This month, the Environmentalism Book Club met to talk about Hope Jahren’s book “The Story of More”. The book is a solid introduction to several topics concerning environmentalism and tells the story of “how we got to climate change, and where to go from here”. Jahren gives a broad overview of how an increasing population, paired with rapid technological advancement and innovations in fields across the board – the way we grow, harvest, hunt, & fish for our food, how we consume energy (and how much energy we consume), where that energy comes from – everything has all come together to contribute to the current climate situation we find ourselves in.

The last century has seen enormous changes in our global society; We’ve moved away from how things used to be done and overcorrected into creating a crisis for our planet and our survival. This books dives into this topic headfirst, ending with plans & suggestions of how we can all come together to find a happy medium between old-fashioned methods and new, and how we can start to tell “the story of less”, taking steps towards a brighter future.

Next month, we’ll be reading “Braiding Sweetgrass” by Robin Wall Kimmerer. There are copies of the book available at the Circulation Desk, if you’re interested – click the button below to learn more and register.

Register Here!

Below are a few infographics of some of the data shown in “The Story of More” – I don’t know about you, but visually seeing data helps me understand more deeply, and these graphics really put this topic into perspective!

Resources

Learn About Climate Change & How You Can Help!

Climate Hero Carbon Calculator

This test (which takes 5 minutes) will help you understand your carbon footprint and learn how you can take steps to be more sustainable – a Climate Hero! The questions are divided in 3 sections: Housing, Travel, and Consumption.

Take the test!

NASA – Climate Change Evidence

A collection of “unequivocal evidence that Earth is warming at an unprecedented rate.” A one-stop shop for a full understanding of climate change, including evidence of climate change, causes and effects, a snapshot of the Earth’s “vital signs”, and how we can mitigate and adapt in response to these changes.

Hop into the **Climate Time Machine** to see how Earth has changed over time.

U.S. Climate Resilience Toolkit

“A website designed to help people find and use tools, information, and subject matter expertise to build climate resilience … The goal of the site is to improve people’s ability to understand and manage their climate-related risks and opportunities, and to help them make their communities and businesses more resilient to extreme events.” Learn through Case Studies, Tools like maps and graphics, and other Resources.

National Climate Assessment

The US Government’s “preeminent report on climate change impacts, risks, and responses. It is a congressionally mandated interagency effort that provides the scientific foundation to support informed decision-making across the United States.”

Environmental Protection Agency – Climate Change

“Understanding and addressing climate change is critical to EPA’s mission of protecting human health and the environment. EPA tracks and reports greenhouse gas emissions, leverages sound science, and invests in America to combat climate change.” Find information, discover what the EPA is doing, and learn how you & others can help!

UNFCC

The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UN Climate Change, for short) is the United Nations entity tasked with supporting the global response to the threat of climate change. The Convention has universal membership¹ (198 Parties) and is the parent treaty of the 2015 Paris Agreement and the 1997 Kyoto Protocol. On their website you can find updates and information about climate change and the work they and their partners are doing to help.

US Energy Information Administration

An agency of the US Federal Statistical System responsible for collecting, analyzing, & disseminating energy information to promote sound policymaking, efficient markets, and public understanding of energy and its interaction with the economy and the environment. Lots of information is shared here, including daily “Today in Energy” updates.

NOAA

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) “provides timely and authoritative scientific data and information about climate science, adaptation, and mitigation.” Visit their site for News & Features, Maps & Data, resources on Teaching Climate, and The U.S. Climate Resilience Toolkit, which serves policy makers, professionals, and others facing climate-related decisions.

Clever Carbon

Take their quiz and discover your carbon footprint (it takes 1 minute!) and at the end it will give you resources and data to help further your understanding of how different areas of your life may be contributing to your carbon footprint.