The Lazy Environmentalist on a Budget: Save Money. Save Time. Save The Planet.
April 2009

“Green tips for slackers.” — The Daily Green

“Not only gives you a ridiculous amount of resources (stores, companies, websites) but does it with budget savvy families in mind.” — Deal-ectible Mommies

“When Joe the Plumber decides to go green, I’m pretty sure he’ll read The Lazy Environmentalist on a Budget.” – Sustainable Sean

Why I wrote The Lazy Environmentalist on a Budget:

When my first book, The Lazy Environmentalist, was published, I traveled the country speaking to groups about the cutting-edge green products I’d written about that could bring our lifestyles into balance with nature. Yet, the refrain I heard most often was, “That all sounds good but green is too expensive.”

Were they right? Or was “too expensive” a convenient excuse for avoiding the options? Or by too expensive did they really mean not good enough? Maybe the green choices didn’t they work well and therefore weren’t worth the price. I decided to find out.

I focus on marketplace innovation that accelerates the green economy. I get frustrated by generic advice like telling people to switch to a low-flow showered or bring a reusable shopping bag to the supermarket. I want to know which low-flow showerheads and reusable shopping bags are the best because those are the ones people want to use! These are the kinds of recommendations you’ll find in this book.

Sometimes I’m criticized for focusing so strongly on green consumer choices. I just feel that one thing almost all of us do everyday is buy stuff. For better or worse, we shop. So figuring out how to enable us to enjoy a high quality of life while reducing the impact of our consumption is critical as we progress toward a more sustainable world. I hope this book helps you on that journey.

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The Lazy Environmentalist: Your Guide to Easy, Stylish Green Living
April 2007

“A guide to going green without resorting to Birkenstocks and brown rice casserole.” — Dwell Magazine

“Covers the latest environmental trends in fashion, design, transportation, travel, home interiors, and more.” — Green Options

“A compendium of ideas, suppliers and options that take reusing, reducing and recycling to a whole new level.” – Bookpage

“The perfect resource for those looking to live and (more specifically) shop responsibly.” — Apartment Therapy

Why I wrote The Lazy Environmentalist:
I wrote this book to assemble in one place the most outstanding green products available in the marketplace. To me the best green products combine quality, functionality, design, accessibility and cost-appropriateness (not necessarily cheap but fairly priced for the value offered).

I also wanted to share my excitement about the emerging green trends and specific designers and entrepreneurs I was encountering through my radio show on Sirius Satellite Radio and through my retail company of modern design green products, Vivavi.

I love this book because even three years later I believe it still serves as a very relevant guide to green business innovation as well as a comprehensive guide to design-forward green products.

For sure, there are a handful of new, really terrific green companies not mentioned in the book. But by and large the innovators around in 2007 are still the ones who are thriving today.

– Josh Dorfman (April, 2010)

BUY IT HERE: Amazon.com Barnes and Noble Powells.com Stewart, Tabori & Chang

Environmental Printing: The Lazy Environmentalist books are printed on FSC certified, 100% post-consumer recycled paper and processed chlorine-free.

WATCH Josh’s Book Talk as part of the Authors@Google series at Google’s Headquarters

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The original blog entry that started it all:

January 5, 2005 by Josh

Lazy Environmentalist

I’m a passionate yet lazy environmentalist. I want to do the right thing. I want the planet to be clean. I want to breathe fresh air. I want to not have to hold my breath every time I drive on the New Jersey Turnpike. I want it to be totally fun, cool and sexy to act in an environmentally responsible way. Otherwise, half the time I won’t do it. I won’t always place my empty water bottles in the recycling bin.

Why? Because, frankly, it’s a pain and there’s nothing fun about it. I want a shower that cleans, filters, and reuses the same five gallons of water repeatedly so I can take a low-impact 30 minute shower and know that I’m not squandering our dwindling supply of fresh water. Frankly, I take long showers. That’s where I do my best thinking. So I want someone to invent this kind of shower for me. I’ll be thrilled to buy it and I’ll tell all my friends to get one too. Give me a hybrid Audi TT so I can put the top down and drive fast without polluting like a maniac. I’ll gladly pay for it. Make me furniture out of bamboo instead of wood so I’m not by extension cutting down trees just to have something nice to eat on. I’ll pay for that too.

Make it so totally easy, fun and attractive to do “the right thing” and I’ll do it every time. Because I care about the planet. I really do. But I’m lazy and I’m not going to change my behavior any time soon. So cater to me. Help me consume more responsibly without having to try. I’ll thank you for it and the planet will too.

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For Media Inquiries Contact: Claire Bamundo Director of Publicity Stewart, Tabori & Chang cbamundo@hnabooks.com (212) 519-1239 www.hnabooks.com