Books for a Better Planet

We only have one Earth, isn't it time we learnt to take care of it? It may seem overwhelming, but climate change is a pressing matter we need to face. These books will inform and inspire you to make a change with more sustainable habits and better environmental practices! 

The Ecology Book

Explore the key ideas, movements, and acts that have defined ecology and ecological thought. Early chapters range from the ideas of classical thinkers through to attempts by Enlightenment thinkers to systematically order the natural world. Trace the evolution of modern thinking, through to the political and scientific developments of the modern era, including the birth of the environmental movement and the Paris Agreement. The ideal introduction to one of the most important subjects of our time.

... more ... less
+ Reading List

Nature Is A Human Right

Nature deprivation is a fast-growing epidemic, harming the health and happiness of hundreds of millions of people worldwide—especially vulnerable and marginalized groups. To combat this, Nature is a Human Right, founded by Ellen Miles, is working to make access to green space a recognized right for all, not a privilege. This book presents a collection of engaging essays, interviews and exercises, from a selection of authors, artists, scientists, human rights experts, television presenters, TED speakers, and climate activists. Learn why contact with nature should be a protected human right, through personal narratives on mental health, disability, racism, environmental inequality, and more. ... more ... less
+ Reading List

Grow, Cook, Dye, Wear

Live sustainably with style—grow fruits and vegetables, cook them, create natural dyes, then make your own clothes. Focused around crops that can be foraged or grown in at home, Bella Gonshorovitz—fashion designer, dressmaker, and writer—shows you how to embrace a holistic garden-to-garment lifestyle. Swap food waste and fast fashion for homegrown produce, delicious vegan dishes, and a contemporary capsule wardrobe with the help of Bella's friendly, accessible approach to sustainable living. ... more ... less
+ Reading List

How to Garden the Low-carbon Way

Which plants are best for absorbing pollution? What's the alternative to carbon-packed fertilizers? How can I cut out single-use plastics? Aspects of gardening can actually be bad for the environment. Learn how to significantly reduce the carbon imprint of your outdoor space, and even use it to lessen the impact of your other activities. Backed by the latest scientific research, How to Garden the Low-Carbon Way is essential reading for everyone who has a garden and wants to do what they can to protect our planet. ... more ... less
+ Reading List

Speed and Scale

To solve the seemingly-insurmountable climate crisis, we have to take collective action, drive societal change and accelerate the net zero economy using a plan of speed and scale, starting now. In Speed and Scale, award-winning author and investor John Doerr convenes the world's foremost change-makers to show us how we can cut carbon emissions in half by 2030 and reach Net Zero by 2050. Featuring exclusive interviews with the world's most influential thinkers, including Bill Gates, Elon Musk, Marry Barra, Jeff Bezos and Al Gore, this is the only global and definitive action plan for how we might save our planet. ... more ... less
+ Reading List

The Book of Hope

The world-renowned naturalist and conservationist Jane Goodall has spent more than a half-century warning of our impact on our planet. From her famous encounters with chimpanzees as a young woman to her tireless campaigning for the environment in her late eighties, Jane has become the godmother to a new generation of climate activists. In The Book of Hope, Jane draws on the wisdom of a lifetime dedicated to nature to teach us how to find strength in the face of the climate crisis, and explains why she still has hope for the natural world and for humanity. ... more ... less
+ Reading List

Race for Tomorrow

Climate change isn’t just transforming our physical environment, it’s permanently shifting the landscape of energy, farming, technology and business. It’s eroding ancient ways of life, shaking up global finance and driving a historic new wave of mass migration. In this extraordinary journey across twenty-six countries, Simon Mundy meets the people embroiled in a race that is already reshaping the modern world. Filled with richly reported human stories from every inhabited continent, this is an account of disaster, of promise, of frantic adaptation and relentless innovation, of hope, of survival, and of the forces that will define our future. ... more ... less
+ Reading List

The Atlas of a Changing Climate

Climate change, shrinking wildlife habitats, rising sea levels, and vanishing species. National Geographic Explorer Brian Buma pairs the science of climate change with maps, infographics, and charts, illustrating multifaceted ecological change with scientific clarity and aesthetic appeal in equal measure. The Atlas of a Changing Climate tells us what drives environmental change, outlining the historical developments behind each topic and detailing their current state and possible future. ... more ... less
+ Reading List

Simply Climate Change

Combining bold graphics with easy-to-understand text, Simply Climate Change is an essential introduction to climate change and clearly outlines the pressures humans are putting on the planet. It explains the science of one of the most important challenges ever faced by human life on this planet, how and why climate change is occurring and looks at possible solutions in policy and technology. Covering the key ideas from the basics of greenhouse gases to microplastics, it is divided into pared-back, single- or double-page entries that explain concepts simply. ... more ... less
+ Reading List

The Science of our Changing Planet

Global warming has led to sea levels rising over the past 100 years, and the Arctic ice sheet is shrinking at a rate never seen before. Ten million people each year are affected by coastal flooding. One third of all land is at risk of turning to desert. Deaths due to air pollution rise every year, and plastic pollution threatens marine life and fishing stocks. As well as explaining global trends and how they are connected, The Science of Our Changing Planet explores how we can live more sustainably into the future. ... more ... less
+ Reading List

Buy Better, Consume Less

Climate change is now a mainstream conversation topic, and yet every week our recycling piles are overflowing and brands are persuading us to buy their eco-friendly products in our quest to live sustainably. For too long, corporations have shifted the eco-responsibility onto us, the consumers. It's time to push back and demand change. Learn how to stop consuming, see through corporations' greenwashing, and hold them accountable. You can create demand for sustainability in supply chains and put pressure on decision makers to implement systemic change that puts people and planet above profit. ... more ... less
+ Reading List

Sounds Wild and Broken

In rain forests shimmering with insect sound and swamps pulsing with frog calls we learn about evolution's creative powers. From birds in the Rocky Mountains and on the streets of Paris, we discover how animals learn their songs and adapt to new environments. Starting with the origins of animal song and traversing the whole arc of Earth history, Haskell illuminates the emergence of the varied sounds of our world. We learn that human music and language belong within this story of ecology and evolution—yet we are also destroyers, now silencing many of the sounds of the living Earth. ... more ... less
+ Reading List

Rescuing the Planet

Tony Hiss sets out on a journey to take stock of the "superorganism" that is the earth—its land, its elements, its plants and animals, its greatest threats—and what we can do to keep it, and ourselves, alive. Hiss highlights the important work of the many groups already involved in this fight and he introduces us to the engineers, geologists, biologists, botanists, oceanographers, ecologists, and other "Half Earthers" like himself who are allied in their dedication to the unifying, essential cause of saving our own planet from ourselves. ... more ... less
+ Reading List

Sustainable Badass

As a lifestyle guide and an introduction to sustainable living, Sustainable Badass shows you why and how to minimize your consumption while effortlessly making your habits greener. Each page has practical tips, tools and facts about plastic pollution, overconsumption and the climate crisis. From small changes such as purchasing items with minimum to no packaging, to eliminating plastic entirely; learn to make effortless planet-positive choices in your everyday life. Here's to a greener, more simple and happier life with self-sustainable living principles, all while speaking up and demanding change for our planet. ... more ... less
+ Reading List

Now Is the Time for Trees

Trees are the best nature-based solution for revers­ing the negative effects of a changing climate. To move the needle, we need to act on a massive scale and plant millions of trees today to have a measurable and lasting impact on billions of lives tomorrow. Learn everything you need to know to plant trees at home or in your community. From advice on choosing the right size and type of tree to tried-and-true tips for planting success, plant a tree today and leave your own legacy of hope. ... more ... less
+ Reading List

Life on the Rocks

Corals across the planet are in the middle of an unprecedented die-off, beset by warming oceans, pollution, human damage, and a devastating pandemic. Juli Berwald fell in love with coral reefs as a marine biology student, and alarmed by their peril, she traveled the world to discover how to prevent their loss. She met scientists and activists operating in emergency mode, doing everything they can to save coral reefs before they disappear forever. Life on the Rocks is an inspiring, lucid, meditative ode to the reefs and the undaunted scientists working to save them against almost impossible odds. ... more ... less
+ Reading List

One Green Thing

Noted environmentalist Heather White offers an easy-to-follow guide for climate action while brilliantly weaving together warm and funny stories from her childhood, anecdotes from 20+ years of environmental advocacy, and scenes from parenting two Gen Z daughters. Learn how to contribute to the climate movement through self-discovery—your personality, interests, and strengths. First, you’ll take the Service Superpower Profile Assessment, which will reveal your special gifts in service to others and the planet. Based on your profile, you’ll then begin your adventure that shares specific actions you can take. ... more ... less
+ Reading List

How To Change Everything

From the Great Barrier Reef to Hurricane Katrina to school environmental policies to Greta Thunberg—climate change impacts every aspect of the world you live in and you have the power to lead the way by enacting change. Internationally bestselling author of The Shock Doctrine, Naomi Klein, with award-winning children's science writer Rebecca Stefoff, gives a powerful picture of why and how the planet is changing, providing effective tools for action so that YOU really can make a difference. ... more ... less
+ Reading List