While we all might be aware of the need to make more sustainable choices in our lives, sometimes it can be hard to know where to start.
But whether you’re just starting out on your sustainability journey, or consider yourself already pretty well informed, Ollie Hunter’s new book Join the Greener Revolution is a great read.
His first book, 30 Easy Ways to Join the Food Revolution introduced three main principles – Zero Waste, Organic and 50% Produce within 30 miles – and he returns to those principles here, illustrating how we can endeavour to use natural resources sustainably.
The book is split into three main sections:
Home – How do we make our homes more green? From kitchen to bathroom and into the bedroom, this book looks at ways we can transform our houses into easy-to-run, energy-efficient homes. It’s time to quit cling film, make our own shampoo, consider where are clothes come from.
Community – This section outlines ideas we can bring to our daily lives, from taking a break (and avoiding palm oil chocolate bars) and getting to know our neighbours, to collaborating with our community, and linking local businesses together to cut down on waste.
World – Who takes the blame and does it really matter? The way to a more joyful life is through forgiveness, positive visualisation and meditation. Ollie balances these steps with a more environmentally conscious system of economics and a move away from individuality and ‘non-responsibility’ so we can create a more sustainable, ecological and mindful world.
It’s not preachy though – just full of interesting facts and insights. It’s all presented in easy to absorb snippets, and punctuated by Ollie’s trademark recipes from Tomato Leaf Focaccia to Dandelion and Courgette Pakoras and Chickpea Scotch Eggs with Aquafaba Aioli making the kind of book you’ll find yourself reaching for time and time again.
Join the Greener Revolution, published by Pavilion Books, is out now priced £14.99
Ollie Hunter was a MasterChef semi-finalist in 2013 and since then he and his wife, Lauren, have taken over The Wheatsheaf pub in Chilton Foliat. Working in collaboration with his parents’ nearby farm, it has been voted the UK’s most sustainable pub (Sustainable Restaurant Association), as well as the best organic, local and seasonal pub (Sawday’s). Ollie has written for the Sustainable Restaurant Association in the Telegraph and the Guardian.
Ollie is now continuing his mission and creating a movement called 30 Food. Picking up the baton for generations to come, 30 Food will offer new ways of cooking, meaning everyone can afford organic food, aim to have zero food waste, and celebrate their local area by eating 50% within thirty miles.