Sprout Village
Sustainable community from the ground up
Articles and Websites
The concept of degrowth is a relatively unknown one, and the Degrowth website describes the movement as "an idea that critiques the global capitalist system which pursues growth at all costs, causing human exploitation and environmental destruction". Unlike a recession, degrowth includes planned reductions in economic activity, putting people and the planet ahead of "corporate profits, over-production and excess consumption".
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A useful resource recommended by Ms Platt and her students in the USA. Being kinder to the environment can start in the home and doesn't have to cost you money. This article is full of links to other great resources as well.
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The solution to many of the global crises we face may be local. Local Futures' focus is on "strengthening communities and local economies worldwide". Multi-national corporations and global trade exacerbate poverty, inequality and environmental crises, while local initiatives can do what's right for the local environment and community.
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Resilience publishes content on solutions to the problems of "interconnected environmental, energy, economic, and equity crises of the 21st century". A program of the Post Carbon Institute, the site contains fantastic long form articles that are well worth the read.
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The fact is that economic growth is unsustainable, and what comes after is up to us. The Post Growth Institute looks at what life and the economy could be like if we "enable collective wellbeing within ecological limits".
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CASSE is a US-based organisation with a well structured collection of interesting information, both directly on their website and at the Steady State Herald blog. Particularly valuable is their Act page, which is worth a look when you're done with simply soaking up articles and want to take action on these values.
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"Earth Overshoot Day marks the date when humanity’s demand for ecological resources and services in a given year exceeds what Earth can regenerate in that year." In Australia, this year's overshoot day has already passed, on 22nd March.
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CUSP is a research organisation aiming to answer the question "What can prosperity possibly mean in a world of environmental, social and economic limits?"
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Don't let the uncomplicated design of the Simpler Way website detract from the absolute gold that is the content provided by Ted Trainer. This website contains a long list of Trainer's writings, about various important topics such as degrowth, simple living, consumerism, capitalism, and sustainability.
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We only have one finite planet, but we are living as if we have much more than that at our disposal. "One Planet Living is our vision of a world where we can live happily within the Earth’s resources" and is comprised of ten principles to help guide us.
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Economist Richard Wolff heads up a group which aims to educate about the nature of our capitalist society and how we can do better than the current system. He advocates for socialism, namely worker's cooperatives. He has a fantastic stage presence and many of his videos and lectures are highly recommended:
Anthropocene magazine is published by Future Earth. Its articles are based on current science and sustainability research and news. The writing is accessible to laypeople who wish to know more about the state of environmental research but are not willing or able to trawl through the journal articles.
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NENA is an organisation that promotes ecological sustainability and social justice, through the transformation of Australia's economic system. They publish the New Economy Journal every few months. They are "the only Australian publication whose focus is the movement to build a new economy".
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According to their constitution, Transition Australia are "working to advance an ecologically regenerative and socially just future". Overseen by the international Transition Network, the concept of transition towns was developed to encourage villages, towns and cities to become self-sufficient and more connected in a local sense.
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"Humans use as much ecological resources as if we lived on 1.6 Earths. The Ecological Footprint is the only metric that compares the resource demand of individuals, governments, and businesses against Earth's capacity for biological regeneration."
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Project Drawdown is a figurative goldmine of science-based solutions for reaching global 'drawdown', the point at which "levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere stop climbing and start to steadily decline". The Solutions page clearly shows the estimated impact on carbon sources and/or carbon sinks of each solution, from carpooling and electric trains, to recycled paper and plant-based diets.
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The goal of the Half-Earth Project is to protect half of the world's land and seas in order to preserve the remaining biodiversity that we have. If we destroy just 10% more of the remaining habitat, the biodiversity losses could be catastrophic.
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Books to Read
Books about environment, finance, economics and politics that are too good to miss
Live like tomorrow matters: Practical skills, recipes and rituals for a simpler life
Jade Miles
9 Steps to Transforming Your Relationship with Money and Achieving Financial Independence
Vicki Robin, Joe Dominguez
More resources are added regularly, so check back when you have some free reading time. You can also view the blog for more to read.