ReviewsDavid Gershon has created a step-by-step program, à la Weight Watchers, designed to reduce a person's carbon footprint. . . . Replete with checklists and illustrations, this user-friendly guide is a serious attempt at changing American energy-consumption behavior. . . . The timing for a book offering day-to-day solutions to an overwhelming global problem couldn't be better.
The Christian Science Monitor
Low Carbon Diet is a practical manual for anyone who wants to reduce global warming step by step, day by day, starting now. Filled with charts for tracking and computing your carbon savings, it can help translate good intentions into demonstrable, measurable change.
What Is Enlightenment Magazine
The typical American household generates approximately 55,000 pounds of carbon dioxide annually. We have an "overheating" problem; but what can we do about it? This entertaining workbook helps you make the cool choice to quantify and reduce the impact you are having on the planet. Its 23 practical steps are embedded in a social change technology that leverages relationships to help people move from ideas to action. . . .
Low Carbon Diet couldn't be timelier in providing people an action plan for addressing climate change, just when the collective consciousness seems to be bending in that direction. . . . The book helps self-organized teams take action to dramatically reduce their carbon footprint. . . . Go on this low carbon diet with family, friends, co-workers, and neighbors, and learn as much about each other as you do about climate change.
Leverage Points, Pegasus Communications
Low Carbon Diet is modeled on one of the few environmental interventions that studies show has produced long-lasting environmental behavior changes: The EcoTeam program. EcoTeams bring together neighbors, friends, club members, or coreligionists for six to eight monthly meetings, where they learn and track behaviors that will improve their impact on the environment. The meetings tackle topics such as garbage, energy use, transportation, and consumer behavior.
A three-year Dutch study that followed demographically similar EcoTeams and control groups found that EcoTeam participants changed half of the 38 household behaviors examined, with corresponding reductions on four physical measures of resource use. Moreover, EcoTeam participants maintained or improved their pro-environmental behaviors for two years after group meetings ended.
The Low Carbon Diet is easy and really well done, says Gregor Barnum, director of corporate consciousness at Seventh Generation. When the diet was introduced in 2000, the Portland, Oregon, residents who participated cut their household emissions by an average of 6,700 pounds, an enviable weight reduction by any standard.
Plenty Magazine
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Praise for Low Carbon Diet
The book is fabulous! It couldn't be more timely. It's practical, accessible and effective. Getting people to take on Global Warming at a personal level is critical to tackling the issue. The Low Carbon Diet can make a huge difference.
Denis Hayes, Co-founder, Earth Day
A 'how-to' guide for people to change their energy habits. The authors have succeeded in making dieting sound like a win-win proposition: save energy, save money and, most importantly, save the planet.
Eileen Claussen, President of the Pew Center on Global Climate Change
Low Carbon Diet is a deeply transforming book. It is indispensable to anyone who wants to make a difference on climate change.
Tim Flannery, author of The Weathermakers, 2007Australian of the Year
Low Carbon Diet is a very effective program for helping people achieve real and lasting carbon reduction at the household level. We gave a copy to each person who was personally trained by Al Gore and The Climate Project to give a version of his slideshow. I recommend it to anyone who wants to do their part to reduce their carbon footprint.
Jenny Clad, Executive Director, Al Gore s The Climate Project
Recently, I learned about the Low Carbon Diet and wrote an article about it for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Since that time, I have applied what I learned from reading the book to decisions I made at my new house related to energy consumption. As a result, I realized tremendous savings in my C02 emissions, as well as drastic reductions in my utility bills. To say the least, I was delighted with the book and its approach to fighting global warming. I also work in the retail field and decided to apply the techniques I learned in the book to my retail wine and spirits shop. Our overall operating expenses went down 9 percent within a year when we instituted the energy saving and resource reduction strategies you suggested. Through our employee suggestion program, we were able to spread some of the ideas to the other 623 stores in our system, creating significant cost-savings and C02 reductions throughout our entire system. Your Low Carbon Diet Book is a great concept. I was amazed at the money we saved and the C02 reductions we realized when we put your concept to work in the workplace.
Robert Podurgiel, The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Just as the consciousness-raising groups of the women's movement changed America overnight at no cost to anyone, so can the Low Carbon Diet inspire environmental consciousness-raising groups. Their results can restore the earth rather than destroy it....and at virtually no cost.
Susan Davis, President, CapitalMissions.com
FINALLY . . . there s the Low Carbon Diet. The program is intelligently and imaginatively built to be user-friendly, easy and fun!! I made new friends, was encouraged that others feel as passionately about safeguarding our planet as I do, and was supported by my LCD Team in taking really significant actions that have made my household carbon-neutral! Amazing!! Now I m working with new and old friends to bring the LCD program to my community, and finally feeling a sense of hope for our future and the future of our Earth.
Patty Goodwin, Low Carbon Diet participant
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I love the Low Carbon Diet. It's easy to follow with all the information in one place. I thought we would be overwhelmed with information, but we weren't. It is clear and concise. The way it is put together sets up a good challenge.
Sergio Diaz, Low Carbon Diet participant
The Low Carbon Diet program provided our household a way to learn what our carbon footprint was (shockingly massive) and a way to reduce our impact on the Earth in a fun, inspiring and practical manner. Now I feel much more at peace knowing my values are in alignment with my actions.
Sonya Shoptaugh, Low Carbon Diet participant
The Low Carbon Diet is amazingly effective at promoting true, sustainable change. The realities of our very green family's carbon consumption were sobering, but David Gershon's program has given us an easy-to-implement plan for dramatically lowering it. In fact, in the past month we have lost 114,550 pounds and we're now carbon neutral!
Nan and Andy Satter, Low Carbon Diet participants
From the Author:
The program described in this book is based on a tried and true methodology, grounded in extensive research. Over the past two decades, I have developed environmental behavior change programs that have helped several hundred thousand people demonstrably lessen their toll on the planet. American households using this simple methodology have reduced their environmental footprint by over 25% and sustained these changes over time.
If we ordinary Americans reduce our CO2 footprint, we can have a disproportionate influence in turning the tide on global warming. When we, the consumers and voters, become part of the global warming solution, businesses and politicians will not be far behind. And as America-the planet s greatest contributor to climate change-takes responsibility for reducing its carbon footprint, the impact will inevitably ripple out.
An extraordinary moment for change has arrived. Feedback from the Earth is telling us it is time to act. This is a heroic time calling for heroic action. You can lead the way and this book will show you how.
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The program described in this book is based on a tried and true methodology, grounded in extensive research. Over the past two decades, I have developed environmental behavior change programs that have helped several hundred thousand people demonstrably lessen their toll on the planet. American households using this simple methodology have reduced their environmental footprint by over 25% and sustained these changes over time.
If we ordinary Americans reduce our CO2 footprint, we can have a disproportionate influence in turning the tide on global warming. When we, the consumers and voters, become part of the global warming solution, businesses and politicians will not be far behind. And as America--the planet's greatest contributor to climate change--takes responsibility for reducing its carbon footprint, the impact will inevitably ripple out.
An extraordinary moment for change has arrived. Feedback from the Earth is telling us it is time to act. Al Gore's profound movie "An Inconvenient Truth" has created a groundswell of interest among ordinary citizens who want to do their part. The stars are in perfect alignment for change. This is a heroic time calling for heroic action. You can lead the way and this book will show you how.
I am in awe of the potential for this moment to be truly catalytic. I know we can make the needed changes happen, and I am hopeful this book can play a significant role. I wish you well in this journey and thank you for doing your part.
-David Gershon
CEO, Empowerment Institute
