Top 10 books on sustainability

Moving towards a sustainable economy and society seems an inevitable fact. Many experts have thus released their works on sustainability to help this transition move faster.

Here are the ten best readings on sustainability, where you can find old and important books and other more recent ones by influential authors. The following list has been made by Sustainable Brands.

1. Biomimicry: Innovation Inspired by Nature (1997) by Janine Benyus. Biomimicry is a new ground-breaking science which gathers and examines the best ideas of nature, such as spider silk, sea shells, brain cells, and photosynthesis, and adjusts them for human use. The author takes us through the lab in which researchers are discovering resourceful solutions from nature for the sake of a more sustainable future.

2. Cradle to Cradle: Remaking the Way We make Things (2002) by William McDonough and Michael Braungart. A handbook for innovating and (re)designing in the twenty-first century, which should be read by everyone. It is certainly one of the most influential books on sustainability so far. The authors call for a new Industrial Revolution, suggesting things like the complete removal of waste. They show several compelling examples of companies which, far from harming the planet and the people, are doing a good thing for the environment while earning money in the process.

3. Igniting Inspiration: A Persuasion Manual for Visionaries (2008). A provocative book by communication expert John Marshall Roberts, who expects messages from company leaders and activists which inspire others to take action. This book is a reflective call to a new generation of leaders looking towards the future, determined to become successful and fulfil themselves, while making the world a better place.

4. Just Good Business: The Strategic Guide to Aligning Corporate Responsibility and Brand (2008), by Kellie McElhaney, deals with the fact that most of the big companies claim to have a Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) strategy; however, they are not necessarily making any profits from these initiatives.

5. Natural Capitalism: Creating the Next Industrial Revolution (1999), by Paul Hawken, Amory Lovins and Hunter Lovins, is about creating the next Industrial Revolution. This is an innovative book in which its authors reveal how today´s global companies can be both environmentally responsible and highly profitable. This work describes the global economy as one dependent on natural resources and all that nature can offer. It is a critique of the traditional “industrial capitalism”.

6. Green to Gold: How Smart Companies Use Environmental Strategy to Innovate, Create Value and Build Competitive Advantage (2006) by Daniel Esty and Andrew Winston. Both authors are Yale experts that support CSR, and explain the impact this has on financial results in relation to customers and dealers, and on the company´s reputation.

7. The Truth About Green Business (2009) by Gil Friend. A must-read which shows all we need to know to make a business “green” and make its profits increase. Find out how climate change really affects your business with this book.

8. Our Choice: A Plan to Solve the Climate Crisis (2009) by Al Gore. In a single book the author gathers the most effective solutions that are now available, in order to depoliticise climate change and call readers to action.

9. Beautiful and Abundant (2010) by Bryan Welch. In this practical guide, the author strongly maintains that we must be brave and move towards a sustainable attitude, which is necessary for these times of uncertainty, rapid changes and chaotic transitions.

10. The HIP Investor: Make Bigger Profits by Building a Better World (2010), by Paul Herman, the creator of the HIP (Human Impact + Profit) method. The author introduces a ground-breaking system which investors can benefit from, having a positive impact on society.

Do you know any essential book about sustainability? Share it with us!

More information: Sustainable Brands.