a gallon of water to produce. As much as I love almonds, they are on the “extinction list” of foods since a gallon of water is more important right now to our society than a single almond! This is just a simple example.

That seems like common sense.

[Laughing] Well, yes, but we as individuals and as a society do not strive to excel. We get caught in our mediocre habits and we fail to stop and think of how and why we should act the way we do. Our governmental policies showcase this. In order to curb the world’s troubles, we need to reflect on a better way and then put thought into action.

Do you feel your personal life story influenced your writing?

Oh absolutely! I take pride in that “Renaissance Scholar” title from The Author’s Digest [laughing]. It was such a pleasure working in both science and the humanities during my career. It was also a blast living in Rome, Italy and traveling all over Europe. I think the career journey really helped me see our world problems in a new light because I was on the ground working through those problems myself, such as with my research in microbiology and public health. And the personal travels, of course, gave me insights into other cultures and traditions, and the artistic expression those cultures and traditions portrayed.

There are a number of press articles that claim you have a “European voice” in the work? What do they mean by that?

Certainly I talk about my foreign travels quite a lot, and I make reference to much European literature, culture and history. As I stated in one article, I speak about my journeys to the former Soviet Union, to Greece during the Papandreou era, to Italy and elsewhere and I try to depict how European history and present conditions directly impacts the United States. America is not in a bubble. What happens in Athens, such as present bank troubles, can affect the wider world market, including ours. Europeans and U.S. citizens must continually stay informed of each other if we are ever to solve world problems. Of course, it’s not just Europe I mention. I talk about people living in Africa, Asia, and South America as well. The world is much smaller now with globalization and we are all interconnected, as are our respective challenges.

Do you feel your style of writing is unique?

Well, as you know, I chose AuthorHouse as my publisher. The reason for doing that was because I wanted to prevent any censorship with regards to content and writing style. I will be bold enough to say that there has never been a book written like “The Crisis Of Our Time,” and there never will be. It has many hidden secrets and important meaning lurks everywhere. But, it is not your typical nonfiction work. As some press articles state, the book diversifies the nonfiction genre because it reads like a story in many sections, as if you are delving into fiction rather than nonfiction. There are also grammar tricks permeating the work. I do all of that on purpose. It was a lot of fun pushing the boundaries of language, style, and meaning in “The Crisis Of Our Time,” probably much to the chagrin of some traditional academicians. But the point here is that “how” we develop our laws and social traditions needs to be reflected upon. Again, we glorify mediocrity rather than strive to excel, and what we sometimes hold so dear and sacred could actually be wrong and need revision. The entire LGBT civil rights movement is a perfect, recent example. Social taboos that were held in such high esteem needed to be replaced by equality.

So where do you see the book going from here?

Well, the main thing right now is to get the word out about my new opus and my philosophical suggestions on how to curb our world problems.

And so you’re on tour right now?

Oh yes! I’ve been barnstorming across California and Nevada with Barnes & Noble. In fact, I just finished a tour in Los Angeles, San Diego, Las Vegas, and Henderson, and I am scheduled to hit Seattle, Washington soon

Aside from the tour, are you planning any other events for the book?

In Los Angeles, I held about twenty events including four red carpet parties, a global book launch that was well publicized by the newspapers, and many book readings and signings at community centers, coffee shops, private homes, etc. I am now planning another red carpet “author showcase” for the holidays this December similar to the one I did last year.

You mean your holiday party at the Vaucluse Lounge in Hollywood, the former Charlie Chaplin residence?

Yes! People had a blast at that event, and myself and some other authors want to make it an annual affair. We would like to turn it into one of the best author showcases or book fairs in the city.

Anything else planned?

I’ve also got a full day of filming to do with AuthorHouse in order to make an author video, and I have some radio and television shows coming up.

And what about book reviews?

It is good that you mentioned that because an excellent review was just published in The Hollywood Times. I would also like to get the San Francisco Book Review to do something this year.

There is talk that you have some Hollywood ambitions with your book. Can you elaborate on that?

Well, I wrote the book with Hollywood partly in mind. So certainly there are some sections that have cinematic potential. For example, I am in the process of script development for chapter one with the aim of ultimately making it into a beautiful short film. One of the movies I collaborated on a few years back qualified for the Oscars, and I would like to take this new short to the same level of excellence. And, of course, the final section of the book might be developed into a full-length feature or maybe a theatrical play. Of course, these first and last sections of the book read more like fiction rather than nonfiction.

And what about a documentary?

Yes, in fact the entire second section of the book (the more scholarly section) is perfect, documentary material. Think Al Gore’s An Inconvenient Truth on steroids! [laughing]. But seriously, some of these topics that I cover are really pertinent right now, like the water crisis in Southern California or public health issues around the world. As a result, I am dialoguing with some documentary filmmakers.

It seems like you’re planning much more to do for “The Crisis Of Our Time.” Do you also have other projects?

[Laughing] Ah yes. It feels like I’m inundated with new projects lately! I have a few movie scripts that I am working through, another red carpet event in Hollywood for the Oscars, and I have a second book that is under “tight wraps” right now. I won’t release any information about my second book until its actual debut.

What advice would you give aspiring authors?

I get this question from a lot of people. I think that to be an author you need to have three items in place. First, have a story to tell. Readers want something unique and interesting. Secondly, be able to write well. One of the problems new authors are having is that they can’t get published because their writing is not at industry standards. Finally, market, market, market! I can’t stress this last point enough. Get yourself out there. Do interviews like this one, talk about your book on the radio, get on television, get published in newspapers and magazines, and get in front of the public by doing a book tour.

John Carvalho’s “The Crisis Of Our Time” is available at Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, AuthorHouse and booksellers around the world. You can follow him at drjohncarvalho.com for the latest updates.