Gary Paul Nabhan, PhD maybe America’s premiere Locavore. He spent years helping to compile lists of America’s endangered food products. He asks, “Do we put pretty pictures of these edibles in a museum so we can look at them?” His answer, No! We preserve foods, tastes, cultures by what Slow Food calls “eater-based conservation”. Mr. Nabhan has said that isn’t just about the genetics, “If we save a vegetable but we don’t save the recipes and the farmers don’t benefit because no one eats it, then we haven’t done our work.”

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Denevan’s unique concept, dubbed Ouststanding in the Field, began with a few such on the farm dinners and has expanded over the last nine years into a country-wide tour of dinners. Denevan and his team travel in a 1953 bus dubbed “Outstanding.” They follow the harvest season, hosting dinners at farms, and even in sea caves, anywhere that the best of ingredients can be sourced — just feet away from the table. The dinners feature the farmers, fisherman or local food artisans whose harvest comprises the menu, alongside the efforts of local chefs.

The dinners themselves are set up like works of art, arching tables, candles in the earth, each diner’s plate brought from home to give him or her a way to add a personal touch to the event. The events, held for one night only, then whisked away to being anew in another locale have a fleeting beauty to them, not unlike Denevan’s own sand sculptures, some of which stretch for miles, and last only hours.

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The book goes far beyond what a casual reader interested in solar power would need to know, but there is a wealth of good information inside, and it is likely to be useful for a wide range of readers who have more than just a casual interest in solar power. It is largely concentrated on electrical generation strategies with solar power, although the final chapter of the book deals with passive solar heating technologies.

This book is more than just an engineering technical manual. In addition to being a resource for engineers and architects, building managers, owners (and here I’m thinking more of commercial building manager and operators rather than the average homeowner), and other non-technical readers will find a wealth of information about current energy programs such as the California Solar Initiative Program and about the economics of solar power systems–aspects that play a major role in determining whether or not to install a solar power system.

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With the first tome based around the element of earth, the second tome is all about water (as the title suggests). Miho’s scientist parents were lost at sea and she now has to move to Japan to live with her uncle. Though she speaks no Japanese and has never met her uncle, she has no other choice but to move in with her only living relative.

While visiting the beach house of her grandparents (who have already passed on), Miho meets the already infamous otter, Gaia. Miho is quickly swept up in the excitement of being able to talk to all the creatures of the sea and makes friends with a large group of dolphins. Of course, her adult uncle thinks she is nuts and simply can’t follow orders when he tells her to be home at a certain time and she continues to come home dripping wet.

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What would you do if you could hear the Earth asking for help? In the Gaia Girls book series, that is what happens to four girls, each from a different region of the world. They are approached by Gaia, the living organism of the Earth. Each is endowed with powers over one of the four elements: earth, air, fire, and water. They must learn to use their powers to help Gaia survive the effects of modern humanity.

The first book centers around a girl named Elizabeth Angier and one very eventful summer at her family farm in New York state. She and the family’s undeniably lovable dog Maizey take on a big business factory farming operation that is trying to buy up all the farms in her town. On top of that, her best friend is moving not only out of town but out of state to Florida. Just as her troubles start to reach their boiling point, Elizabeth is greeted by an eager otter named Gaia who will change her world forever.

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In McKibben and the Step It Up Team’s new book, Fight Global Warming Now: The Handbook for Taking Action in Your Community (Henry Holt, $13.00), the authors show how normal, everyday people, without any community organizing background, were able to create successful events to rally support for addressing climate change. Reflecting on the success of Step It Up allows the authors to repeat what worked–and discard what didn’t. Their seven tips (make it credible, snappy, collaborative, meaningful, creative, wired and seductive) are a framework for understanding how community organizing works in the 21st century.

The book is a quick read written in simple, conversational tone that empowers the reader. Really? Is it that easy to organize a rally? McKibben and group seem to think so, and highlight many anecdotes from the first Step It Up to show how novice activists can create powerful events. These anecdotes also serve as a type of scrapbook of the first Step It Up 2007, illuminating the hundreds of events and thousands of individual experiences. Just in case you might need some help with your own event, the authors clearly outline areas for concentration to establish credibility, drum up publicity, and finance your event. There’s also a resources page directing you to further reading on both climate change, activism, and other resources necessary for creating your own successful event. From online networking to how to create aeriel art, from media attention to attracting politicians, someone who did it for April’s Step It Up has advice for you.

McKibben and team make it seem so simple. How else can they get people to realize that we have everything we need to be activists? We don’t need to sit around and wait for Al Gore to organize a carbon-spewing concert. We all have within us the ability to lead, to create, to organize. They’re just providing a little push. If you’ve ever wanted to organize, but never thought you could, this is a must-read that will give you the tools you need to call yourself an activist and organizer. Step It Up is happening again on November 3rd. It’s never too late to get organized. In fact, the theme for November’s event is "Who’s A Leader?"

Fight Global Warming Now was released October 22nd.

The Weather Makers

The Future of Nature: Writing on a Human Ecology from Orion Magazine (Milkweed Editions, $18.00), just might be that book. A collection of thought-provoking essays selected and introduced by Barry Lopez, The Future of Nature includes writings by such heavy-hitters as Wendell Berry, Bill McKibben, and Derrick Jensen, all originally published in Orion, the seminal magazine covering the intersection of culture, nature, and the environment.

Released this past Thursday, the book is divided into six loosely-themed sections. Actions runs the gamut of activism, from small suburban grassroots efforts to stop construction on a SuperTarget store to bailing out direct-action activists in Appalachia. Refugees discusses those displaced by humanity’s interactions with the environment, giving a face to the faceless victims of climate change and the unending hunt for resources. Boundaries addresses the idea of the wilderness and our relationship with it. Reverence discusses how appreciation for nature, a love of and respect for it, is the essential guidepost for sustainable living. Monsters lays out just exactly what sorts of devastating things we’re doing to our only home, and Native leaves the reader with both hope and guidance for living in harmony with our ecosystem.

Highlighting both theory and practice of sustainable (and unsustainble) living, the causes of our ecological crises, and a vision for a lasting future, The Future of Nature provides a plethora of contexts for understanding just why we desperately need to change the way we live. Elegantly written and compiled, this book should be required reading for those interested in sustaining our future on Earth. The themes balance each other nicely; the reader understands the reality of the direness of humanity’s situation but is left with hope that good things are happening everywhere, those little pockets of positive change that will lead to a more balanced way of life. It immediately made me want to go read not only Orion, but every other piece of writing by this insightful group of writers.

Dave and Lillian Brummet’s Trash Talk is a book that aims to get back to minimizing waste and finding everyday uses for trash. Think of it as "Hints From Heloise" meets Mother Earth News. The introduction reminds readers that reduce, reuse, and recycle should be precluded by refuse — as in, refusing to buy items that generate a lot of waste. The book is divided into four sections: the first has ideas for reusing common household items (some not-so-common — who has a plethora of old oven racks hanging around?), and the second has plans for habits you can implement that follow the four Rs, like composting, or cutting open toiletries bottles to get all the product out. The third section focuses on tips and habits related to paper, and the brief fourth section gives statistics that remind the reader that the little things do add up.

It’s clear that the authors walk the walk: many of the tips are reuse ideas that I hadn’t heard of, and their extensive gardening background was surprisingly helpful. The home garden seemed to be a playground for reuse. And, again, this seems to be more for the crunchier crowd — it definitely had the vibe of Mother Earth News as opposed to Real Simple. That doesn’t mean that it was packed full of radical ideas; most of the tips and habits are pretty practical for those who are in the process of going green. But there were a few that I know would cause the light-greenest of readers to drop the book and never look back.

There are issues with the text. The editing leaves something to be desired; I don’t know if the format of the book was the best way to present the information. The second section just seemed a catchall for random green-living ideas. Why is there a whole chapter about picking up trash while going on walks in a book marketed as "an inspirational guide to saving time and money through better waste an resource management?" I don’t think there’s really enough material here for a book like this: there’s a lot of unfocused information that, while interesting, didn’t really have a lot to do with solid waste reduction. And for $19.99, you’d think you get a lot more out of a paperback than 190 pages with a lot of white space.

All in all, the book is worth a read, but not a purchase. You’d be better off checking it out from your library, if you can find it.

California Healthy

The book is broken into sections by county, and each includes restaurant listings, wineries, walks and local festivals. By far the best part of this guide are the walks, taking you to beautiful and scenic places, and listing dog parks for healthy fun with Rover. The local events section, although not complete, lists seasonal festivals throughout the region and is a useful tool and one of the book’s strengths.

The restaurant listings are on the other hand are weak at best. Granted, some of my favorite joints are listed, but the descriptions are limited, leaving the reader with little idea of why they should go. Most disappointing is that the list is nowhere near comprehensive. There are thousands of restaurants in SoCal, and the organic and local food movement is thriving, yet California Healthy names only of a handful of the good places out there, and gives the reader no sense of what they have in store.

The book is supplemented with recipes and a cooking guide from Chef Biron of Stanford fame. His additions are thoughtful and delicious, and but slightly out of place. Despite its attempt to be more, California Healthy is a walking book, not a health book. Absent are yoga and pilates studios, bike, skate, and surf rentals, a comprehensive listing of restaurants, holistic health practitioners, masseuses and environmentally friendly spa services, among other truly valuable health information.

Animal, Vegetable, Miracle

The family raised an astonishing array of vegetables, fruit, meat, and eggs. They did buy supplies like flour, coffee, and olive oil from the grocery store, but they were able to grow the vast majority of their food at home or buy from locals. Besides Kingsolver’s accounts of the ups and downs of pulling weeds or dodging testosterone-crazy roosters, husband Steven L. Hopp provides fascinating food facts sprinkled throughout the book. He explains that if we all ate just one meal each week made of locally raised organic meat and produce, we could reduce our country’s oil consumption by over 1.1 million barrels of oil per week. Kingsolver’s nineteen-year-old daughter Camille offers sidebars of meal plans and recipes (my looming zucchinis thank her for the zucchini chocolate chip cookie recipe).

Steven and Camille’s practical commentary provide a good balance to the author’s more subjective arguments for eating seasonally. For example, Kingsolver implies that the reader will have a greater appreciation for food if they can’t eat apples in January, or that hours spent in the kitchen canning vegetables with the family is a happy time that brings you closer. It sounds great to me, but other readers may be swayed less by a touch-feely argument, and more convinced by the scientific health arguments for organic foods and the greater energy independence local foods bring (a typical meal travels 1500 miles to a dinner table). At times, I did get a bit tired of seeing Kingsolver’s world though the rosiest of glasses. Everything appears to be perfect, lush, beautiful, the most delicious, faster, stronger, healthier. I don’t doubt the superior taste and nutrition of locally grown, organic products, but I was waiting for another side to the story – some sort of significant downside or obstacle they had to overcome. The author admits this herself when she recounts telling a friend about a tranquil summer evening spent with Amish friends on a farm. The friend remarks, “What, not even a mosquito to bother heaven?” But perhaps Kingsolver’s point is that it is easier than we think to eat locally. In spite of the endless positive spin, her humor and thorough research were inspiring enough to get me to contemplate making my own mozzarella.

A thought-provoking surprise was Kingsolver’s adamant argument for eating meat – specifically locally bred, organic meat. She aligns herself with a vegetarian position, she says, except that she eats meat. She points out that “every sack of flour and every soybean-based block of tofu came from a field where countless winged and furry lives were extinguished in the plowing, cultivating, and harvest…To believe that we can live without taking life is delusional.” She goes on to explain that the oft-repeated argument that it takes ten times as much land to make a pound of meat as a pound of grain only applies to the kind of land where rain falls abundantly on rich topsoil. Cultures that live on less productive land like the Navajo, Mongols, Lapps, and Masai would starve without their animals. The argument for eating locally produced organic meat is perhaps a more realistic option for individuals who care about where their food comes from and its environmental and energy consequences, but who aren’t going to stop eating chicken or burgers tomorrow.

In the end, Animal, Vegetable, Miracle has a little bit for everyone. For those ready to set the loftiest goals, take the Kingsolver challenge of canning all fall and making meals from home seven days a week. For someone like me who has a love of food, gardening, and cooking, but who isn’t prepared to give up Cheerios (are they local if General Mills is located 20 miles from my house?), I walked away with a renewed dedication to my farmers’ market, an intensive search for local foods at my grocery store, and the knowledge that buying food that grew up continents away is as much of an energy decision as leaving the lights on.

The Rough Guide to Shopping with a Conscience looks to provide some guidance for getting behind the layers of obfuscation and presents the issues that need to be considered in many of these decisions. The book is divided into three parts. Part I: Issues lays out the alternatives and some of the standards for ethical decisions. Part II: Products & companies goes through different categories in more detail. And Part III: Find out more deals briefly with sources for further information.

The Issues section looks at five approaches to ethical decisionmaking: Going green, Fair trade, Boycotts, Selective shopping, and Buying locally. The authors recognize the complexities in all of these issues, and point out the (sometimes conflicting and contradictory) arguments that can be made about deciding one way or another. In most circumstances, they lay out the different viewpoints, but do not offer any definitive answer, because no such solution exists.

"Once you start thinking about all the positive and negative implications of what you buy and use, it quickly becomes clear that there's no one-size-fits-all approach — no simple list of moral checks and crosses. For one thing, there are always conflicting priorities. Is it better, for instance, to support the local independent cafe around the corner, or buy a fairly traded cup from the global chain across the road? Is it "ethical" to favor local products — doing your bit to limit envionmentally harmful transportation — or does that mean harming impoverished countries that are eager to export?"

The middle section on Products & companies collects information about all manner of products and services, and examines the various concerns and tradeoffs involved in searching for the most ethical choice in a given category. More detailed discussion of particular issues for a given topic. Food is a multifaceted topic, and the discussion includes issues such as the use of antibiotics, by catch in fishing, organic standards (and alternatives to the 'organic' label), vegetarianism and the humane treatment of animals, genetically modified organisms, and more are all discussed.

For example, in many cases, the terms we think are indicative of preferred products may not be as meaningful as we believe. "Free range" poultry, for example, conjures a vision of chickens wandering a barnyard, but "in theory, a coop or stall door could be opened for five minutes a day to satisfy such minimal requirements." We can make well-meaning choices, but what we are actually supporting may be a very different thing. It is difficult to know all of these things, because so much energy is spent to convince us of some beautiful image, rather than the truth of the situation. With fuller knowledge, we can make more meaningful choices.

Clothing, money matters, household goods (including cleaning products, furniture, toys, and more), and transportation are all covered in greater depth, as well. Most topic areas have a few listings for websites of suppliers and producers of products or sources for further information.

The final Find out more section is a brief collection of resources for gathering further information and a little bit of information about how to research a company. The websites and books and magazines listed may have some usefulness, but this is more of an addendum than a crucial part of the book.

There is a lot of good information in this book. It is less the sort of thing one should read cover to cover than it is a reference to keep on hand. If many of these concepts are still fresh with you, it is likely to be too much to absorb all at once. The authors do a very good job of pointing out the differing opinions and the tradeoffs involved in these choices, because none of this is black and white. Rather than feeding pat answers, this is a book that will prick at your conscience, and help you to address those decisions you make as a consumer and as a citizen with more thought and care.

A Slice of Organic Life

Editor-in-chief Sheherazade Goldsmith packs A Slice of Organic Life full of tips and diy projects for living more naturally, or organically, if you will, whether you live in a tiny New York City apartment, a moderate abode with some outdoor space, a large suburban house with a big yard, or a big ol' farm with a few acres. There are a variety of different suggestions complete with easy, step-by-step instructions and guidelines. Also rampant in this volume are beautiful, colorful photographs which make a simple flip through the book enjoyable, and give a hearty visual representation of each tip presented.

The book is sectioned off into three parts: 1) No Need for a Yard, 2) Roof Terrace, Patio or Tiny Yard, and 3) Yard, Community Garden, or Field. Within each section, however, are ideas for both small and large spaces: from making and freezing baby foods, to collecting rainwater, growing chili peppers, making summer fruit jam, using renewable energy, planting herbs indoors, keeping honey bees and raising your own chickens.

At first I was thrown off by the order - or dis-order rather - of the book. There is no gardening section, or home improvement section, or recipe section. The tips are all over the place throughout the over 300 pages. The editor takes you from "Bake Bread", to "Choose Natural Diapers", to "Forage for Wild Greens", to "Nourish Skin Naturally". Then later, "Grow Flowers for Cutting", "Preserve Fruit", "Keep a few Geese". I did e-mail the publisher to ask about this and was assured it was intentional: "We felt that this would make the book less didactic and much more fun." The more I flipped through the book, the more I agreed with that sentiment. I let my conventional book expectations go, and was able to enjoy the scattered tips. The layout also gives the reader a chance to look through more of the book instead of being constrained by the one section that seems most applicable. (There is a easy to navigate table of contents and index to find what you're looking for.)

I'm not much of a DIYer myself, and probably won't get to any of the more ambitious projects in the book, but having them all in one place in a very approachable, do-able guide is inspiring. While I might not go out and get a milking cow, I could definitely do my part to help wildlife survive in the winter, or use up a glut of tomatoes.

This book is a great introduction to those new to the green scene who are ready to take action in their lives and want to live in a more organic, sustainable way. It is not enviro-preachy, and really suggests ways for people to reconnect with the earth, one small step at a time.

A Slice of Organic Life, DK Publishing, 2007.

The Lazy Environmentalist

These innovators make it easy for us to integrate environmental awareness into our lives. They understand that while so many of us are concerned about the environment, we don't always have the time, energy, or inclination to do something about it.

I only wish this was written in a less-than-serious voice. In my mind, if you don't have the "time, energy, or inclination" to do something about the environment, than you can hardly classify yourself as an environmentalist. You are looking to alleviate guilt for your conspicuous consumption, a culture of consumption that is devastating our planet. It's exactly the "culture of convenience" that's waging all-out war on our resources. Consider this passage from the chapter on cars:

There really is something for everyone–even those who drive Hummers, the most colossal of all urban assault vehicles…By offsetting the carbon dioxide emissions spewing from your car's tailpipe, TerraPass offers Hummer drivers eco-salvation.

Eco-salvation for Hummer drivers? A little too, oh, oxymoronic, for my tastes. Lazy is definitely geared towards a more high-end clientele, despite it's mention of Wal-Mart as an organic clothing retailer (Yeah, I know what you are thinking…I can't trust them quite yet, either).

Stepping off of my soapbox, for those of us who do have time, energy, and inclination to do something to lighten our footprint still have to buy goods and services, and Lazy provides a well-laid, well-written plan to finding greener versions of those goods and services. If you have to spend money, you might as well spend it on more sustainable products, right?

There are 22 chapters focusing on different products and services, from home furnishing to energy providers to media outlets (what, no shout out for Green Options?) Each chapter begins with a narrative insight into what practices these eco-companies are establishing to go green, then lists several companies, along with their websites and a brief description of what their business does or produces. Reading about different design innovations companies are using was fascinating (BraveSpace's hollow bamboo tables, anyone?), and I'll definitely check out many of the websites listed. If I'm going to save the planet, though, I've got better things to do.

The Renewable Energy Handbook

$mart Power

Wiliam Kemp has written two books on renewable power and off-grid systems for homes, $mart Power (2004) and The Renewable Energy Handbook (2005). (Smart Power actually uses a dollar sign for the S in the title.) These two books are largely a first and second edition of the same text, with the second edition being expanded with several new chapters and additional information.

Both of Kemp’s books are comprehensive volumes. He addresses a range of alternate power generating options. There are chapters on photovoltaic (PV), wind, biomass, and micro hydro. More than just discussing the technical aspects of the generating systems, he also covers efficiency, interconection, “Heating and Cooling with Renewable Energy,” “Living with Renewable Energy,” and the other issues surrounding having a home with renewable systems. He also has a section about making biodiesel and another section about eco-pools (naturally-, rather than chemically-filtered swimming pool systems) and solar heated pools and hot tubs.

The Renewable Energy Handbook and $mart Power both go into some depth about renewable energy systems. Kemp shows all aspects of the various systems, dealing with hardware installation, electrical connection, and the range of what is necessary to install any of the systems he discusses. While I would not rely solely on these books for direction about installing a PV system or a wind turbine, it does provide a greater depth of information. A homeowner can get a better sense of the scope of work required for installing a renewable system, and have a better idea about what is involved, and whether or not it is something they want to take on.

The book is copiously illustrated with many black and white photographs. The systems are more clearly understood when there are pictures to show the components, which people may not be familiar with. And seeing how large a battery bank is, or seeing what an inverter panel looks like helps give some potential owners an idea of what they will need to deal with if they install these units in their own homes. There are also many diagrams and tables with useful information for an owner of a renewable energy system.

Kemp provides case studies in The Renewable Energy Handbook. Five homes where various combinations of renewable systems were installed are shown, including the author’s own 3,300 square foot home. Kemp is a Canadian, and at least three of the examples are located in Canada. Though the other two are not explicitly identified, I suspect that all five of them are in Canada. These are good examples to show that renewable energy systems need not be restricted to only choice locations. Renewable systems can be installed anywhere.

A considerable portion of the book is devoted to battery storage, as well as the chargers, inverters, and other components of a power system for a completely off-grid application. With contemporary inverters, grid-tied power systems only supply power when the grid is active. In most cases, grid-tied houses will use net-metering with the grid as the “backup battery.” That way, the issues of battery cost and maintenance can be avoided altogether. However, some kind of backup power (whether that be with batteries or with a backup generator) will be needed. The battery information may not be pertinent to everyone, but Kemp provides enough information for a potential owner to consider whether or not to choose a battery system.

Kemp is an electrical engineer, and he has lived in his own off-grid house for a number of years. He writes from his own experience in much of what he writes about, and many of the photographs illustrating different systems are taken in and around his own home. While he promotes efficiency, he repeatedly points out that a renewable lifestyle does not need to be a spartan one. There are choices and tradeoffs to be made, but the stereo, the big screen television, and the cappucino machine are not prohibited, they just need to be carefully considered and the best available selection needs to be chosen.

The only issue I would like to see these books address more thoroughly is the question of evaluating which systems are appropriate for a particular location. There are a lot of factors to be considered, and every system is not necessarily appropriate for every location. A chapter that discussed how to decide whether to install a wind turbine or photovoltaics would be a valuable addition to a very comprehensive book that packs in a lot of information.

I am going to lend my copy of The Renewable Energy Handbook to my in-laws. They are beginning to plan for building their retirement home, and they have discussed some ideas for renewable energy that they would like to incorporate there. They are very interested in wind power (since they will be building in a windy location close to the Lake Michigan shore). I’ve discussed some of these system with them, but I think this book will give them good information about the scope of what they will need to do if they build their house this way. And I would recommend the book to anyone else in similar circumstances, or who is thinking about adding a renewable energy system to their existing home.

Ever dreamed about quitting the nine-to-five routine, getting out of the city or suburbs, and moving to a little farm in the country to raise organic vegetables and chickens? Of course you have: most of us trying to live more sustainable lives while maintaining an otherwise conventional existence likely share some version of that dream. John Ivanko and Lisa Kivirist's Rural Renaissance: Renewing the Quest for the Good Life gives a reader a first-hand account of their efforts to live that dream, and shares the knowledge and wisdom they've gained while building both a business and a family in central Wisconsin.

I expected a "how to" book when I first started reading. What I found, to my surprise and delight, was much more eclectic and fascinating. There's a wealth of practical information on renewable energy systems, strawbale building, food preservation and water conservation, but all of that is wrapped in the compelling story of how this couple transitioned from full-fledged yuppiehood to country living with a light footprint.

While not a traditional, straightforward narrative, all of the "how to" sections of the book connect with John and Lisa's personal journey and transformation. A reader will not only learn about different kinds of solar and wind power systems that can be integrated into a rural homestead (or other residences), but also how the couple went about choosing the equipment they now use, how they financed it, and even how new friends such as "Super" Bob, and Phil and Judy, played integral roles in helping these homesteading newbies make the right choices and install their systems. In the spirit of these helpful neighbors and friends, John and Lisa share ample lists of organizations, web sites and books that can help others wanting to build a more sustainable lifestyle. In many cases, there are personal connections here, too: the couple has worked with many of the non-profits and government agencies, met and spent time with authors, and used this information in their own effort.

The book's title might lead a reader to believe that Rural Renaissance concerns the "rebirth" of rural communities that have fallen into economic and cultural decline in recent decades. That's certainly a part of the book, but the renaissance described in its pages is much more varied, nuanced and complex. John and Lisa themselves are "reborn" as they transform the farm into Inn Serendipity, their home and "funky" bed and breakfast. They experience the birth of their child Liam, and the forging new friendships with rural neighbors from a variety of backgrounds. The share fellowship and community with other rural residents, b&b guests, and fellow devotees of "right livelihood." And they discover a way of life that's bursting with connection: to the land and environment, to the people around them, and to each other.

I got a chance to meet and chat with John and Lisa before we opened for business on the first day of the Chicago GreenFest. After reading their book, I hope our paths cross again. They're created a lifestyle that's both enviable and inspiring — I hope they'll continue to share their stories with those of us still dreaming…

For more information on John and Lisa's activities, visit the Rural Renaissance website.

The book discusses, in four sections, pockets of civilization that can give us hope for sustainable communities and environments. McKibben starts with arguably the driest section, chronicling the regrowth of wildlife in New England despite our best efforts to completely destroy it. Although the most tedious of the book, I found this section full of promise because it reminded me that in our quest to "save the environment", we are really saving humanity: the earth will continue to bounce back long after we're gone.

The second two sections discuss two local solutions to global problems in the communities of Curitiba, Brazil and Kerala, India. In the first, ambitious city planners in Curitiba use practical, yet ingenious solutions to the city's problems to create a sustainable city where people's desires are met, no matter what their income, and residents feel a strong sense of community. For example, Curitiba's favelas, or slums, were constantly overwhelmed with trash piling up. Local officials started a program where residents of the favelas could exchange bags of gathered trash for equal-weight bags of food purchased, by the city, from local farmers who had a surplus. A model public-transportation system, based on buses owned by private companies, but with fares and routes dictated by the city, had, in twenty years, grown from 25,000 riders per day, to 1.5 million. City planners changed much of the downtown business district into pedestrian-only areas.

Kerala's story was different, but no less remarkable. In a region where people survived on, at the time of first publication, $330 per year, life expectancies were equal to those of Americans, there was virtually 100% literacy, and education was a community priority, for adults and children alike. Keralites have been able to avoid the abject poverty that pervades much India, due to their leaders committing to putting people first, and breaking down socioeconomic barriers such as race, class, and gender through community commitment to problem solving.

The stories of these communities are so completely intriguing, mainly because of their innovative, yet practical approaches to solving problems that also plague us here in America. It indicated to me the glaring ethnocentrism that we sometimes demonstrate when it comes to looking outside our own country for answers to problems.

The final original section of the book covers McKibben's reflections on the first three, although I found the afterword much more fascinating, as McKibben reflects on the original text ten years later. Were Curitiba and Kerala able to sustain the successes they had achieved? How have NAFTA, the WTO, and 9/11 affected sustainability? Are we doomed, or does hope still exist? McKibben doesn't have all the answers, but I was left with hope that those answers are out there, waiting for us to discover them.

Ten Shades of Green: Architecture and the Natural World

With the buildings assembled here, the book could be construed as a small, self-contained Green Building Tour all its own.

The projects contained in the exhibition and the book all were built in the 1990s. All but one (an Australian housing project) are from Europe. There are also four residential projects - single family houses - at the end, and all of these are North American examples (though widely drawn from Nova Scotia, Texas, California, and Arizona). The projects include a museum in Switzerland, a skyscraper bank headquarters in Germany, and academic buildings in the Netherlands and England.

The buildings range in style and approach, as well. One of the points Buchanan makes in his introduction is that there is no one green style. "Instead there are countless ways design can address and synthesize green issues." Green design integrates all aspects of the building. Results can be widely varied, and different conditions, different uses for the buildings, different clients and users, all contribute to a widely varied set of conditions, and the results are buildings that vary in their configuration, appearance and incorporation of technology. However, despite all of these differences, they all share commonalities that can be identified in all of them as being green buildings.

Buchanan also lays out ten elements that are important in green design, although he does not look for all of the projects to address all of these criteria. Some only address a few of the ten points, while some others incorporate more than half of them. The ten facets of green architecture which Buchanan identifies include:

• Photo Credit: Architectural League Low Energy/High Performance
• Replenishable Sources
• Recycling: Eliminating Waste and Pollution
• Embodied Energy
• Long Life, Loose Fit
• Total Life Cycle Costing
• Embedded in Place
• Access and Urban Context
• Health and Happiness
• Community and Connection

While some of the ideas may not seem as radical and groundbreaking as they may have been a decade ago, the buildings that are featured are still fresh and exciting.

Some of the ten concepts are not given the importance they deserve within the framework of LEED and Green Globes and other product-oriented rating systems. For example, the concept of "Long Life, Loose Fit" recognizes that buildings need to be adaptable over time. A building will not be used by people in the same way as it was 50 years ago, nor will a building built today meet the exact needs of users a century from now. Buildings that have enough flexibility in their design that they can adapt to programmatic changes over time will be rehabilitated, renovated, and will continue to be useful, rather than becoming outdated and unworkable derelicts that must be demolished and replaced.

Photo Credit: Architectural LeagueRather than reflecting a design to meet a checklist of expectations, in some ways, these buildings offer a purer vision of what it takes to be a green building. They may not be as tightly constrained in order to meet a LEED Platinum rating as some more recent buildings are. But they offer a more expressive and varied approach to the possibilities of buildings that merge excellent design and green principles.

The Architectural League has a website with the different case studies, and it is well worth spending some time to visit the site and see what Buchanan is talking about. But the real eye candy is in the book itself, which, though a slim volume, offers a lot of photographs of green buildings that were green before the USGBC had even begun the LEED program.

Link:
Ten Shades of Green Website

In Carman's universe, Earth, here known as "The Dark Planet", can no longer support life. Atherton is a man-made satellite planet, shaped like a child's top, consisting of three levels: the seemingly uninhabited Flatlands, the agricultural Tabletops, and the lush, wealthy Highlands. Edgar is a boy who works and lives in the fig grove in Tabletops, whose crops go to support the Highlands, where the powerful live in relative luxury while they control the water supply. Edgar, however, is an excellent climber, and uses his talent to span the three levels of Atherton. Soon, he and the other citizens of Atherton realize their worlds are about to collide when the Highlands start to sink into Tabletops.

Carman uses Atherton to explore the ideas of class struggle, limited natural resources, and the value of our environment. Edgar, and his female companion Isabel, are empowering characters that are brave and cunning, and readers will cheer their efforts to find the truth and save their people. Even as an adult, I was drawn into Carman's world, and children will be able to find multiple parallels to our own world (although adults won't have to work very hard.) The mysterious nature of Atherton's past and future will keep readers' interest until the last pages.

Also appealing about the Atherton series is the potentially-vast interactive supplemental material online. Web-savvy kids will have diagrams, video, audio, additional text, and the like to tide them over until the next Atherton book is released. The hardcover release of Atherton: The House of Power will include a free DVD with bonus materials.

For parents looking for engaging, action-packed books that explore environmental themes in an approachable manner, Atherton: The House of Power is well worth a trip to your local bookstore when it is released on April 3rd.