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Megan at ZeroSmart

The Top 10 Sustainable Books to Read in 2022

Updated: Mar 16, 2022

In celebration of World Book Day 2022, we have put together a list of the top ten sustainable books to read this year. These books helped us along in our sustainability journey and we hope they do with yours also.


1. The Sustainable(ish) Living Guide: Everything you need to know to make small changes that make a big difference by Jen Gale


Paperback cream coloured back with the title in orange and blue font and the author in orange font.
The Sustainable (ish) Living Guide. Everything you need to know to make small changes that make a difference by Jen Gale

Written by eco blogger Jen Gale, The Sustainable (ish) Living Guide is filled with easy, doable, down-to-earth ideas and suggestions for everyone to help save the planet. It contains stacks of practical, realistic changes to slot into your daily life. These things range from unsubscribing from all the tempting emails in your box to how much water you actually need to boil the kettle.



2. How To Break Up With Fast Fashion: A guilt-free guide to changing the way you shop - for good by Lauren Bravo


Paperback cover, in the style of a clothing tag. Blue leapord print clothing item with white label which reads the title attatched.
How to Break Up with Fast Fashion: A guilt free guide to changing the way you shop -for good by Lauren Bravo

Journalist Lauren Bravo loves clothes more than anything, but she's called time on her affair with fast fashion in search of a slower, saner way of dressing. In her book How to Break Up with Fast Fashion, she'll help you do the same.



3. No One Is Too Small to Make a Difference by Greta Thunberg


White paperback book with the author and title in bold black font. An image of Greta in a yellow hood in the centre of the book.
No One Is Too Small to Make a Difference by Greta Thunberg

This small, quick-read book is a brilliant gateway into a sustainable life. No one is Too Small to Make a Difference, is a collection of Greta Thunberg’s speeches together in one volume, this timely book lays bare the eloquence and fury that drive a global environmental movement.



4. A Life on Our Planet: My Witness Statement and a Vision for the Future by David Attenborough

A cream coloured book with the title and subtitles in black and red font. David Attenborough in red font. At the bottom is an image of the author.
A Life on Our Planet: My Witness Statement and a Vision for the Future by David Attenborough

Self-described by Attenbourgh to contain his witness statement and vision for the future - this is his story of how we came to make our greatest mistake, and how we can yet put if we act now it right.



5. There is No Planet B by Mike Bernes-Lee


White book with blue and black text depicting the author and title. The "O" in "NO" is replaced with an image of the globe.
There is No Planet B by Mike Bernes-Lee

Do we all need to become vegetarian? How can we fly in a low-carbon world? Should we frack? How can we take control of technology? Does it all come down to population? And, given the global nature of the challenges we now face, what on Earth can any of us do? Fortunately, Mike Berners-Lee has crunched the numbers and plotted a practical and even enjoyable course of action in his book ‘There is No Planet B’.



6. This Is Not A Drill by Extinction Rebellion


A bright pink book with bold black lettering spelling the title over the spread of the page.
This Is Not A Drill by Extinction Rebellion.

If you aren't aware of who the Extinction Rebellion are, they are a global environmental movement. This is Not A Drill is a book of truth and action. It has facts to arm you, stories to empower you, pages to fill in and pages to rip out, alongside instructions on how to rebel - from organising a roadblock to facing arrest.



7. Cradle to Cradle. Re-making the Ways we Make Things by Michael Braungart and Willaim McDonough


An orange exclamation with a cherry replace the . The title is inside the orange exclamation mark in cream font.
Cradle to Cradle. Re-making the Ways we Make Things by Michael Braungart and Willaim McDonough

Cradle to Cradle. Rethinking the Way we Make Things, is written by the authors to propose that instead of minimising waste, we should be working towards creating value. The authors describe an integration of design and science that provides enduring benefits for society from safe materials, water and energy in circular economies and eliminate the concept of waste.



8. How Bad are Bananas?: The Carbon Footprint of Everything by Mike Bernes-Lee

Paperback with blue background, and a yellow banana decorated with the title in a bold, black font.
How Bad are Bananas?: The Carbon Footprint of Everything by Mike Bernes-Lee.

This is the second Mike Bernes- Lee book on this list of the top 10 Sustainable Books Books to Read in 2022. In How Bad are Bananas: The Carbon Footprint of Everything. The author talks through the carbon footprint of everything from a Valentine's rose to have a child. But be warned… one of the things you thought you knew about green living may be about to be turned on their head.



9. 101 Ways to Go Zero Waste by Kathryn Kellogg

Book cover with title in white and yellow text, agaisnt a blue background.
101 Ways to Go Zero Waste by Kathryn Kellogg

Described to be the beginner’s handbook for sustainable and eco-friendly living, 101 Ways to Go Zero Waste is a non-judgmental book that is the perfect addition to your sustainable book collection. The book is literally 101 tips, meaning it can be read cover to cover or browsed through.



10. The Upcycle: Beyond Sustainability-Designing for Abundance By William McDonough, Michael Braungart and Bill Clinton


White book, with a yellow and green zig zag running through the centre of the page. The text is all black.
10. The Upcycle: Beyond Sustainability-Designing for Abundance By William McDonough, Michael Braungart and Bill Clinton

In The Upcycle, the authors describe their vision of what they believe to be the solution to our ecological crisis: We don't just use or reuse and recycle resources with greater effectiveness, we actually improve the natural world as we live, create, and build. This vision includes the design of products, buildings and businesses and how they can be used to grow life on the planet, not drain it.



Conclusion


These are The Top 10 Sustainable Books Books to Read in 2022. Have you read any of these? Did we miss any? Let us know at @ZeroSmartuk.






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