Co-authors:Gene Marshall,Ben Ball,Marsha Buck,Ken Kreutziger,and Alan Richard.
Reviewed by William Zehring

This book is more a full scale how-to manual rather than a bare bones quick start outline. It sets forth a rather detailed explication of the wheelbarrow to hell route we,as a society,are traveling. The solutions thoughtfully offered make sense and lend some hope that if we get our act together,we can embark on a path that may lead to a greater enjoyment of life for a much greater proportion of the populace of this special place in the cosmos. The authors propose a more horizontal or lateral form of living together as opposed to the vertical and hierarchical framework so long in place;a framework that has used domination as its main construction material. In an attempt to more graphically illustrate some of the processes in play,some of the analogies are a trifle forced,but so much is put forth,as to detail and policy,that such minor picking points are not troublesome. And,the authors suggest many other specific readings to provide a deeper understanding of the various issues and perspectives. This book will antagonize those reasonably satisfied with the course we’re on,but for those who feel a real need for a significant re-routing,this work will show the way to a higher goal. This is a good book for an extended review in a discussion group.

Copyright 2011 by Gene W. Marshall,iUniverse Publishers,iUniverse books may be ordered through booksellers or by contacting:iUniverse,1663 Liberty Drive,Bloomington,IN 47403,www.iuniverse.com,1-800-288-4677.

by Maria Popova

Inconspicuous consumption,or what lunching ladies have to do with social web karma.

Stuff. We all accumulate it and eventually form all kinds of emotional attachments to it. (Arguably,because the marketing machine of the 20th century has conditioned us to do so.) But digital platforms and cloud-based tools are making it increasingly easy to have all the things we want without actually owning them. Because,as Wired founder and notable futurist Kevin Kelly once put it,“access is better than ownership.’Here are seven services that help shrink your carbon footprint,lighten your economic load and generally liberate you from the shackles of stuff through the power of sharing.

NEIGHBORGOODS

The age of keeping up with the Jonses is over. The time of linking up with them has begin. NeighborGoods is a new platform that allows you to do just that,allowing you to borrow and lend from and to your neighbors rather than buying new stuff. (Remind us please,what happened to that fancy blender you bought and used only twice?) From lawnmowers to bikes to DVD’s,the LA-based startup dubs itself “the Craigslist for borrowing,’allowing you to both save and earn money.

Transparent user ratings,transaction histories and privacy controls make the sharing process simple and safe,while automated calendars and reminders ensure the safe return of loaned items. Give NeighborGoods a shot by creating a sharing group for your apartment building,campus,office,or reading group — both your wallet and your social life will thank you.

UPDATE:Per the co-founder’s kind comment below,we should clarify that NeighborGoods also allows you to import your Twitter and Facebook friends from the get-go,so you have an instant group to share with.

SNAPGOODS

Similarly to Neighborgoods,SnapGoods allows you to rent,borrow and lend within your community. SnapGoods takes things step further by expanding the notion of “community’not only to your local group — neighborhood,office or apartment building — but to your social graph across the web’s trusted corners. The site features full Facebook and Meetup integration,extending your social circle to the cloud. You can browse the goods people in your area are lending or take a look at what they need and lend a hand (or a sewing machine,as may be the case) if you’ve got the goods.

LANDSHARE

Growing one’s own produce is every hipster-urbanite’s pipe dream. But the trouble with it is that you have to actually have a place to grow it. And while a pot of cherry tomatoes on in your fire escape is better than nothing,it’s hardly anything. Enter Landshare,a simple yet brilliant platform for connecting aspiring growers with landowners who have the space but don’t use it. Though currently only available in the U.K.,we do hope to see Landshare itself,or at leastthe concept behind it,spread worldwide soon.

SWAPTREE

swaptree is a simple yet brilliant platform for swapping your media possessions — from books to DVD’s to vinyl — once they’ve run its course in your life as you hunt for the next great thing. Since we first covered swaptree nearly three years ago,the site has facilitated some 1.6 million swaps,saving its users an estimated $10.3 million while reducing their collective carbon footprint by 9.3 million tons.

Inspired by the founders’moms,whose lunch dates with girlfriends turned into book-swap clubs,swaptree makes sure that the only thing between you and the latest season of 24 is the price of postage.

GIFTFLOW

Most of us are familiar with the concept of regifting. (No disrespect,but the disconnect between good friends and good taste is sometimes astounding.) Luckily,GiftFlow allows you to swap gifts you don’t want for ones other people don’t want but you do. The platform is based on a system of karmic reputation,where your profile shows all you’ve given and taken,building an implicit system of trust through transparency.

So go ahead,grandma. Hit us with your latest sweet but misguided gift. Chances are,there’s someone out there who’d kill for that kitschy music box.

ZIPCAR

We’re big proponents of bikesharing but,to this point,the concept has failed to transcend local implementations. While some cities like Paris,Amsterdam and Denver are fortunate enough to have thriving bikesharing programs,we’re yet to see a single service available across different locations. Until then,we’d have to settle for the next best sharing-based transportation solution:Zipcar,a 24/7,on-demand carsharing service that gives its members flexible access to thousands of cars across the U.S.,U.K. and Canada. Zipcar has been around for quite some time years and most people are already familiar with it,so we won’t overelaborate,but suffice it to say the service is the most promising solution to reducing both traffic congestion and pollution in cities without reducing the actual number of drivers.

SHARE SOME SUGAR

Lend me some sugar,I am your neighbor. More than an Outkast lyric line,this is the inspiration behind share some sugar — a celebration of neighborliness through the sharing of goods and resources. Much like SnapGoods and NeighborGoods,the service
lets you borrow,rent and share stuff within your neighborhood or group of friends

* * *
For more on the culture of shared resources,do watch Rachel Botsman’s excellent TEDxSyndney talk. Her forthcoming book,What’s Mine Is Yours:The Rise of Collaborative Consumption,hits bookstores in two weeks and is an absolute must-read.

UPDATE:Botsman’s book,What’s Mine Is Yours:The Rise of Collaborative Consumption,is now out and landed promptly on our best books in business,life and mind shortlist for 2010. This article is reprinted with permission of Maria Popova. She is a cultural curator and curious mind at large,who also writes for Wired UK,The Atlantic and Design Observer,and is the founder and editor in chief of Brain Pickings.

The latest attempt to push through the Keystone XL pipeline is meeting some spirited opposition.

Photo by Elvert Barnes

In the latest act of what has become a long political saga,Senate Republicans are trying to bypass the permitting process altogether and pass a law mandating the construction of the controversial Keystone XL pipeline,which would transport oil from the Canadian tar sands to refineries on the Gulf of Mexico.

But you’ve likely heard about this already,thanks to a major mobilization of more than 35 organizations working together to oppose the proposed law. A coalition of environmental,tribal,and other groups launched an effort to get 500,000 people to contact their senators within 24 hours. Seven hours in,with the help of bloggers,celebrities,and vibrant networks on social media,the petition had already passed the half a million mark. [Update:More than 800,000 people ended up voicing their opposition within the 24-hour window.]

That volume of response illustrates the passion that Keystone XL now excites among opponents and supporters alike. But it wasn’t always this way. A year ago,few people had even heard of the pipeline (there weren’t enough searches for “Keystone XL” in February 2011 to register on Google Trends) and those who did know about the project considered approval a foregone conclusion.

What a difference a year makes. Climate activists,residents along the proposed pipeline route (particularly in Nebraska,where concern about damage to the Ogallala Aquifer and the Sandhills is strong),indigenous tribes,and other opponents refused to let the pipeline be silently approved. “We’re pretty sure that without serious pressure the Keystone Pipeline will get its permit from Washington,” Bill McKibben,Naomi Klein,Wes Jackson,Wendell Berry,and others warned in an open letter last June. And so began months of sustained activism,from a two-week sit-in that prompted more than 1,200 arrests in August to a November rally that encircled the White House.

What had once been an under-the-radar proposal soon rocketed to the status of major national issue,debated by presidential candidates and used as leverage in congressional negotiations. Congressional Republicans passed an ultimatum requiring the State Department to rule on the the permit for the pipeline within 60 days—a time frame that State deemed impossible,leading to rejection of the permit. And now,in a particularly brazen move,those same legislators are trying to mandate the construction of the pipeline—regardless of what regulatory agencies reviewing the project have to say—by attaching an amendment to a major transportation bill.

But they’re not finding it easy to do so quietly—thanks to what has,in the last year,grown into a large,passionate,and well-coordinated grassroots effort to stop the pipeline. “When we’ve been sending out Keystone XL emails,we’ve been seeing higher response and open rates than about anything we’ve been doing on any issue over the last couple years,” Sierra Club president Michael Brune told reporters on a conference call this morning. CREDO Mobile’s Michael Kieschnick agreed:“The Keystone XL fight has galvanized our 2.5 million members more than any other issue. That’s because they know the stakes.” Activists,citing the horrendous climate impact of developing the tar sands,call the pipeline the fuse to the biggest carbon bomb on the planet.

It’s too soon to say what will ultimately happen with the pipeline. Right-wing politicians,many of them recipients of significant campaign contributions from Big Oil and other pipeline supporters,are showing there’s little they won’t try to get it built. But standing in their way is a grassroots movement with the energy—and the collaborative power—to turn a little-known infrastructure project into one of the central political debates in our country.

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Brooke Jarvis wrote this article for YES! Magazine,a national,nonprofit media organization that fuses powerful ideas with practical actions. Brooke is YES! Magazine’s web editor.