Description

‘A terrific book’ Michael Morpurgo
‘Excellent’ Helen Czerski
‘A clear, concise and accessible guide to the pivotal question of our age’ Guy Shrubsole

We need land for so many of humanity’s growing needs, such as food, renewable energy, carbon storage and housing. Traditionally, we’ve stolen it from nature, but this has led to a mounting toll of extinction and pollution that is now punishing us. So, as there’s no land left to take, how do we get more from the same, or preferably less.

In Land Smart, Tom Heap, a presenter on BBC TV’s Countryfile, Radio 4’s new Rare Earth series and the anchor of The Climate Show on Sky News, tours the British countryside meeting the farmers, scientists, conservationists and even warehouse managers who are solving the most pressing challenges facing our countryside and the world.

If we use land cleverly it can give both humanity and nature the space to thrive on just the one planet. If not, we’re in trouble.

Publisher Review

A terrific book… Every page is a challenge to how we think about the good earth about us, our climate, our soil, our food and how we live our lives. Land Smart is a call for positive change that we must not ignore. * Michael Morpurgo * This excellent book charts an optimistic but realistic path to a smarter use of the land that we have, and maybe, if we’re clever, shows how we can have it all. A timely and essential guide to a better future for our land and our planet, clearly written, packed with real world examples, and full of hope * Helen Czerski * Land Smart is a clear, concise and accessible guide to the pivotal question of our age – how best to use the finite resource of land for food, energy and shelter whilst also fixing the climate and nature crises. Calmly and rationally, Tom Heap lays bare how industrial agriculture has laid waste to nature over too much of our land surface, fuelling climate breakdown – and maps a course to a smarter use of our land. * Guy Shrubsole, author of The Lost Rainforests of Britain and Who Owns England? * A poignant analysis urging us to tread lightly and think deeply. I highly recommended this book, to those with a direct influence on land and all of us whose choices end up written in the soil. * Adam Henson, BBC Countryfile presenter and author of Two for Joy * A refreshingly clear-eyed, pragmatic look at one of the most hotly contested issues of our time: how best to use our available land. Heap brilliantly navigates the food-nature-energy debates in this highly engaging, solution focused tour of Britain, which balances innovations with evidence to chart a hopeful path forwards. * Gaia Vince, author of Adventures in the Anthropocene * We all know about being climate smart, but as Tom Heap shows in this remarkable new book, if we really want to save the planet we’re going to have to be land smart too. * Mark Lynas, author of Six Degrees: Our Future on a Hotter Planet * A brilliant weaving together of surprising facts and charming encounters. Tom Heap, a world class broadcaster, combines an infectious curiosity with a no-nonsense determination to get at the truth of what really works and what doesn’t. Essential reading for anyone concerned about the future of energy, food and nature, which ought to be all of us * David Shukman, former Science Editor BBC News * Land Smart offers a punchy, pacy but also precise answer to some of the biggest challenges in front of us all. I’m left convinced that we can live with the land in a way that cares for nature, our climate and ourselves if we are canny and purposeful * Joe Smith, Director of the Royal Geographical Society * Rising demand for food, energy and carbon capture all place increased pressure on land, in the process reducing that available for nature. It’s a huge issue, yet how to use land in smart ways is one of the least discussed questions of our times. * Tony Juniper CBE, environmentalist * A fascinating exploration of the work being done round the world – right now – to help stop climate change. — Arnold Schwarzenegger on 39 WAYS TO SAVE THE PLANET