Resilience

Rooftop Revolution

Thu, 23 May 2013 14:52:44 GMT

Solar power's detractors have been proclaiming that the collapse of solar panel manufacturer Solyndra proves solar is just a hippie pipe dream. But as Danny Kennedy points out, Solyndra's downfall actually proves the opposite: the company failed because it wasn't able to compete in a red-hot industry, not because solar isn't ready for prime time. In this succinct, hard-hitting book, Kennedy proves that solar can save money, create jobs, and protect the environment—and only politics and perception stand in its way.

TEDxManhattan - Brian Halweil: From New York to Africa, Why Food is Saving the World

Mon, 20 May 2013 16:35:48 GMT

Brian Halweil, publisher of Edible Manhattan, was on track to become a doctor until he realized that repairing the global food system could help to conserve people’s health and wellbeing more. Halweil believes that the local food movement is a truly powerful medicine.  

Stories of the Great Turning

Thu, 16 May 2013 11:31:56 GMT

Here is a book of stories written by people who decided to act, in their own lives, in response to the challenges of our time, and found their own way to make a difference. They are not stories about celebrities or gurus of the environmental movement but honest accounts from people who share a concern for the world we live in and who, in the words of one of the contributors, “just got on with it".

Supply Shock: Economic Growth at the Crossroads and the Steady State Solution

Thu, 09 May 2013 21:00:12 GMT

The steady state revolution - navigating the end of economic growth

The Five Stages of Collapse: Survivors' Toolkit

Thu, 09 May 2013 20:51:17 GMT

A user's guide to economic, political, social and cultural collapse by Dmitry Orlov

Cold, Hungry and in the Dark

Thu, 09 May 2013 20:41:19 GMT

What the frack - exploding the myth of the natural gas "100-year supply"

State of the World 2013: Is Sustainability Still Possible?

Fri, 03 May 2013 13:24:27 GMT

Every day, we are presented with a range of “sustainable” products and activities—from “green” cleaning supplies to carbon offsets—but with so much labeled as “sustainable,” the term has become essentially sustainababble, at best indicating a practice or product slightly less damaging than the conventional alternative. Is it time to abandon the concept altogether, or can we find an accurate way to measure sustainability? If so, how can we achieve it? And if not, how can we best prepare for the coming ecological decline?

Cows Save the Planet

Wed, 01 May 2013 15:52:48 GMT

Cows saving the planet? Why not? An idea that sounds preposterous begins to make sense when you take a soil’s-eye view of our current ecological predicament.

A Sewer Catastrophe Companion

Thu, 04 Apr 2013 14:36:57 GMT

This illustrated guide presents a series of graduated responses you can do to keep yourself and your community safe from disease during the short term and long term disruption of sewer services. It's a solution for managing excreta that’s not excreting problems later.This flexible system is built around ubiquitous and freely available 5-gallon buckets and based on World Health Organization guidelines for excreta reuse. On two occasions it has been successfully deployed from available resources with little pre-planning.

Closing the Loop: Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Creating Green Jobs Through Zero Waste in B.C.

Tue, 02 Apr 2013 17:29:32 GMT

This study aims to address the core problem: a culture of consumption and an economic system that is wasteful and that contributes to climate change. It looks at the possibilities for reducing both solid waste and greenhouse gas emissions while maintaining a high quality of life from the products and services we use.

The Politics of Actually Existing Unsustainability: Human Flourishing in a Climate-Changed, Carbon Constrained World

Fri, 22 Mar 2013 16:32:51 GMT

Going against both the naive techno-optimism of 'greening business as usual' and a resurgent 'catastrophism' within green thinking and politics, The Politics of Actually Existing Unsustainability offers an analysis of the causes of unsustainability and diminished human flourishing. It makes a case for seeing that it is profound and deepening unsustainability and growing injustice that characterizes the modern world. The books locates the causes of unsustainability in dominant capitalist modes of production, debt-based consumerism, and the imperative for orthodox economic growth. It suggests that valuable insights into the causes of and alternatives to unsustainability can be found in a critical embracing of human vulnerability and dependency as both constitutive and ineliminable aspects of what it means to be human. Rather than seeing invulnerability as the appropriate response, the book defends resilience, the ability to 'cope with' rather than 'solve' vulnerability, as a more productive strategy.

What is Permaculture?

Tue, 19 Mar 2013 11:20:03 GMT

Permaculture is primarily a thinking tool for designing low carbon, highly productive systems but its influence can be very pervasive! What can start as a journey towards living a more ecologically balanced lifestyle can go far deeper, even transforming our worldview and radically altering behaviour.

Drill, Baby, Drill

Fri, 15 Mar 2013 19:02:06 GMT

In this landmark report, J. David Hughes from Post Carbon Institute takes a far-ranging and painstakingly researched look at the prospects for various unconventional fuels to provide energy abundance for the United States in the 21st Century. While the report examines a range of energy sources, the centerpiece of “Drill, Baby, Drill” is a critical analysis of shale gas and shale oil (tight oil) and the potential of a shale “revolution.”

!Don't Just Sit There - Do Something!

Tue, 05 Mar 2013 14:11:32 GMT

This website showcases the video series, Don't Just Sit There - Do Something! See above to find an example episode. In these short videos, you will hear the latest news on all aspects of the climate crisis, explained simply, piece by piece --- and find out how to do something about it.

Kramerterhof: A tour of Sepp Holzer's permaculture farm with his son Josef

Fri, 01 Mar 2013 17:22:13 GMT

Visit Sepp Holzer's amazing, biodiverse farm 1500 metres (almost 5000 feet) on an Austrian mountain. Most neighbouring farmers mainly 'farm' monocultural spruce plantations, Sepp is able to produce an incredible range of crops through the creation of microclimates and his unique water management systems. Sepp builds water retaining ponds and lake systems high up on the mountain which have become thriving aquacultures producing fish for the table as well as wildlife habitats teeming with biodiversity. The water creates microclimates around the banks where Sepp is able to grow an abundant edible landscape of fruit and nut orchards plus heritage vegetable and grain crops planted along the banks. In a cold Alpine climate you can find oranges, lemons and kiwis growing, as well as numerous other fruits and vegetables.

Pocket Neighborhoods: Creating Small Scale Community in a Large Scale World

Wed, 20 Feb 2013 17:09:13 GMT

Pocket Neighborhoods: Creating Small Scale Community in a Large Scale World introduces an antidote to faceless, placeless sprawl — real neighborhoods of a scale and design where people can easily know one another; where empty nesters and single householders with far-flung families can find friendship or a helping hand nearby; and where children can have shirt-tail aunties and uncles just beyond their front gate.

7 food forests in 7 minutes with Geoff Lawton

Tue, 19 Feb 2013 16:33:11 GMT

Food forests are at the heart of Permaculture and fast becoming a hot topic in many areas of debate as people realise the their full potential.

The "Be Prepared" Booklet for Young Australians

Fri, 01 Feb 2013 20:17:21 GMT

This booklet is based on my interpretation of what the Scout Leader, Lord Baden-Powell, would be thinking about in these current and uncertain times. What would he be saying to today’s young people? Two of his quotations were – “There's nothing like 'Being Prepared,' is there, for what might seem possible, even if it may not seem probable.” And, “Try to leave this world a little better than you found it and, when your turn comes to die, you can die happy in feeling that at any rate you have not wasted your time but have done your best.” They are still very valid today...

Transforming Urban Environments for a Post Peak Oil Future

Fri, 01 Feb 2013 20:17:19 GMT

The Post Peak Oil Vision Plan analyzes probable implications of Peak Oil on the City of San Buenaventura and the surrounding region, and describes a vision for Post Peak Oil planning that responds to these implications by building upon positive trends that are already taking place. This vision is supported by planning and design guidelines as well as a phased implementation plan. The regional vision emphasizes preservation of natural resources, concentration of the developed footprint, and intra-regional collaboration.

Tellus Institute Publications

Fri, 01 Feb 2013 20:16:26 GMT

About 350 selected publications are available here on scenarios, energy, water, solid waste, corporate responsibility, and sustainable development.

Water Safety Planning for Small-Community Water Supplies

Fri, 01 Feb 2013 20:15:51 GMT

Step-by-step risk management guidance for drinking-water supplies in small communities

KGI Garden Planner: The Best Way to Plan Your Kitchen Garden

Fri, 01 Feb 2013 20:15:47 GMT

The KGI Garden Planner makes it easy to draw out your vegetable beds, add plants and move tem around to get the perfect layout.

Water Works: Rebuilding Infrastructure, Creating Jobs, Greening the Environment

Fri, 01 Feb 2013 20:15:46 GMT

Want to create 1.9 million American jobs and add $265 billion to the economy? Upgrade our water infrastructure. That's the message of Water Works: Rebuilding Infrastructure, Creating Jobs, Greening the Environment, a report by Green For All.

Alliance for Water Efficiency Resource Library

Fri, 01 Feb 2013 20:15:30 GMT

A multitude of resources about water efficiency including an interactive map that allows users to find out who is responsible for water efficiency work in their state.

Creating a Home Graywater System

Fri, 01 Feb 2013 20:15:28 GMT

Trathen Heckman takes us on a step-by-step tour of how to make a safe, ecological and legal suburban home graywater system.