The 'One Planet' Life explains the challenges presented by the planning system to the movement for low impact development, and puts forward practical advice and success stories from those who have achieved sustainable living. With a foreword from Jane Davidson, the former Welsh Environment Minister, The 'One Planet' Life draws on the experiences of the One Planet Wales project.
The core how-to chapters examine issues such as Water, Energy and Food, and exemplary case studies of small scale sustainable enterprises are presented along with lessons learned.
The 'One Planet' Life will be key reading for built environment practitioners and policy makers who are keen to support low impact initiatives, and for students studying aspects of planning, geography, governance, sustainability and renewable energy. It will also be of interest to anyone seeking to find out how a sustainable lifestyle can be achieved.
Foreword by Pooran Desai
Foreword by Jane Davidson
Part One: A Call for Change
1. We have only one planet
Part Two: Steps Towards the One Planet Life
2. Finding Land, Finding Finance, Gaining Skills
3. Crafting a Management Plan
Part Three: Practical Guidance
4. Land Management
5. Water
6. Energy
7. Building
8. Food
9. Transport
Part Four: Exemplary Examples
10.1 Hockerton Housing Project
10.2 The lessons of BedZED
10.3 The Triangle, Swindon
10.4 Rachel Shiamh's frameless straw bale home
10.5 Lammas
10.6 Hoppi Wimbush: Growing flowers to sell
10.7 Hoppi and Paul Wimbush: Dairy farming
10.8 Cornerwood: Coppicing as a business
10.9 Cornerwood: Shiitake production
10.10 The Ecological Land Co-operative
10.11 John Hargreaves: top fruit grower
10.12 Phil Corbett: Edible wild flowers and nitrogen-fixing clovers
10.13 Nant y Cwm farm: livestock management
10.14 Jay Andrews: Wetland Ecosystem Treatment
10.15 A modular studio
10.16 Ty Solar
10.17 Calon Cymru
10.18 One Planet City - Brighton and Hove
10.19 One planet living in Freiburg, Germany
10.20 The road ahead to real sustainability
Afterword by Jane Davidson
David Thorpe is a writer and consultant on sustainability issues. He is a Special Consultant on Sustainable Cities Collective, the primary website for urban leaders globally; a founder and core group member of the One Planet Council; and the author of several books on sustainability, including: Energy Management in Buildings, Energy Management in Industry, Solar Technology, and Sustainable Home Refurbishment, all in The Earthscan Expert Guide series. Prior to this he was the News Editor and Opinion Writer of the UK's Energy and Environmental Management magazine for 13 years. Before that he was director of publications at the Centre for Alternative Technology.
"David Thorpe's new book is a timely reminder that we have only one planet to live on – and that this fact needs to be reflected how we live, and everything we do. But as well as making the irrefutable case for 'one planet living', it provides a wealth of practical detail on how to actually do it, and this is surely where the book's greatest value lies for a new generation of one planet pioneers determined to lead the transition to new ways of living, that tread lightly upon the Earth and sustain her natural riches."
– Oliver Tickell, editor, The Ecologist magazine and author of Kyoto2: How to Manage the Global Greenhouse
"David Thorpe outlines, in fastidious detail, the journey to a new life that is not only lower impact, but is also delightful and fun – and he is quite prepared to fully address the multiple bureaucratic and technical challenges and along the way. This book is an excellent and immensely practical step by step guide, illustrated with copious examples, for everyone ready to make that change."
– George Marshall, founder of the Climate Outreach Information Network and author of Don't Even Think About It: Why Our Brains Are Wired to Ignore Climate Change
"Over the last 30 years economists have had to reassess how improvements to human welfare are measured. Unfettered growth in household demands causes local and global problems. Measures such as the ecological footprint seek to assess the 'planet' consequences of our consumption activities. Practically what it means to live a 'one-planet' lifestyle is rarely considered in terms of the benefits and challenges, and this book is therefore a welcome reckoning. A key theme is the fact that maximising consumption activity should not be confused with maximising human welfare."
– Professor Max Munday, Director of the Welsh Economy Research Unit, Cardiff Business School