Sustainable Planet: Roadmaps for the Twenty-First Century Beacon Press Nov 2002 isbn: 0807004553 $18.00 buy

Friday Forum: Juliet Schor, November 1

Friday, 3pm
Harvard Book Store
1256 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge
No tickets are required

Americans work longer, with less vacation time, than the citizens of any other industrialized nation. And they consume more: recent scientific estimates indicate that at least four additional planets would be needed to support the earth's population if each of the planet's 6 billion inhabitants consumed at the level of the average American. It's a lifestyle that's hard on both people and the environment.

In Sustainable Planet, some of the best known writers on sustainable living—Juliet Schor, Bill McKibben, Mary Pipher, Herman Daly, Vicki Robin, and William McDonough—write about how we might change the way we live. Looking at issues as diverse as consumerism, overwork, lack of spirituality, loss of community, alienation from nature, and unsustainable development, the authors dissect the problems plaguing our society and offer practical advice about how to change the way we live.

This anthology comes out of the work of the Center for a New American Dream, a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping Americans change the way they consume to improve quality of life, protect the environment, and promote social justice.

Author Biography

Doctor Juliet Schor, Professor of Sociology at Boston College, is a nationally recognized social economist, author, and researcher who focuses on consumerism, work and leisure issues. She has recently joined the Boston College faculty. Previously she was the Director of the Women's Studies Program at Harvard University. Dr. Schor is the author of several books including two influential best sellers, The Overworked American: The Unexpected Decline of Leisure, and The Overspent American: Upscaling, Downshifting, and the New Consumer. Her work has been particularly helpful in demonstrating the link between consumerism and work/life balance issues.