The Joyful Environmentalist

This was a pure delight and very informative and I can't wait to add Isabel Losada's backlist to my TBR list.

Simple, joy-filled chapters about how we can bring environmental change about in our daily habits...from carrying our own forks to Whole Foods with us so we don't make a scene (hilarious chapter!) to volunteering to plant new trees with non-profit organizations. And Isabel even argue that even ticks have a purpose "in the great complex tapestry of life."

Some of the chapters are swift reads: lists with "how to remove plastic from your home" (beginning with pens!) and a list of totally unnecessary plastic items that Amazon sells, and others are longer and essay-like. I loved this change of pace - sometimes I have loads of time to read, and sometimes I only have 10 minutes. So I would choose the shorter bits to read (and take notes from!) when I had less time.

I came away from this books armed with some great tips, new instagram accounts to follow for great environmental inspiration and a brand new search engine to use so I can feel a little better about my online presence (they plant trees in exchange for you using their search engine).

Highly recommend!

It's rare that a book about the environment brings a smile to my face but this one did. I loved this excellent, comprehensive guide to greener, planet-friendly living. I related deeply to the challenges the author faces as she tries to live in an eco-conscious way while maintaining a joy-filled orientation toward life and I especially loved the many, many solutions she offers that we can adopt too.

When I say that this book is comprehensive, I mean it REALLY is comprehensive, covering everything from the small (where to find plastic-free lip balm) to the huge (living off the grid so you can be both eco-friendly and free from the corporate grind). I also appreciated the extensive appendix with ideas for future reading, including inspiring cookbooks. Everyone can find ideas here, no matter what scale of change you are prepared to make to help our planet.

I will be recommending this title to my library and to the youth I work with as I think it would be exceptionally inspiring for young people navigating independent live. But really, it's a must-read for us all.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an ARC in exchange for a fair review.

It is always nice to read a lighthearted climate change book. I’m really into the books as to what an individual can do as to not get bogged down in OCD (obsessive climate disorder) quoted from this novel.

Losada’s voice is upbeat, inspiring, and easy to read (she adds in a lot of hahas, likes her wine, and will often put in full interviews/conversations). The drumming part dragged for me, and the chapters in no particular order hurt my brain a little but overall I really enjoyed this novel. There is a lot of UK specific data and recs given the author, now I’m googling to find out more in the US. Also really makes me want to move up Isabella Tree’s Wilding novel from my TBR as there is a chapter based on her “rewilding” land.

Cover is beautiful too.

The great strength of The Joyful Environmentalist is its accessibility. I have read a number of books about climate change and it is hard reading. Of course, it is important that we know what we are facing but we also need to ensure that we do not fall into despair, that we do not find ourselves giving up because we cannot see the point.

It is easy to tell ourselves that it won’t make any difference, but I think that Isabel gives us two responses to that denial. First, we can be certain that the only way that no difference will be made is if we do not do anything to change, and secondly, even if adapting our individual lifestyles doesn’t have the impact we would like on the planet it will have an impact on us.

The Joyful Environmentalist is both practical and hopeful. It encourages you to make real changes to your life, but shows you how this is not a chore, an austere stripping down of all that you enjoy in life, but a journey of playful creativity and community engagement for the benefit of your own well-being and the wider world.

Losada walks through all the key areas of day-to-day life, food, energy, transport, clothing, and considers how these can be changed to produce a lighter impact on the world without diminishing the experience. Mingled between these practical tweaks to the way we live as individuals are some bigger picture thoughts on how we might also influence the world around us through joyful protest or volunteering, to spread the message.

There is definitely a place for trying to jolt people out of their slumber and make them realise the damage that we are doing to the planet and as a result ourselves, but there is also a need to bring people along on a journey of discovery that offers hope and a positive future. This book sits in that latter space with a positive energy and a smile on its face. Jump on board, start making changes now and do it with a song or a drumbeat in your heart.