We know climate change, sustainability and all things environmental can seem overwhelming. But we believe, the more informed you are about an issue, the better equipped we are to tackle the problem.
Here are 20 ways you can learn more about the climate crisis through books and podcasts and build on your sustainability knowledge.
Podcasts
- Try these five climate podcasts recommended by the UN
- Listen to Outrage and Optimism, a great podcast that blends science with great speakers, topics of the day and human stories.
- The Climate Question from the BBC discusses why we find it so hard to save our planet, and what we can do about it.
- Try this weekly podcast, Catalyst, led by climate tech veteran Shayle Kann where they interview experts about the future and decarbonisation. Quite technical, always thought provoking.
- Drilled is a true crime podcast about climate change. It looks at each topic as a crime to be investigated.
- Science Vs takes on fads, trends, and the opinionated mob to find out what’s fact, what’s not, and what’s somewhere in between.
- The Zero podcast explores the policies, tactics and clean technologies and how we might reach zero emissions. A realistic view of Net Zero, business and the challenges we face.
- Listen to ESG Insider which takes you inside the environmental, social and governance issues shaping the business world. Keeps you updated with current trends.
- If you’re keen to learn more about green investing, listen to The Green Investor podcast from Investopedia.
- Although the podcast is no longer launching new episodes, there are some great former episodes on the For What It’s Earth podcast. They make the big issues bite-size by explaining the science.
Hit the subscribe button on your favourite climate podcast to tick off this step in Giki Zero.
Books
Choose from this selection of both non fiction, and fiction, for everything from solutions to the climate crisis to some holiday reading.
- The Future We Choose, Christiana Figueres and Tom Rivett-Carnac. What we need to do to safeguard the world.
- Zero Waste Home, Bea Johnson. Refuse, Reduce, Reuse, Recycle and … Rot!
- How Did We Get Into This Mess?, George Monbiot. From one of the leading environmental commentators of our time. Not a comfortable read but a powerful one.
- How to Save the World for Free, Natalie Fee. An upbeat and engaging look at what we can do.
- Hope in Hell, Jonathan Porritt. Despite the title a book of solutions and ideas.
- The Uninhabitable Earth, David Foster Wallace. Not for the faint hearted but a picture of where we could end up if we don’t act fast.
- The Overstory, Richard Powers. Beautiful stories, trees in this interwoven story of different people and their relationship with nature.
- The Wall, John Lancaster. Dystopia and perhaps getting close to home.
- The Climate Book, Greta Thunberg. Because no list can be complete with Greta’s straightforward style.
- There Is No Planet B, Mike Berners-Lee. A pioneer in helping people to think carbon.
Don’t forget, once you’ve read a book on climate change, you can tick off this step from your to do list. You can be even more sustainable by shopping for your books second hand, in places like charity shops or thrift stores, or online stores like World of Books.
