Books for Activists and Sustainable Businesses

Books for Activists and Sustainable Businesses

At MIMMO Studios, we're doing our best to continue learning about the climate crisis and how we might innovate in order to solve it. We've listed some books for World Book Day 2022 which we have read this year. They've proven to be thought provoking and inspiring in equal measure; invaluable tools for a small, sustainable business. 

Consumed: The Need for Collective Change; Colonialism, Climate Change & Consumerism

Aja Barber 

The original slow fashion activist Aja Barber released her first book ‘Consumed’ in 2021. Shining a stark light on the state of the fashion industry as it stands, and its colonial roots, Aja exposes the truth behind the clothes we consume. 

Helping readers understand the uncomfortable truth around consumption patterns in the modern world, her book is a frank and direct assessment of an industry built on exploitation. 

“The thing I think about most, however, is power. Who has it, and how do we redistribute it? What does that even look like?”


Hot Money 

Naomi Klein 

We love Naomi Kein’s writing style. She writes frankly and succinctly, laying the facts out as they are without patronising or belittling, her work is easy to digest in a topic which can be overwhelming. 

Her essay ‘Hot Money’ focuses on globalisation and capitalism as driving forces for the climate crisis, and provides thoughtful solutions, some of which are already being proven to work outside of theoretical ideology. 

“It is slowly dawning on a great many of us that no one is going to step in and fix this crisis; that if change is to take place it will only be because leadership bubbled up from below.”

 

Out of the Wreckage: A New Politics for an Age of Crisis

George Monbiot

You've likely come across George Monbiot's renowned environmental reportin. His book, 'Out of the Wreckage' is an accessible account of how we have ended up in a society which "places a price on everything and a value on nothing". ​​​​​​​​

​​​​​The book is a clear-cut account of the situation we find ourselves in - but with an underlying message of hope which is truly inspiring. ​​​​​​​​​​​​​We recommend his book to any business owner or activist looking to challenge the status quo. ​​​​​​​​

“We are better than we are told we are, better than we are induced to be. By recognising our good nature and coming together to express it, we can overcome the multiple crises we face that cannot be solved alone”

Less is More: How Degrowth Will Save the World 

Jason Hickel 

This book is quite startling - based on scientific evidence, and never wavering from the driving force behind the book - a love for the natural world - Hickel explores the concept of post-capitalism and degrowth. 

Drawing on historical and current events for evidence, he creates a compelling case for a slower, more caring world. 

“What we need to do to survive is what we need to do to have better lives”

 

Next on our list: 

The Growth Delusion: The Wealth and Well-Being of Nations

David Pilling