Books are still best holiday gifts.
Looking for meaningful holiday gifts? Here are ten influential books on climate change, energy, and sustainability published in 2024 by leading women authors. While these works present diverse and sometimes contrasting viewpoints – which only enriches the ongoing dialogue around these critical issues – each contributes valuable insights to our understanding of sustainability and climate action. Plus, two bonus titles: a coloring book exploring our clean energy future and an energy career guide for girls aged 8-12 years.
Climate Solutions and Hope
Not the End of the World: How we Can Be the First Generation to Build a Sustainable Planet by Hannah Ritchie
I consider that this might be the most important book published in the field in 2024. Hannah Ritchie is a self-proclaimed effective environmentalist with a glass half full mentality. She knows the data behind the headlines and is not afraid to criticize the headlines in her writing. As a data scientist and deputy editor at Our World In Data, an influential online data and analytics website, Hannah Ritchie shows how nearly every world statistic is showing a positive trend. Her analysis demonstrates that air is cleaning up, deforestation has peaked, and she does not believe that we are destined to a 4-6°C warming, but rather likely to stay below 3°C. Moreover, crop yields are up, and, in fact, there is enough food for everyone, even in surplus. If we divided up all the calories that we produce among the world population, we would end up with 5,000 calories per person, nearly double the average daily amount needed. She is quick to point out that progress is happening, and sustainability is becoming the cheapest option. She advocates for embracing promising innovations like lab-grown meat and nuclear energy. The book points out that our professional lives are likely to contain 80,000 hours. It is up to us how to invest it, fighting for a more livable planet or against.
What If We Get It Right? Visions of Climate Futures by Ayana Elizabeth Johnson
Similar to Hannah Ritchie’s book, this work is full of climate optimism, but with a more personal and artistic flavor. From the opening pages, readers are drawn into Johnson’s world through her childhood memory of first encountering coral reefs – a moment that sparked her journey to becoming a marine biologist. The book artfully combines essays, interviews, poetry, and art across eight sections, exploring everything from cosmology and climate change (reminding us that Earth remains our best and only home) to farming, corporate responsibility, oceans, and Indigenous power. Johnson’s approach engages both the rational and emotional sides of our brains through this multimedia storytelling. The audiobook version is particularly compelling, with interviews that feel like intimate podcast conversations. Among the book’s powerful contributions is a poetic “Climate Oath”, inspired by the Hippocratic Oath, calling on us to “do no harm” to our environment.
Security and Energy Finance
Threat Multiplier: Climate, Military Leadership, and the Fight for Global Security” by Sherri Goodman
This book offers a fresh perspective on climate change through the lens of national security. Sherri Goodman, the first Deputy Undersecretary of Defense for Environmental Security, introduces the concept of climate as a “threat multiplier”, drawing a parallel with military strategy to show how environmental changes amplify existing security risks. The book walks readers through concrete examples, from how melting Arctic ice is sparking territorial disputes to how droughts in Africa and the Middle East intensify resource conflicts. Sherri Goodman’s ability to transform skeptical brass into environmental advocates showcases a remarkable journey of institutional change, when military leadership is (finally) confronting climate realities. The book shows why environmental security has become a cornerstone of military planning.
Solar Power Finance Without the Jargon by Jenny Chase
The second edition of the book is perfect for anyone seeking to understand the solar industry beyond the headlines. To achieve this, Jenny Chase brings a refreshing clarity to the complex world of solar power finance and development. The book spans from the fascinating early history of photovoltaics in the late 1800s to modern challenges, offering unique insights into how the solar industry actually works. Jenny Chase brings a surprisingly candid perspective to renewable energy startups, avoiding the typical cheerleading to instead offer a sobering look at their high failure rates and challenges. The book addresses the industry’s key challenges: high upfront expenses, intermittency and storage, as well as the delicate balance of electricity supply and demand on the grid. While the book promises to be “without jargon,” knowledge of financial terms could be beneficial for complete beginners.
Human-Nature Interaction
Frostbite: How Refrigeration Changed Our Food, Our Planet, and Ourselves by Nicola Twilley
Nicola Twilley takes the reader on a journey to places that few of us have been to: an industrial-scale meat freezer or a banana ripening room. After reading this book, the reader will appreciate the marvel of refrigerated foods, something that has become so commonplace in our lives. The author guides us through the history of food preservation: in ancient times, ice was a luxury commodity and only the wealthy could afford to chill their food for the most elaborate occasions. When modern refrigeration was introduced, humans were deeply skeptical about consuming chilled, non-seasonal food. The nutritional value of such preserved fare was questioned by a wary public. The notion of consuming meat from an animal processed hundreds of miles away proved to be a challenging cultural shift. In one particularly noteworthy instance, a widely publicized cold-storage banquet took place in Chicago in 1911, where all dishes served had been previously refrigerated. The participants were celebrated as culinary pioneers venturing into uncharted gastronomic territory. Over time, refrigerated food transitioned from a questionable innovation to a social necessity. Thanks to modern food cooling, it not only expanded the variety of foods available between seasons but also reduced food waste and democratized access to previously exclusive ingredients. This book will transform your perspective on food preservation, turning an ordinary refrigerator into a testament to one of humanity’s most transformative innovations.
The Sixth Extinction: An Unnatural History by Elizabeth Kolbert
The 10th Edition of The Sixth Extinction appeared this year, and the book is as relevant and compelling as ever. The first part of the book takes us on a journey through ancient times and shows how humans have discovered the fact that species indeed can go extinct. It is surprising that modern humans take this knowledge for granted, but it was a subject of considerable scientific debate. The book points out that while the most famous extinction event – caused by a massive meteorite – took out the dinosaurs, other extinction events can be traced back to climate change and to the presence of humans. Kolbert postulates that we are indeed finding ourselves in the middle of the sixth extinction, losing amphibians, insects, and other species at an alarming rate. The book will make you appreciate the beauty of the natural world – how much of that will we be able to pass down to the next generations?
Sustainable Living & Community
The Serviceberry: Abundance and Reciprocity in the Natural World by Robin Wall Kimmerer
This essay explores how the serviceberry serves as a metaphor for reimagining our economic relationships with nature and each other. Drawing from both Indigenous knowledge and ecological science, Robin Wall Kimmerer, known for her masterwork Braiding Sweetgrass, demonstrates how serviceberries support biodiversity while having historically provided sustenance to Native American communities. Through the fruit’s natural surplus and sharing patterns among wildlife, she illustrates what she calls a “gift economy” – where status derives not from accumulation but from giving, and where the economic unit becomes “we” rather than “I.” Through careful observation of serviceberry ecology, Kimmerer constructs a compelling case for economic systems based on reciprocity. She observes how gift economies arise spontaneously during disasters, suggesting that humans naturally turn to sharing when market systems collapse. Rather than calling for a complete rejection of markets, she sees a role for a mixed economy that balances transactional exchanges with gift-giving practices.
Lessons from the Climate Anxiety Counseling Booth: How to Live with Care and Purpose in an Endangered World by Kate Schapira
This book addresses our emotional capacity to face climate challenges, building what could be called “climate EQ”. Through her innovative Climate Anxiety Counseling Booth project, she’s collected real-world experiences of how people process climate fears and developed practical exercises, which are offered throughout the book. The data is clear: communities that develop strong mutual aid networks show greater resilience during environmental crises. Schapira’s analysis reveals how resource sharing and collaborative approaches consistently outperform individualistic responses and panic behaviors like hoarding. She introduces the concept of “place connection,” which transforms abstract environmental concerns into measurable local observations. By tracking specific changes in local ecosystems, weather patterns, and seasonal shifts, readers develop data points that connect them directly to environmental changes. This book is written with the premise that climate change should be understood as a consequence of capitalism and white supremacy, which define both the philosophical framework and practical approaches presented in the book.
Climate Politics and Rhetoric
Glacial: The Inside Story of Climate Politics by Chelsea Henderson
As somebody who works in Washington, this book hit home, as it explained why policymakers are so slow to act on climate change, despite the mounting evidence of the situation’s urgency. Glacial tells a story of behind-the-scenes infighting and power struggles that blocked or derailed federal legislative progress on climate change, even in times of bipartisanship and when polls showed most Americans favored action. The book examines presidential efforts on climate, starting with Lyndon Johnson and Richard Nixon, taking us through Jimmy Carter’s famous sweater and how Ronald Reagan addressed the ozone layer, and finishing with the Biden administration’s passage of the Inflation Reduction Act – the most significant climate bill to date that remains unknown to most Americans. The book provides deep dives into what happened in the Washington scene each decade from 1980 through 2020, showing how the political interests of certain players trumped what was best for the planet. The Manchin roller-coaster ride is just one telling example that readers might remember from the news, when the Democratic senator held climate legislation hostage to extract maximum benefits for his constituents.
The Language of Climate Politics: Fossil-Fuel Propaganda and How to Fight It by Genevieve Guenther
Guenther challenges the conventional wisdom that the climate debate is simply a partisan issue, as both sides of the political spectrum often perpetuate fossil-fuel industry talking points. The book’s central argument is that the repetition of these talking points across party lines creates a centrist consensus that maintains the status quo, even as the climate crisis worsens. Guenther addresses common narratives surrounding the cost of fuels, economic growth theories, the actions of developing nations like India and China, and the potential of innovation and resilience to address climate change. She casts doubt on William Nordhaus’ cost-benefit analysis, which suggest that 3 degrees of warming is optimal for the world. Guenther emphasizes the importance of language in shaping public perception and offers strategies for engaging undecided voters and Democrats. Her focus on framing the issue in terms of legacy and intergenerational responsibility is particularly powerful, asking readers to consider: “What kind of Earth are we leaving to our children?”
Bonus Books
Coloring Book: Electrify Your Home: The Mini Coloring Book by Nicole Kelner
This unique coloring book invites readers to engage artistically with a sustainable future. Through 30 pages of engaging illustrations, it helps people envision an optimistic world transformed by clean technology. The designs feature wind power, solar installations, and energy-efficient home upgrades, alongside decorative patterns inspired by environmental themes.
Kid’s Book: Energy Superheroes, Women in Energy Careers by Erin Twamley, Katie Mehnert and others
Though published prior to 2024, this illustrated book is unique as it introduces girls and boys ages 8-12 to real women working in energy sector. Through profiles of 34 professionals, readers meet engineers installing solar arrays, geologists exploring deep-earth resources, electrical grid specialists, and innovators in electric vehicle technology. This book highlights women breaking barriers in traditionally male-dominated energy fields, helping girls envision themselves in STEM professions by featuring diverse role models.
