The book contains 10 chapters that are broken up into the 4 main sections below:
1) Why we need change - Explores human nature in the face of environmental problems in the modern world, the science of global warming, the influence of big polluters (i.e. oil and coal companies) and the issue of overpopulation.
2) What to change - Looks at the different actions individuals can take to lessen their ecological impact are discussed as well as the role the government needs to take to successfully tackle climate change.
3) How to change - Discusses simple behavioural change strategies to help people to make the changes they need to make and ways each of us can connect with nature 4) Who has changed - Presents what different people and organisations from all over the world are doing about the climate crisis.
To download a copy of this ebook click here. Please be patient while it downloads (it is 5MB due to the mind maps and other images).
Testimonial
“Fantastic Jane. Your ebook is really wonderful. The wholistic approach helps people think about their whole life, which is of course going to be necessary, but the suggestions sound really easy and possible”
Lesli Grant, educator
“‘I liked your eBook a lot and it really touched me. A nice way to write and a nice design. To some extent, I was amazed by it. The book really gave me hope and I especially liked the psychological examination. Let’s tackle the future and make a better world”
The Center for Ecoliteracy is dedicated to education for sustainable living. In the words of CEL cofounder Fritjof Capra,
We do not need to invent sustainable human communities. We can learn from societies that have lived sustainably for centuries. We can also model communities after nature's ecosystems, which are sustainable communities of plants, animals, and microorganisms. Since the outstanding characteristic of the biosphere is its inherent ability to sustain life, a sustainable human community must be designed in such a manner that its technologies and social institutions honor, support, and cooperate with nature's inherent ability to sustain life.
The processes and patterns by which ecosystems sustain themselves have evolved over billions of years. Designing human communities that are compatible with nature's processes requires basic ecological knowledge, which is one of the key components of ecological literacy.
Community
To the Okanagan people, as to all peoples practicing bioregional self-sufficient economies, the realization that the total community must be engaged in order to attain sustainability comes as a result of surviving together for thousands of years. The practical aspects of willing teamwork within a whole-community system clearly emerged from having to cooperate in order to survive.
- Okanagan Wisdom Keeper Jeannette Armstrong
The discoveries of both modern science and traditional people tell us that community is central to sustainable living. For this reason, the Center focuses its work in communities, especially in schools that are learning communities.
Many of the schools that are most successful at teaching ecological literacy are also active in their local communities. Their activities range from serving meals made from food purchased from sustainable regional farms to inviting neighbors to participate in school events to involving students in projects that contribute to the well-being of their communities.
Systems Thinking
In Science for All Americans, the American Association for the Advancement of Science defines a "system" simply as "any collection of things that have some influence on each other....The things can be almost anything, including objects, organisms, machines, processes, ideas, numbers, or organizations. Thinking of a collection of things as a system draws our attention to what needs to be included among the parts to make sense of it, to how its parts interact with one another, and to how the system as a whole relates to other systems."
Individual "things" (plants, people, schools, watersheds) are themselves systems, and are not sustainable separate from the larger systems in which they exist. The Center for Ecoliteracy recognizes that learning to think systemically is critical to education for sustainability. One of the ways that teachers and schools teach systemic thinking is to model it themselves.
Shifts in Perception
According to Fritjof Capra, systems thinking requires thinking in terms of relationships, connectedness, and context. Thinking systemically also requires several shifts in perception, which lead in turn to different ways to teach, and different ways to organize society:
From parts to the whole
Systems are integrated wholes whose properties cannot be reduced to those of smaller parts. Their "systemic" properties are properties of the whole which are possessed by none of the parts. The nature and quality of what students learn is strongly affected by the culture of the whole school, not just the individual classroom. This shift in perception can also lead to moving from curricula based on single subject matters to integrated curricula.
From objects to relationships
An ecosystem is not just a collection of species, but is a community. Communities, whether ecosystems or human systems, are made up of sets, or networks, of relationships. In the systems view, the "objects" of study are networks of relationships. Organizations, including schools, that adopt this perspective are more likely to emphasize relationship-based processes such as cooperation and decision-making by consensus.
From objective knowledge to contextual knowledge
Shifting focus from the parts to the whole implies shifting from analytical thinking to contextual thinking. Since explaining things in terms of their contexts means explaining them in terms of their environments, all systems thinking is environmental thinking. This shift sometimes results in schools' focusing on project-based learning instead of prescriptive curricula. It also encourages teachers to serve as facilitators and fellow learners alongside students, rather than as experts dispensing knowledge.
From quantity to quality
Through much of the history of Western science, many of its practitioners have maintained that only things that can be measured and quantified can be expressed in scientific models. It has sometimes been implied that phenomena that can be measured and quantified are more important—and perhaps even that what cannot be measured and quantified doesn't exist at all. Relationships and context, however, cannot be put on a scale or measured with a ruler. In practice, this shift can lead to seeking more comprehensive forms of assessment besides standardized testing.
From structure to process
Living systems develop and evolve. Therefore, understanding them requires understanding renewal, change, and transformation. In practice, this shift can result in shifting emphasis to how a student solves a problem rather than on whether or not he or she gets the "right" answer. In communities, it can mean that the process for making decisions is often as important as the decisions themselves.
From contents to patterns
When we draw maps of relationships, we discover that certain configurations of relationships appear again and again. We call these configurations patterns. Instead of focusing on what a living system is made of, we study its patterns. This shift leads to discovering that understanding how a pattern works in one natural or social system helps us to understand other systems that manifest the same pattern.
Competencies
In addition to environmental knowledge, education for sustainability includes the acquisition of particular skills, values, and vision needed to put that knowledge into practice.
Education for sustainable living cultivates competencies of head, heart, hands, and spirit to enable children to develop toward becoming citizens capable of designing and maintaining sustainable societies. A few of these competencies:
Head
- Ecological knowledge
- The ability to think systemically
- The ability to think critically, to solve problems creatively, and to apply environmental ethics to new situations
- The ability to assess the impact of human technologies and actions and to envision the long-term consequences of decisions
Heart
- A deeply felt, not just understood, concern for the well-being of the Earth and of all living things
- Empathy and the ability to see from and appreciate multiple perspectives
- A commitment to equity, justice, inclusivity, and respect for all people
- Skills in building, governing, and sustaining communities
Hands
- The ability to apply ecological knowledge to the practice of ecological design
- Practical skills to create and use tools, objects, and procedures required by sustainable communities
- The ability to assess and make adjustments to uses of energy and resources
- The capacity to convert convictions into practical and effective action
Spirit
- A sense of wonder
- A capacity for reverence
- A deep appreciation of place
- A feeling of kinship with the natural world, and the ability to invoke that feeling in others
Sustainability and Schools
The Center for Ecoliteracy has based most of its work in schools. The values, habits, and worldviews of individuals are often set, and hard to change, by the time that people become adults. Society gives schools the responsibility for passing on cultural values.
The "hidden curricula" of schools convey the values that are really important to the school, even when they contradict the lessons of the classroom (for instance, a soda machine in the hallway can speak louder than any number of lectures about nutrition). Schools are systems, and they are communities. Schools are themselves important nodes in the web of institutions that constitutes society. Whatever happens in schools will have profound effects on the rest of society.
CEL has also identified a number of qualities and practices that characterize schools that are most effective in educating for ecological literacy:
Schools as communities
The most effective schools are often communities that model the traits of sustainable societies:
- They know that children's ability to learn, and what they learn, are greatly affected by the vibrancy and health of the culture of the school and the quality of the relationships within it
- They function as "apprenticeship communities" in which leadership is shared and members of the community see themselves and others as both teachers and learners
- They recognize that "the curriculum is anywhere that learning occurs" (whether or not it is intended or directed by educators)
Practices of effective schools
These effective schools often incorporate one or several of the following practices:
- They connect children with the natural world through programs and projects outside the classroom, such as school gardens, habitat restoration, and communicating their experience in nature through painting and poetry
- They practice place-based education that teaches students about the people, history, culture, and natural features of their local community and region
- They practice environmental project-based learning, involving students in local projects that are meaningful and make real contributions to their communities
- They integrate in-class learning with hands-on experiences and with all of the activities (including, e.g., lunch) of the school
- They address whole children, recognizing that children's ability to learn is affected by their health and well-being, and that these are in turn affected by such factors as nutrition, exercise, and the health of the natural environment
- They employ the best current understandings of how brains and minds develop and how children learn. They attend to children in all their dimensions, including cognitive, emotional, and aesthetic
Transforming education
Implementing this kind of education often requires changing educational institutions, relationships, and practices. Because schools are expected to pass on cultural values, they are among the more conservative of our society's democratic institutions, and therefore among the slowest to change.
Classrooms, schools, and districts are also systems; effective change agents often use systems thinking and ecological concepts when devising strategies for changing those systems:
- They create networks of students, parents, teachers, administrators, and community organizations working together for change
- They change hierarchical authority patterns to promote the development of learning communities
- They solve for pattern rather than try to address individual "problems"
- They recognize and direct change efforts toward nested systems at multiple levels of organization (classrooms within schools within districts within communities within societies, etc.)
- They build strategies on the understanding that it is in the nature of systems to maintain a dynamic balance (Outside intervention doesn't really "change" a system; it only disturbs it, creating an opportunity for reorganizing in a different, and not completely predictable, way.)
Exemplars
The Center for Ecoliteracy has identified and supported a number of schools and projects that embody processes and practices for effective education for sustainability.
In-depth articles about these exemplary schools and projects are available in our Publications section.
Exemplars include:
The Edible Schoolyard (ESY) at MartinLutherKingMiddle School in Berkeley has been recognized around the world for its organic garden, landscape, and kitchen, which are wholly integrated into the school's curriculum. Its goals are grounded in ecological concepts developed by the Center for Ecoliteracy, a supporter since ESY's beginnings. read more...
LaytonvilleHigh School and other participants in the North Coast Rural Challenge Network in northern California use project-based learning to help improve environmental quality and community vitality in their small rural towns. While benefiting the community, the projects teach students about living systems and ecological concepts such as lifecycles, feedback mechanisms, and sustainability. read more...
At ParkSchool in Mill Valley, California parents, teachers, students, administrators, and neighbors share responsibilities for creating and maintaining a lively learning community. Park's curriculum integrates academics with gardening, restoration of a nearby creek, and community service. Participation in Center for Ecoliteracy workshops helped the staff network with like-minded educators and provided intellectual underpinnings for the school's developing educational philosophy. read more...
Rethinking School Lunch (RSL) is a comprehensive resource created by the Center for Ecoliteracy, based on five years of applying systems thinking to study school food systems. It explores the relationship of nutrition to students' well-being and their ability to learn; envisions lunch as part of an integrated curriculum using school gardens, kitchen classrooms, and local food systems as contexts for learning; examines the implications of solving for pattern; and addresses strategies for bringing its visions to reality. read more...
River of Words (ROW). ROW, a Center for Ecoliteracy grantee, engages students with their local watersheds through practicing close observation and expressing their connections to the environment in art and poetry. In affiliation with the Library of Congress, ROW annually conducts the world's largest youth poetry and art contest. Through its Watershed Curriculum ROW trains thousands of classroom teachers, park rangers, and youth workers to incorporate nature exploration and the arts in their programs. read more...
Mary E. Silveira School (MES) in San Rafael, California developed the EcoStars program to help students create a sense of community and to become "conscious designers of their habitat and stewards of their place." Elementary school children at MES have participated in designing, planning, building, and maintaining such projects as a pond habitat, school gardens, a composting system for the school cafeteria, and a guide for restoring a near-by canyon. Through these projects, they have learned, and practiced, ecological concepts, critical thinking, and problem solving. read more...
Students and Teachers Restoring a Watershed (STRAW) practices hands-on, placed-based education through watershed restoration projects connected to students' classroom lessons. STRAW's growth from a project in one classroom to a consortium of schools, farms, and private and public agencies illustrates solving for pattern and such ecological concepts as networks, cycles, nested systems, and development. read more...
Copyright 2006. Center for Ecoliteracy. All Rights Reserved.
With more municipalities going to curbside recycling, running a compost heap isn’t just for the crunchy set anymore. Here’s how to know what belongs in the pile.
Composting isn’t just for kitchen scraps anymore. Or just for hardcore Greens. Learning how to get a compost heap running has become an important way to both enrich our garden soil and reduce the amount of organic waste which ends up at your local landfill. But how do you know what should, and — perhaps more importantly – shouldn’t go into the pile?
That’s where Compost This comes in. A companion to the popular recycling and repurposing site Recycle This, Compost This is the brainchild of Louisa Parry and John Leach. The couple is also responsible for the UK-based celebrity mashup Fametastic.
Composting may not be quite as glamorous as chasing the latest dish on Angelina Jolie, but there’s a certain sexiness to knowing whether or not you can compost dryer lint (yes, but too many dryer sheets will add unwanted chemical residue to the pile). And that’s how Compost This works — it’s an indexed guide that says yes, no, or maybe to things you might want to compost.
A sample:
Cardboard. You bet, but it breaks down best if it’s wet and shredded. Baked beans. Nope, worms don’t don’t fancy them. You’d like the earthworms to feel right at home. Cat waste and litter. Definitely not. Cat waste might contain organisms dangerous to humans. Shredded paper. Yes, but refrain from shiny stocks. Potatoes. Absolutely — though whole ones are pretty stubborn and might regrow. Free potatoes for everyone.
You get the idea. It’s a one-stop shop for the prospective composter. Be good to the Earth and the make the garbage man’s job a little easier at Compost This.
Kitbag - vital resources in powerful times Short introductory brochure describing Kitbag and IFF's experience to date in using this transformational tool in a variety of settings including a women's prison, community groups, children. Date: 23 Oct 2008 Size: 410kB
Psychological Literacy and the Future of HR Sets out the learning from the project relevant to corporate health, performance and human resources. What constitutes the psychologically healthy corporation, and what competitive advantage might it enjoy? Date: 28 Aug 2006 Size: 321kB
Psychological Literacy Project A short paper describing the IFF's psychological literacy project and the development of our 'Human Resource Kit'. Date: 27 Feb 2006 Size: 1.2MB
Rising to the Occasion: cultural leadership in powerful times A report for MMM on the nature of the leadership challenge in powerful times and the role that the arts and cultural sector might play as a setting for developing 21st century competencies. Date: 29 Jun 2007 Size: 721kB
Climate Change and Mental Health A brief discussion paper prepared as an introduction and stimulation for an online conference on climate change and mental health hosted by the Mental Health Foundation in January 2005. Date: 04 Apr 2007 Size: 112kB
Policy Learning This pamphlet advances a simple thesis. In order to flourish in today’s complex and fast-changing world we need to become a learning intensive society. Government cannot support that move unless the policy process itself reflects the theory and practice of lifelong learning it seeks to encourage in others. This is the case for ‘policy learning’. Date: 02 Mar 2006 Size: 779kB
Policy Learning - European Journal article An article on policy learning by Graham Leicester published in the European Journal of Education special edition on futures of learning in June 2007. Date: 24 Jun 2007 Size: 107kB
Three horizons of education policy in Scotland The record of a workshop in March 2007 in Scotland using the three horizons framework to structure a conversation about the failings of today's system, a vision of a more desirable future, and the innovations - existing and potential - that might ease the passage from one to the other. Date: 15 Aug 2008 Size: 586kB
Three horizons of financial services An alternative three horizons template suitable for shorter discussions, formatted around four boxes. This one records discussion about the future of financial services in an increasingly digital age. Date: 15 Aug 2008 Size: 289kB
The Spirit of Social Innovation Alison Elliot's lecture in the Scottish Parliament, 26 June 2006. Sets out the faith-based approach to social innovation. Date: 28 Aug 2006 Size: 359kB
Homo Poeticus and the Art of Culture Working paper prepared for a workshop in May 2007 exploring some of the core ideas and foundational concepts that might underpin the notion of an 'ecology of the arts'. Date: 06 Nov 2007 Size: 203kB
The Economy of Art A companion piece to 'Homo Poeticus and the Art of Culture' unpicking notions of 'value', 'property' and 'economy' in a wider, systemic context. Date: 11 Sep 2008 Size: 92kB
The Art of Better Giving: social entrepreneuring and the future of philanthropyproject details
Public documents shown below
The Art of Better Giving A discussion paper on the challenges to effective philanthropy in a complex world, and some ideas about new models and modes for spending money to greater effect. Date: 10 Jan 2006 Size: 68kB
Feeling abundant in today's economy may be challenging when a majority of the population, including the media, is filled with negative outlooks regarding the uncertain financial future of the United States. This negative attention and focus can trigger overwhelming feelings that can cause us to feel out of control. It is important to remind ourselves that periods of intense change always create the space for new beginnings and pathways to be formed. This is yet another opportunity for personal growth and self transformation. One unchanging and constant fact is the only thing a person can control is the way he or she personally responds and reacts to events and situations that occur outside of the self. Consciously focusing our thoughts on the positive aspects of every experience, long-term goals and the inner abundance of source will keep one feeling the inherent freedom that is our natural birthright.
To attract abundance, we must first find a way to think and feel abundant in the present moment. Although it does take a certain degree of disciplined effort, mastering this mind set can be EASY and FUN to do. All that is required is a shift of focus. Maintaining focus on the positive aspects in every experience and seeking the inherent beauty in all things will allow us to feel and recognize the abundance of resources already present in our lives. Sounds easy? It is. The following are a few simple tips to assist in shifting your focus to recognize the boundless abundance that you already possess.
• First things first, reduce your amount of exposure to the media. Limiting the amount of time one listens and watches the news will help to keep focus on what really matters; your positive state of mind and over all feelings of well-being. Although it is important to stay tuned into current events, the more one listens to the programming, the easier it is to focus on it. The news mainly keeps a person tuned in and focused on the negative aspects. Reduce your exposure.
• Clearly state your intentions. This is a time of change and reform that is creating an abundance of new opportunities. Make use of this time to seek out experiences in life that positively impact you and make you feel good. Deliberate setting of intentions instantly launches thought in a desired direction. Set intentions to prosper, to thrive, and to attract and discover work that inspires passion. Intention setting empowers a person to feel in control of the way they respond to circumstances and incites productive actions. Declaring positive statements lifts one to the belief that achieving fulfillment of their deepest dreams is achievable. This is the necessary fuel that transforms dreams into a reality. Move forward by setting positive intentions.
• Actively seek out abundance in simple things. Look for and recognize abundance in and around your environment. Abundance is defined as anything in which there is more than enough of. Discovering abundance in the simple things cultivates a master mindset that will ultimately serve to attract more desired experiences of having more than enough. Think abundantly, confirm the abundance already present in your reality, and generate feelings of abundance from within. Remaining disciplined in these actions will allow one to capture the essence of abundance. Experiencing the essence of abundance is the ultimate key to allowing it to flow more freely into one's life. This is the Law of Attraction in action.
• Be thankful for all things and experiences that are already present in your reality. An attitude of gratitude expands your focus to embrace all the positive aspects already taking place in your life.
This planet is filled with an abundant amount of resources. The most abundant resource available to each and every one of us is the creative source of our minds from which all thought, idea and inspiration are created. The way we think, feel and choose to perceive the world can open the doors to abundance and attract everything we need in order to survive. The time is NOW! Seek the inherent beauty and positive aspect in every experience. As one maintains this discipline, abundance is already present!
This resource guide highlights steps you can take to be happier yourself and to support a healthier society—by building stronger communities, creating joyful and purposeful activities for yourself and others, practicing mindfulness, finding healing, learning to live more simply, and building a society that prioritizes happiness over accumulation of wealth.
Check out this section for resources on connecting with allies and building a people’s movement.
Build Community
The Community Toolbox, a web resource, offers hundreds of articles containing practical guidance, toolkits, and strategies for developing a healthy community. Topics include cultural competence, spirituality, the arts and community building, analyzing community problems, and promoting interest and participation. ctb.ku.edu
Celebrate
Laughter Yoga International offers laughter yoga videos, news, information on how laughter yoga can improve your health, and links to laughter yoga clubs and teachers all over the planet. Read about laughter yoga in the Winter 2009 issue of YES! www.laughteryoga.org
Newmindspace, the website of Kevin Bracken and Lori Kufner, offers resources for urban playground events such as “Capture the Flag” and mass pillow fights. Read about the Urban Playground Movement in the Winter 2009 issue of YES! www.newmindspace.com
Find Fulfilling Work and Activities
The Great Plains Restoration Council engages youth in programs to learn about their own health while working to improve the health of prairie ecosystems, and organizes campaigns to support prairie conservation. GPRC’s founder and executive director, Jarid Manos, is featured in the YES! Winter 2009 issue. www.gprc.org
At Idealist.org, you can search 20,000 nonprofit and community organizations in 150 countries for volunteer and internship opportunities. You'll also find a nonprofit career center, with hundreds of job and internship listings. www.idealist.org
Slow Down and Live Lightly on the Planet
Center for a New American Dream advocates changing our consumption for the benefit of the environment and people. The group runs campaigns such as Break the Bottled Water Habit and provides information on how to become a conscious consumer. www.newdream.org
No Impact Man is a blog written by Colin Beavan. The site chronicles his family’s efforts to have smallest possible impact on the planet while living in New York City. In the Winter 2009 issue, Beavan tells us how to have a merry Christmas without the stuff. www.noimpactman.com
The Shorter Work Time Action Page provides ways to escape the stress and harm of overwork, which can hurt our health and rob us of time with family and friends. The site contains resources on alternatives to current work arrangements. www.swt.org
The Simplicity Forum offers research, articles, books, films and other resources for those who want to simplify their lives. Cecile Andrews, on the Forum’s steering committee, appears as a “Happiness Action Figure” in our Winter 2009 issue. www.simplicityforum.org
The Simple Living Network offers a range of resources on voluntary simplicity, including a newsletter, event calendar, and discussion groups. www.simpleliving.net
Take Back Your Time advocates changing laws to give people more time for themselves and their families. The group pushes for policies such as guaranteed paid vacation time, paid maternity leave, and paid sick leave. www.timeday.org
Think Simple Now has articles by Tina Su, Chief Happiness Officer, on finding “clarity, simplicity, motivation, and personal happiness.” Tina Su is YES! “Happiness Action Figure” in the Winter 2009 issue. thinksimplenow.com
WorkOptions.com shows how to slow down a hurry-up lifestyle by negotiating flexible work arrangements at your current job. It provides guidance on how to get approval for telecommuting, job sharing, and a part-time or compressed workweek arrangement. www.workoptions.com
Practice Mindfulness
The Mind and Life Institute promotes collaboration and dialogue between scientists and Buddhists. The group offers books, DVDs, and recordings that examine the positive effects of contemplative practices such as Buddhism on the human body and emotions. Read more about science and Buddhism from Matthieu Ricard in the Winter 2009 issue of YES! www.mindandlife.org
Vipassana Meditation is one of India’s oldest meditation techniques. Here you can find information on the history and practice of Vipassana Meditation and courses in your area, www.dhamma.org. In the Winter 2009 issue of YES!, read about the Dhamma Brothers, the first group of prison inmates in the U.S. to try Vipassana meditation. For information on Vipassana Meditation Courses in Prisons, go to www.prison.dhamma.org/usprison.htm
Find Healing in Grief
Caring Connections offers resources in English, Spanish, and Mandarin Chinese for people nearing the end of life and those who care for them. You can find free brochures on pain management, legal issues, grief, spirituality, and more. www.caringinfo.org
Find Comfort through Pet Therapy
The Delta Society promotes the health benefits of service and therapy animals. Their site includes directories of service dog trainers along with resources for those looking to find an animal or those coping with the grief of losing a pet. Read about Titus the Therapy Dog in our Winter 2009 issue. www.deltasociety.org
The Good Dog Foundation offers a training program for people and their dogs looking to become animal-assisted therapy volunteers in New York and New England. www.thegooddogfoundation.org
Therapy Dogs International trains therapy dogs who visit hospitals and nursing homes. www.tdi-dog.org
Build an Economy for a Happy Planet
BALLE, the Business Alliance for Local Living Economies, supports and encourages independent businesses all over North America that are contributing to socially, environmentally, and culturally respectful economies. www.livingeconomies.org
Community-Wealth.Org provides information on community-based business strategies, policies, models, and innovations. The organization supports a network of community corporations, co-ops and nonprofits. www.community-wealth.org
The New Economics Foundation researches alternatives to our economic/financial system and advocates policy changes for the benefit of human and environmental well-being. In our Winter 2009 issue, Andrew Simms, policy director at nef, describes what the good life would look like if we became a more sustainable society. www.neweconomics.org
Redefining Progress is a think tank that puts sustainability at the center of the study of economics. The organization calculates the Genuine Progress Indicator, an alternative to Gross Domestic Product that includes concerns like debt, equality, and pollution. www.rprogress.org
A Sensible Plan for Recovery, by the progressive think tank the Institute for Policy Studies, suggests policy reforms to create a financial system that supports human well-being. www.ips-dc.org/reports/#752
The Time Dollar Institute promotes Time Dollars, a medium of exchange that allows people to convert their time and skills into purchasing power. An hour helping another earns one Time Dollar. The website provides instructions on how to create a neighbor-to-neighbor Time Dollar exchange. www.timebanks.org
The Social Investment Foundation Forum offers resources, contacts, and media releases about socially responsible investing. www.socialinvest.org
:: HAPPINESS SCIENCE
Learn about the growing body of research on what makes us happy. (You can read our top choices in “10 Things Science Says Will Make Us Happy” in the Winter 2009 issue of YES!)
Authentic Happiness, the website of Martin Seligman, the founder of the positive psychology movement, offers research and links, as well as tests and questionnaires to find out about your own level of happiness. www.authentichappiness.sas.upenn.edu
The Institute for Research on Unlimited Love offers articles and books on compassion, altruism, and service, and a monthly newsletter. Stephen Post, the institute’s president, provides a self-test in our Winter 2009 issue: Find out how thankful you are. www.unlimitedloveinstitute.org
The Positive Psychology Center at the University of Pennsylvania offers information about the science of happiness. Research, questionnaires, conferences, and resources for teachers can all be found on the website. www.ppc.sas.upenn.edu
:: A LIBRARY FOR SUSTAINABLE HAPPINESS
If you prefer to read on paper and want to get deeper into the issues, check out this selection of titles.
Authentic Happiness, by Martin Seligman, the founder of positive psychology, explains the growing body of research on how to be happier. Free Press, 2004.
The Circle of Simplicity, by Cecile Andrews, advises people to simplify their lives by focusing on creativity, community, and caring for the environment. The book also offers detailed instructions on how to form and run a simplicity circle, a study group of friends or peers focused on living simply. Perennial, 1998.
Does the Good Life Have to Cost the Earth? edited by Andrew Simms and Joe Smith, is a collection of essays about how to live well while minimizing your impact on the planet. Constable, 2008.
Final Gifts: Understanding the Special Awareness, Needs, and Communications of the Dying, by Maggie Callanan and Patricia Kelly, talks about the support that the dying and those attending them give each other. Written by two hospice workers, the book gives advice to family and care professionals on understanding and responding to a dying person's wishes. Bantam, 1997.
Get Out of Your Mind and Into Your Life, by Steven Hayes, talks about dealing with negative emotions and finding purpose in your life. New Harbinger Publications, 2005.
Ghetto Plainsman, by Jarid Manos, tells the story of the author’s journey from dealing drugs and living on the fringe of society to finding peace, working for restoration of prairie ecosystems, and helping at-risk young people. Temba House, 2007.
Happiness: A Guide to Developing Life's Most Important Skill, by Matthieu Ricard, talks about the importance of meditation and compassion in achieving deep and lasting happiness. Little, Brown and Company, 2007.
Happiness: Unlocking the Mysteries of Psychological Wealth, by Ed Diener and Robert Biswas-Diener, offers advice on achieving happiness from two of the leading positive psychology researchers. Wiley-Blackwell, 2008.
Healing Through the Dark Emotions: The Wisdom of Grief, Fear, and Despair, by Miriam Greenspan, argues that, instead of medicating negative emotions, we should treat them as growth opportunities, ultimately turning them into positive feelings such as joy and gratitude. Shambhala, 2004.
The How of Happiness: A Scientific Approach to Getting the Life You Want, by Sonja Lyubomirsky, offers practical advice, based on the author’s and others’ research on how to create happiness in your life. Penguin, 2008.
In Praise of Slowness: How a Worldwide Movement is Challenging the Cult of Speed, by Carl Honoré, explores the “slow movement,” of people around the world who are slowing down the pace, bringing depth back to relationships, and living happier, more productive, and healthier lives in return. The book also addresses integrating modern technology into a balanced life. HarperOne, 2004
Intimate Death: How the Dying Teach Us How to Live, by Marie de Hennezel, is the journal of a psychologist who works with terminally ill patients. She shares her experiences trying to make the time they have left meaningful. Vintage, 1998.
Letters from the Dhamma Brothers: Meditation Behind Bars, by Jenny Phillips, tells the inspiring story of a meditation program that took place in a high-security prison in Alabama, and the impacts on the men who participated. Pariyatti Press, 2008.
Stumbling on Happiness, by Harvard professor Daniel Gilbert, draws on Gilbert’s own research and studies from leading positive psychologists to explore how to attain happiness. Knopf, 2006.
Voluntary Simplicity: Toward a Way of Life That Is Outwardly Simple, Inwardly Rich, by Duane Elgin, is considered a classic. The book tells how to break free of the mass consumption lifestyle through voluntary simplicity. Quill, 1998.
What Kids Really Want that Money Can't Buy, by Betsy Taylor, founder and president of Center for a New American Dream, advises parents on how to raise children to experience joy, love, and acceptance without focusing on having more stuff. Ideas range from connecting to nature to creating meaningful family traditions, teaching kids media literacy, and fighting prejudice. Warner Books, 2003.
Why Good Things Happen to Good People, by Stephen Post and Jill Neimark, describes years of research that show giving and altruism can make people dramatically healthier and happier. The book offers tips and self-tests on how to make giving and gratitude part of your life. Broadway, 2008.
Your Money or Your Life, by Vicki Robin and Joe Dominguez, offers advice on how to live and enjoy life on less money, and have a smaller impact on the planet. Penguin, 2008.
