The following is a compilation of recommended reading and viewing resources that address sustainability from various perspectives (ecological, design-based, business practice, informational, etc.).
Note: If you'd like to make a recommendation to add a resource, contact the web editor.
Books*
Films
News articles
Video blogs & podcasts
Websites
* Note: Many of these titles are available to CCA students, staff, and faculty at the CCA Libraries. Take advantage of the online catalog that allows searching by category such as sustainability-related resources.
Also, although these resources are derived from faculty recommendations, none represents an official endorsement by the college.
Books
(Select a title to view additional information: subtitle, description, ordering information.)
- Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver
- Architecture & Design versus Consumerism by Ann Thorpe
- Beyond Growth by Herman Daly
- Beyond the Bottom Line by Joel Makower
- Beyond the Limits by Donella H. Meadows, Dennis L. Meadows, and Jorgen Randers
- Biomimicry by Janine Benyus
- Blessed Unrest by Paul Hawken
- Cannibals with Forks by John Elkington
- Common Wealth by Jeffrey Sachs
- Cradle to Cradle by William McDonough and Michael Braungart
- Design + Environment by Helen Lewis, John Gertakis, Tim Grant, Nicola Morelli, and Andrew Sweatman
- Design for the Real World by Victor Papanek
- Design Is the Problem by Nathan Shedroff
- Designer’s Atlas of Sustainability by Ann Thorpe
- Earth In Mind by David Orr
- Eco-Economy by Lester Brown
- Ecological Literacy by David Orr, et al
- Ecology Of Commerce by Paul Hawken
- Ecology: A Pocket Guide by Ernest Callenbach
- Emotionally Durable Design by Jonathan Chapman
- The End of Nature by Bill Mckibben
- Farming with the Wild by Daniel Imhoff
- Fashion and Sustainability by Kate Fletcher and Lynda Grose
- Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
- The Green Imperative by Victor Papanek
- Growth Fetish by Clive Hamilton
- Handmade Money by Walter Morris
- In Her Hands by Paola Gianturco, Toby Tuttle
- In the Bubble by John Thackara
- Interest and Inflation Free Money by Margrit Kennedy
- The Joyless Economy by Tibor Scitovsky
- Leading Change Toward Sustainability by Bob Doppelt
- The Meaning of Things by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
- Mid-Course Correction by Ray Anderson
- Natural Capitalism by Paul Hawken, Amory Lovins, Hunter L. Lovins
- The Nature of Design by David Orr
- The Next Sustainability Wave by Bob Willard
- No Logo by Naomi Klein
- The Omnivore’s Dilemma by Michael Pollan
- Organizational Change for Corporate Sustainability by Dunphy & Griffith
- Outgrowing the Earth by Lester Brown
- Plan B 4.0 by Lester Brown
- Real Life Economics by Manfred Max-Neef
- The Shock Doctrine by Naomi Klein
- Silent Spring by Rachel Carson et al
- Squeaky Green by Eric Ryan and Adam Lowry
- Strategy for Sustainability by Adam Werbach
- Sustainable Fashion and Textiles by Kate Fletcher
- Sustainable Solutions by Ursula Tischner and Martin Charter
- Sustainable Strategic Management: Strategic Management by W. Edward Stead, Jean Garner Stead, and Mark Starik
- The Total Beauty of Sustainable Products by Edwin Datschefski
- The Unsettling of America by Wendell Berry
- Valuing the Earth by Herman E. Daly and Kenneth N. Townsend
- The Way of Ignorance by Wendell Berry
- World Agriculture and the Environment by Jason Clay
- Worldchanging by Alex Steffan
Films
- An Inconvenient Truth (directed by Davis Guggenheim, 2008)
- Blue Vinyl (directed by Daniel B. Gold and Judith Helfand, 2002)
- Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room (directed by Alex Gibney, 2005)
- Food, Inc. (directed by Robert Kenner, 2008)
- The Future of Food (directed by Deborah Koons, 2004)
- The Next Industrial Revolution (directed by Christopher Bedford and Shelley Morhaim, 2002)
- The Story of Stuff (with by Annie Leonard, 2008)
- Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price (directed by Robert Greenwald, 2005)
- Who Killed the Electric Car? (directed by Chris Paine, 2006)
News Articles
- "Mission-Driven", Metropolis (March 15, 2011, by Karen E. Steen)
- "Foodsprout Helps Trace Sustainability", TriplePundit (March 3, 2011, by Linda Chang)
- "Oscar Winner Began as Olympia Rocker", The News Tribune, (March 2, 2011, by Craig Sailor)
- "Trendy Threads from Waste", Christian Science Monitor (February 17, 2011, by contributing writer Micheal Benanav)
- "Is Fake Leather Really More Eco-Friendly?", Mother Jones magazine (January 24, 2011, by Kate Sheppard)
- "Driving Sustainable Design", BusinessWeek, Special report, July 2, 2007)
Video Blogs & Podcasts
- Bill Moyers (podcasts with respected journalist Bill Moyers)
- Bioneers
- FORA.tv (Unmediated video drawn from live events, lectures, and debates going on all the time at the world's top universities, think tanks, and conferences.)
- The Long Now Foundation
Websites
- AIGA Center for Sustainable Design
- AlterNet Books
- Center for Ecoliteracy
- Centre for Sustainable Design
- Environmental Justice Foundation
- Fashioning an Ethical Industry
- Green Biz (Green World Media)
- IDSA Business Ecodesign Tools
- International Network of Sustainable Design
- LASER Guide to Community Development
- The Natural Step
- Okala Ecodesign Design Guide
- Organic Exchange
- Patagonia's The Footprint Chronicles
- Permacouture Institute
- Pesticide Action Network (PAN) North America (PANNA)
- THE REMATERIALIZE PROJECT (featuring a searchable library of sustainable materials)
- slowLab
- Sustainable Cotton Project
- Sustainable Everyday Project
- Sustainability Helix (Natural Capitalism Solutions)
- TreeHugger
- Triple Pundit
- Watershed Media
- Worldchanging
- World Resources Institute
Contact CCA
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info@cca.edu
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San Francisco, CA 94107
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