I’ve written or co-written nine books since 1987, including The Green Consumer Guide, which was published in 1988 and went on to sell over 1 million copies worldwide.  Eight of these books I co-wrote with John Elkington – and some included other authors too – but my most recent book, The New Green Consumer Guide, I wrote as sole author.  Nearly 20 years on from the original guide, it was a very different book because so much had changed in the intervening period.    Information about The New Green Consumer Guide is below but click here to find out more about my other publications.  

 "The New Green Consumer Guide, published in 2007, is easy to read, fascinating, humorous and dispels quite a few myths."

 FIND OUT:

Why biofuels may be doing more harm than good.

How to choose the greenest car.

Why plastic bags are better than paper.

How 'green' detergents may not be best.

How to invest for climate change.

Why clothes are too cheap.

What funeral would be greenest.

A WORD FROM THE AUTHOR

When I wrote the original Green Consumer Guide in 1988, with John Elkington, green issues were moving out of the fringe and into the mainstream.  But even our publicist was surprised by its phenomenal success - it went straight to the best-seller lists, had 11 print runs in its first few weeks and went on to sell over a million copies worldwide.

The New Green Consumer Guide has been just as timely, with a world awakening to environmental issues and climate change in particular.  Whereas a couple of decades ago our principle task was to help people make the connections between the things they buy or do on a daily basis, with the latest edition the challenge was to help people through the myriad of choices and conflicting information. 

There's a real confusion about what is the best option and what isn't - and in many cases the answer isn't actually what you might expect.  Take plastic bags, for example.  In The New Green Consumer Guide, I explain why they're actually better than paper bags and why biodegradable or degradable bags aren't such a good idea either.  Another surprise could be my advice on green washing - it's far more important to wash at a low temperature than to worry about what happens when the suds go down the drain.

The New Green consumer Guide isn't just an up-date from the original book.  For a start it's fully illustrated and includes personal anecdotes about what I do at home - and in some cases what I haven't managed to do.  But most importantly this book will help you find out what you can do and how you can make a difference, whether you're decorating your house, buying food, traveling or even dying! 

Back to top

HERE'S A REVIEW I FOUND ON AMAZON

Perfect for beginners, 29 Jan 2008

By   P. Williams (Herts, England)

I began 2008 with a resolution to be greener. The problem is that there is a lot of conflicting and confusing advice available as to what is the best way to manage your life for the best. What I needed was a guide book to lead me through confusion and explain to me what the options are, what I should and should not be doing. When I saw The New Green Consumer Guide, I decided to buy it and put my trust in it.

I had worried it might be a bit of a preachy "thou shalt not live in the 21st century" type book but in fact it is quite the opposite. It is practical, with Julia Hailes telling it how it is. She makes excellent use of lists, the modern way of making books readable for the lazy and time poor (like me), and you can pop in and out of the book, picking up useful bits of information about the areas of green living that you want or need to know, one at a time. For example:

Shopping: Julia lists the results of her supermarket survey but then gives more detail about the good and bad bits that you might not have previously considered in supermarket shopping.

Energy: Why home wind turbines sound great but might not be the answer to all our prayers.

Nappies: Disposables or reusables? Julia gives the arguments for and against both and this one shows that there is always more to it than meets the eye. As a beginner, I thought that every environmentalist would automatically have gone for reusables. But Julia points out that this means frequent washing at 60 degrees, which is up there with dumping disposables in landfill for being bad for the environment.

The book asks questions, answers questions, raises awareness and provides many useful references in websites and organisations. Some of the information is already a little out of date, such as the CHP boiler providers and (inevitably) the cars available with ultra low emissions. However, I would expect that anyone wanting to green up their life would, like me, use more than one point of reference to make their choices. But my base point has become this book and I can recommend it to anyone who is taking an interest for the first time or to those who want to make sure they are keeping up with the latest issues.  Select this text and insert new text OR image.  Don't worry as the boundaries of the table appear to move around. This will allow flexibility for picture or text size

Back to top

ACCREDITED BOOK FEEDBACK

"Every sensible consumer needs a guide through the maze of green products and services, and this is by the far the best, most thorough and well researched guide currently available." 

Chris Huhne MP, Lib Dem Shadow Environment Minister - June 2007

“This is an excellent and timely book. There is much more interest today in “green” issues, but people are often confused as to how to change their behaviour. This well researched volume is a green guide for consumers, and a blueprint for action for Governments.”

 David Laws MP, June 2007

"Had to let you know how good we think your lovely new book is. Brilliant layout, huge research, friendly and accessible style - I'm sure it will be the most useful, used and valuable book on green decision making."

Zani & Kevin McCloud, May 2007

Bookbag Review - May 2007

"The original Green Consumer Guide sold over a million copies when it was published in 1988. There wasn't much competition in those days - we were all still scoffing at the Prince of Wales for talking to his plants. Nineteen years on, it's a different ball game entirely. Julia Haile's new version will sit on bookshop shelves entirely devoted to the environmental message. The idea is no longer to get the message out, it's to save people from drowning in it and enable them to actually get up and do something about it……."

Back to top