Karen T. Litfin

"Ecovillages" is a personal book written by an academic, Karen Litfin, who took a sabbatical to travel the globe visiting ecovillages in a quest to learn how we might live more sustainably. She shares what she learned in this readable and informative book. The book is organized around four key components for sustainable living—ecology, economics, community, and consciousness. Those well versed in environmental sustainability will likely find Litfin’s lessons familiar. The author’s most significant contribution to the subject of sustainability may be the questions she poses in her search for how to create more environmentally sustainable societies. These questions will likely spark the interest of readers in finding answers just as they did for the author. Also especially valuable is her final chapter on how to scale up ecovillage practices. There is much, though, throughout the book that will inspire creative thinking about how we may change our relationship with the earth and each other. Litfin’s book is a useful contribution to the quest to find new ways of living in harmony with the planet and the people on it.… (meer)