#1 Recommended Reading: Consumerism and the Climate

Three books to read following Black Friday

Many people are concerned about the rate at which we are consuming, and rightly so. For those looking to learn more, here are some really interesting reads that can aid with understanding the cause of our current climate crisis.

Carbon Colonialism: How Rich Countries Exploit The Climate Breakdown - Laurie Parsons

If you want to get big mad, read this book. I have always been an environmental girly so I wouldn't say this book was saying anything new to me but I would say that it deepened my understanding of how greed of these giant corporations and their shareholders play a role in global warming. A quote that I still think about is 'environmental degradation, is not by-product of this system, but the engine' This book felt like a wake-up call and reignited my passion for climate activism. It is however infuriating to be confronted with you own role in the climate crisis and the knowledge that these issues are avoidable. The book displays how a focus on economic growth requires climate degradation, and people affected the most by inequalities that cause climate change are silenced. The devious way the climate crisis has been rebranded as natural and inevitable is revealed in each chapter of this book. 5 star read I think the book does a great job in discussing this version of neo-colonialism and hammering home the fact that it is not up to the consumer to fix this issue.

Limitarianism: The Case Against Extreme Wealth - Ingrid Robeyns

I loved this book and rated it 5 stars on storygraph. I really enjoyed the way Robeyns structures her arguments, they are clear and easy to follow. She presents us with reasons people would argue for extreme wealth and then breaks them down, to show the flaws in this perspective. I personally have always been against extreme wealth but she also challenged my ideas on how much wealth is too much wealth. I mentioned this book in a previous blog post but I actually have a lot to say about this book but my notes are in my bag and I'm just not standing up.

Stolen Harvest: The Hijacking of The Global Food Supply - Vadana Shiva

This book is genuinely crazy my jaw kept dropping at the evil being displayed by these large corporations. At times it felt almost impressive how creative these companies are in when it comes to creating cartoon villain-like schemes in order to stop the local population from growing food. Did you know you can sue bees for taking your intellectual property?

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Honestly I have not finished a book since August, I’m not sure what it is with me and winter reading but I just can’t get into it. I’m hoping to do more ‘recommended reading’ posts so that it will force me to actually finish what I’m reading. It’s not that they aren’t interesting I just get so easily distracted in winter and my brain craves easy dopamine.

What did you read in November? If you are in a bit of a slump like myself, what are you excited to read in December?