Planet U: Sustaining the World, Reinventing the University

By Michael M'Gonigle

Planet U places the university at the forefront of the sustainability movement. Questioning the university's ability to equip society to deal with today's serious challenges such as economic growth, democratic citizenship and planetary survival, it calls for a new social movement to take a lead in reforming the university.

The book reviews the university's 900-year history from medieval religious philosopher, to Renaissance nation-builder, to its modern function as training grounds for the world's managerial class and the world's largest industry. It examines diverse campus initiatives across North America and Europe and their traditional concerns of green buildings, renewable energy and transportation demand management. But it also demonstrates the promise for social and ecological progress open to the "planetary university" once the university takes its place seriously and discovers its new mission: to create diverse models of local and global innovation centered around tough new questions about what universities - and their societies - can achieve:

How might the university help move us to a post-automobile, energy-saving society?
How might universities help refashion the city to be sustainable?
How might universities be governed for sustainability?

Lively, engaging and perfectly timed for the UN Decade for Sustainability in Education launched in 2005, Planet U will have wide appeal.

Michael M'Gonigle, Professor and Eco-Research Chair of Environmental Law and Policy at the University of Victoria, is a co-founder of Greenpeace International and has published widely on sustainability issues. Justine Starke is a Research Associate in the POLIS Project on Ecological Governance at the University of Victoria.

The Complete Idiot's Guide to Green Living

By Trish Riley

The environmental movement and rising awareness of global warming have sparked an interest in green living. People want to know what they can do to live sustainable lives. In this book, you will find an overview of global warming and environmental degradation of air, water, and soil; what sustainable living is and how to do it; how to cut down on carbon output (the cause of global warming) with alternative cars and fuels; and environmentally friendly home and lawn care products.

Wake Up and Smell the Planet

By Grist Magazine

Not a guide about guilt, but about making little choices throughout the day that improve the planet.

This is a quirky, humorous, entertaining, and sometimes irreverent read. We all have our morning routines, whether it's making coffee, walking the dog, feeding the kids, a shower and a shave, the office commute, or some combination thereof. And at each of these morning moments-in fact, at any given time throughout the day-we're making choices. What to eat, what to wear, how to dispose of dog poop or diapers, how to travel from point A to point B, where to have a post-work cocktail, and on, and on-this compact and resourceful handbook takes a look at how to simplify and "green" our daily choices, from the moment we get up in the morning, until we finally lay our heads down at night.

A self-proclaimed "beacon in the smog," it provides some of the most refreshing and knowledgeable voices on how to live wisely and promote a healthy world. Consider this guide an off-line beacon, bringing edgy authority, research, and planetary cheerleading to a broader audience.

Previously Listed Books
Winning Our Energy Independence	Plug-in Hybrids: The Cars that will Recharge America	Earth: The Sequel: The Race to Reinvent Energy and Stop Global Warming
Thanking the Monkey: Rethinking the Way We Treat Animals	Hot, Flat and Crowded: Why We Need a Green Revolution--and How It Can Renew America	Sustaining Life: How Human Health Depends on Biodiversity
The Noble Wilds	The Great Bear Rainforest: Canada's Forgotten Coast	Plan B 3.0: Mobilizing to Save Civilization
Farewell, My Subaru	Green to Gold	Freedom from Oil
Cutting Your Car Use	Field Notes from a Catastrophe	Environmental Solutions