Top reads on climate change: recommended by you!

At One Home we absolutely believe in the power and resources of individual people to tackle climate change and help secure a better future for our children. So who better to ask for recommendations on good reads on the issue than our brilliant One Home community?

We asked our Facebook community to recommend their top reads on climate change. Here are your favourites.

For the facts about climate change

If you just need to get your head around the whole issue of global warming, our community has you covered.

The Uninhabitable Earth by David Wallace-Wells

“Scary stuff – definitely not for the faint hearted! It’s all about what the earth and society will be like in the future due to the effects of climate change. But I would recommend it – I think everyone should read it!” – Recommended by Rhiannon S.

This is a stark account of life on earth if climate change continues unchecked, and it is designed to shock. If you can stomach it, however, there is a lot to learn from this book, and it is a powerful way to wake up to how important tackling climate change is.

Drawdown: The Most Comprehensive Plan Ever Proposed to Reverse Global Warming by Paul Hawken

“I’d recommend this for anyone who needs to renew their hope in our capability to overcome climate change. It’s incredible to me how many answers and innovations we already possess” – Recommended by Claud F

Written by an international coalition of researchers, policymakers and scientists, this is a toolkit for solving climate change. It details 100 solutions to global warming. They’re all solutions which are already in existence, economically viable and stand to benefit humankind in more ways than just solving climate change.  Many are already in progress; others are completely achievable. From our global food systems to educating girls, this book offers a vision not just for slowing warming, but reaching ‘drawdown’ – the point at which greenhouse gases in the atmosphere start to decline. 

Angela’s top read on climate change

Climate Change: a Ladybird Expert Book by HRH Prince of Wales, Tony Juniper & Emily Shuckburgh

“I’ve given many copies of this book as gifts to friends and students. It’s a really useful but accessible overview on the facts of climate change,” says One Home founder Angela Terry. “Prince Charles is known for his work to protect the environment so here he teams up with Emily and Tony to deliver a brief but readable summary of the entire climate change story.”

There Is No Planet B by Mike Berners-Lee

“It’s very accessible, explains what is going on and provides guidance on how to take small actions to help” – Recommended by Tim B

A book which acknowledges the ‘overwhelm’ of the number of challenges we currently face, the solutions we need to find, and the most effective order to do it all in. If climate change makes you anxious or prone to freezing in the headlights of what needs to be done, this is a great one to go with.

Adventures in the Anthropocene by Gaia Vince

“Great and very accessible pop science writing” – Recommended by Nancy M

Humans have made more changes to our planet in a few decades than anything else in its 4.6 billion-year history. This is the Anthropocene – the ‘Age of Humans’. 

Gaia Vince travelled to see life “on the frontline” of the Anthopocenic planet. From artificial glaciers to painted mountains, this book explores some really extraordinary answers to our current problems, and how they might shape our future planet.

Explaining climate change to kids

Explaining climate change to children is not always easy. But these books take a thorny and sometimes scary issue and empower small people to do something about it

George Saves the world by lunchtime, by Dr Jo Readman

“A good one for little ones” – Recommended by Cathy B.

George wants to save the world, but he’s not sure where to start. Fortunately Grandpa is on hand. Together, he and George take a morning’s journey through recycling, composting, donating to the charity shop, and using local farmers’ markets. By lunchtime, George understands how reducing, reusing, recycling and fixing really can help save the world.

The Tantrum that saved the world by Megan Herbert and Dr. Michael E. Mann 

– Recommended by Jen G

A book about a little girl who faces an enormous challenge. She “feels all kinds of frustration as she tries to overcome it”, and then channels those strong emotions into action, rallying all those around her to do the same. Recommended for 4-8 year olds, this self published book about climate change is written that children can understand, and about how to channel fear and frustration into action and activism. Here’s a Video that explains it more:

One World by Michael Foreman

“This one is beautiful” – Recommended by Frea L

Beautiful artwork accompanies this story of a brother and sister who create their own tiny marine world in a bucket. Along with shells and creatures, the bucket contains oil and litter. The Junior Bookshelf calls this a “quietly disturbing book… which I fancy children will help their parents to understand”.

Lectures and podcasts

Mothers of Invention podcast

Former Irish President Mary Robinson and comedian Maeve Higgins podcast celebrate amazing women doing remarkable things in pursuit of climate justice.

Earth’s Changing Climate by Professor Richard Wolfson

“It gave me a grounding in how we study earth’s climate and from there I could research further into more recent climate change with a better understanding of the processes behind the results.” – Recommended by Michael B

This series of 12 half-hour lectures, available as an audiobook, explains the concepts, tools, data, and analysis that an overwhelming number of climate scientists have used to conclude that the planet is warming and that we humans are causing it. It explains fundamental concepts such as the difference between climate and weather, the greenhouse effect, and the carbon cycle.

Outrage and Optimism podcast

“Great podcast” – Recommended by Rhiannon S

This series of conversations with former UN Chief Christiana Figueres and the team who formed Paris Agreement, is informative, inspiring and helps you to balance outrage and optimism in a way that moves us forward constructively on the climate emergency. With specials guests like Sir David Attenborough, it’s a great listen for anyone feeling frustrated by the task ahead.

Reading responsibly

Almost all the links in this article will take you to hive.co.uk – a website which enables you to buy online while supporting your local independent bookshop. You can also purchase most of these books as ebooks or audiobooks.

Of course, you can also try your local library – a free option which is most definitely the best for the environment! But if you do choose to buy your own copy, why not pass it on when you’ve finished it, and bring more people into the climate conversation?

We love hearing from you!

The One Home Facebook community group is a fantastic place to share your views and learn  top tips, talk to other people who are also concerned about the climate emergency, and let us know what you think and what you want to hear more about. Head on over and join us!

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Featured image: Background via Pexels. Book cover images kindly supplied by Hive.co.uk

Other images via Burst at Pexels and Pexels

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