Lots of people have been approaching our team with this question. The field of sustainability is complex, vast and diverse. More and more people feel concerned about where the world is going, but also inspired by the innovations and solutions coming up in this space.
Of course there are many specific factors to consider, such as people’s values (what they care about and the changes they want to see in the world), what they like doing, the experiences they have had so far, their aspirations, their desired lifestyle… just to name a few. As a coach, I love talking to people and going deeper into questions that help people process their thoughts and feelings, and move forward in the direction that is right for them. But as ‘sustainability geeks’, we decided to make a list with our team’s top 10 references that we believe may help people who want to migrate into this space to understand where we are as a ‘global community’, how we got here, and what we could do to make things better for everyone.
1. UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
Most people will be familiar with the SDGs, but less people know what are the 17 goals and targets under each, how they are interlinked and how we’re performing against them. For anyone who wants to have a deeper overview, this self-paced free training offered by the SDG Academy tells the history of the SDGs development, has specific lessons about each goal and explores their interdependencies and solutions.
2. The Donella Meadows Project
Donella Meadows was a very influential environmental thinker, one of the pioneers in applying system dynamics to global problems. This website contains her articles, columns, letters and other resources to help anyone working in social change. She also co-authored the book The Limits to Growth (1972), which, as the name says, demonstrates that there are limits to global growth and that we should make radical changes to our resources consumption.
Following the theme of ‘resource consumption’, the idea of a circular economy is based on decoupling environmental pressure from economic growth through zero waste. That means resources that reach the end of their lifecycle will either feed into another (industrial) process or, in the case of organic waste, return safely into the environment. This required products and services being designed based on circularity principles from the start, instead of the linear ‘extract, produce, use, waste’. The Ellen McArthur Foundation is a reference in this space; their website contains many publicly available resources that can help people interested in this area.
Part of Global Optimism, the Outrage & Optimism podcast helps people to better understand the climate crisis. Hosted by Christiana Figueres, Tom Rivett-Carnac and Paul Dickinson, professionals who have been in this space for decades, the episodes cover climate related news from science, business, finance, politics and culture, and aim to inspire people to take action. Global Optimism also published another great resource, the book The Future We Choose, an inspiring manifesto to help us all move into a better future.
On this website you can find many ideas and solutions to achieve net zero (or net positive) targets. The talks are divided into topics such as environmental justice, some sectors or broader social themes, all based on science. A great place to feel inspired and learn about what many people are already doing to have a positive impact.
Simple and interesting model that helps understanding Earth’s boundaries from environmental and social perspectives. It became a movement, leading municipalities and even businesses to start adopting the framework as a way to understand their impact and plan for the future in a more holistic way. The website also contains videos, tools, stories, events and guidelines on how to adopt the ‘doughnut’ in your community or business.
This is an “open, participatory futures community, tracking signals of change to create a more just and regenerative future”. It contains trends, resources and users can also collaborate by submitting signs of change they’re seeing in their geographies or sectors. Created by the sustainability NFP Forum for the Future, it’s a good place to explore the latest sustainability insights across various categories.
8. Hope in hell
Authored by Jonathon Porritt, an influential sustainability campaigner and writer, this is a bold, provocative and compelling book that presents the raw realities we’re facing related to the environmental and social crisis, and the potential ‘hell’ we’re heading towards. At the same time, it urges the reader to act in hope towards a better future. A perfect balance between systemic overview, social understanding, scientific evidence and solutions, and a passionate call to arms.
A big part of the work around sustainable development is around a shift in mindsets and behaviours, a new paradigm at all levels — communities, organisations of all types, governments and anyone between. This book co-authored by Laura Storm and Giles Hutchins (and related talks) present narratives, principles and tools in a clear way — a gentle nudge that can help each one of us to become regenerative leaders in our work, in our communities, and in our personal lives.
10. Edie
A place to go for updated news across issues and topics, particularly for those with a more business-background, mindset or interest. Though it’s a bit geared towards the UK scene, it is very relevant and keeps sustainability very tightly linked to everyday challenges, bringing plenty of articles and events. It also has a podcast, which we find quite good too.
And a bonus…
This is a comprehensive overview of the economic system, key actors and relationships, and 10 structural issues — some of the key underlying patterns and mindsets contributing to natural system breakdown and inequality crises. It also shows ‘who is doing what’ to solve some of these issues. We had the opportunity to contribute to the development of this study, including two of the sector maps: Fashion and Finance. The map also contains an analysis of the Built Environment sector.
Happy reading, listening and exploring!
We’d love to learn about what other sources you discover…
— — — — — — — — —
Author: Paula Oliveira, Paulina Lezama and Abigail Taylor.
