The sources we draw from. Nothing here is required.
The origin of the land ethic. "A thing is right when it tends to preserve the integrity, stability, and beauty of the biotic community." Short, beautiful, and foundational.
Indigenous knowledge and Western science woven together. The concept of the honorable harvest. Changes how you see everything that grows.
Deep ecology's philosophical foundation. The ecological self. Biospheric egalitarianism. Dense but rewarding.
The case that ecological destruction stems from social hierarchy. "Nearly all of our present ecological problems originate in deep-seated social problems." Long but essential.
Practical design principles for living within ecological limits. Earth care, people care, fair share.
"Any intelligent fool can make things bigger, more complex, and more violent. It takes a touch of genius — and a lot of courage — to move in the opposite direction."
The intellectual architecture for an economy that develops without growing. Academic but clear.
The most accessible modern framework for an economy that meets everyone's needs within planetary limits. The doughnut image is unforgettable.
The MIT model that predicted what would happen if we kept pursuing exponential growth. Fifty years of data suggest it was largely correct.
The argument that digital platforms have replaced market capitalism with something closer to feudalism. Provocative and accessible.
The academic complement to Varoufakis. How digital platforms extract rent through coordination monopolies.
The biological and historical case for cooperation as a survival strategy. The antidote to Social Darwinism. Free online.
The essential essay on why "no hierarchy" doesn't mean "no power" — it means invisible, unaccountable power. Short. Free online. Required reading for anyone who wants to organize without bosses.
Nobel Prize-winning research proving that communities can manage shared resources without either markets or states. The 8 principles for commons governance.
A modern, practical guide to mutual aid organizing. Short, clear, and immediately useful.
The case for institutions that allow error-correction. "The question 'Who should rule?' is replaced by 'How can we organize our political institutions so that bad rulers can be removed without violence?'"
A short essay on why "we might be wrong" doesn't mean all positions are equally wrong. Thinking the Earth is spherical is wronger than thinking it's an oblate spheroid, but much less wrong than thinking it's flat. Free online.
The Buddha compared his teachings to a raft: useful for crossing a river, not worth carrying on your back afterward. The instruction to hold all teachings — including this one — lightly.
"IT IS MY FIRM BELIEF THAT IT IS A MISTAKE TO HOLD FIRM BELIEFS." The source of the catma/dogma distinction. Weird, funny, and deeper than it looks.
Secular meditation stripped of supernatural claims. You don't need karma or reincarnation to observe the nature of your own consciousness.
The Quaker guide to governance by consensus, equality testimony, and continuing revelation. Each Yearly Meeting publishes its own. Available from many Quaker organizations.