Worldchanging: A User’s Guide for the 21st Century

Book Review by Erica Schlaikjer
This review was printed in Abroad View magazine fall 2007

The massive 596-page publication, Worldchanging: A User’s Guide for the 21st Century (Alex Steffen, ed., Harry N. Abrams, Inc. 2006), developed from WorldChanging.com, a Seattle-based website that provides tools, tips, and ideas for “building a better future.” But “worldchanging” is bigger than the book or the URL.

It’s a creative, interactive collective of engaged activists and thinkers, from journalists to engineers, who want to find solutions to make the world a better place to live. This means reducing pollution, preserving resources, increasing global prosperity, cutting corruption, and developing sustainable models of productivity. And for students going abroad, this means taking responsibility for the places you visit and being aware of the impact you leave behind.

The book is an encyclopedia of information, with an index that spans from “acid rain” to “zero-energy homes.” There are seven sections, each highlighting a different avenue of economic and environmental sustainability. “Stuff” covers consumerism and consumption, making suggestions for responsible buying habits. “Shelter” looks at sustainable design for homes. “Cities” examines eco-solutions for urban living.

“Community” offers models of community action and development. “Business” proposes “green” entrepreneurship and other models of livelihood and service. “Politics” outlines tools for social change. And, finally, “Planet” addresses environmental and ecological issues. The point is to appeal to each reader’s individual interests, so that every individual can take small steps to affect big change.

Worldchanging’s vision respects individuality. Editor Alex Steffen, an environmental journalist who once attended University of Washington’s Jackson School of International Studies, asks, “What kind of future will you create?” If you don’t know the answer, flip to any chapter in the volume to get inspiration. Even the pages themselves use paper made with 100-percent post-consumer waste and are processed chlorine-free. And for every unit of electricity used to produce the book, the publisher purchased wind-power credits to match.

In the book’s foreword, Al Gore talks about the world being in crisis. “We need a generation of heroes,” he says, “who have the courage to think in fresh ways and to act to meet this planetary crisis head-on.” So Worldchanging really isn’t just a book. Or a website. It’s a commitment to our future.