'No Impact Man' Selected for One Book, One Community Reading Project

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Colin Beavan, author of No Impact Man

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – No Impact Man, by Colin Beavan, has been selected for the fall 2011 One Book, One Community project. The book, published in 2009, is the story of Beavan’s attempt, with his wife, daughter and dog, to live an entire year with “limited / no impact” on the environment.

“The One Book committee wanted to find a book for next year that could tap into students’ concern about the environment, the university’s and community’s sustainability efforts, and the new sustainability minor on campus that will be launched in the fall semester,” said Kevin Fitzpatrick, Jones Chair in Community for the department of sociology and criminal justice in the J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences, and co-chair of the One Book, One Community committee. “We received a number of really excellent suggestions from the campus and the community, and I think we’ve found a book that will educate, entertain and stimulate some lively discussion among those who read it.”

“I’m pleased we were able to choose a book and make all the necessary arrangements in time to announce this as part of Earth Week,” said David Jolliffe, Brown Chair in English Literary in the English department. “The committee was very diligent about reading and discussing the books that were nominated, and I feel we’ve picked a book that will appeal to and inform a very broad audience.”

The full title of Beavan’s book, No Impact Man: The Adventures of a Guilty Liberal Who Attempts to Save the Planet, and the Discoveries He Makes About Himself and Our Way of Life Along the Way, offers a taste of Beavan’s tone and writing style, as well as providing a succinct summary of the topic. In 2006, Beavan decided to stop complaining about global warming and see if he and his family could live sustainably in New York City. Among his goals were to produce no trash, use no petroleum products, eat only locally produced food, and stop buying new products. He chronicled their trials, errors and successes in a blog, which eventually drew national attention, including a documentary film about the experience. 

“This book has a rich personal narrative that is driven by conflict, both internal — within the author's mind — and external — with his immediate and extended families and with consumer-driven society at large — making it a compelling read,” said committee member Raina Smith Lyons, interim director of the program in rhetoric and composition. “Beavan manages to avoid the finger-pointing many authors seem to engage in when talking about the environment. In fact, his primary goal was to stop being an environmental hypocrite and start making changes in his own life. The book is full of interesting information about carbon footprinting and sustainable living, but it also deals with the ethical and personal decisions Beavan was forced to make.”

This will be the third year of the One Book, One Community project. Its success on campus and in the community prompted Chancellor G. David Gearhart to provide the project with a permanent budget, drawing on money from private donations to the Chancellor’s Fund.

 “The One Book, One Community project has strong academic value and campus support from faculty and students alike," Gearhart said. "Like its predecessors in this series, No Impact Man will provide our campus community with an intellectually stimulating shared experience. I look forward to reading it and to the discussions and special programs related to it."

“The committee is very grateful to the chancellor for his support,” said Fitzpatrick. “We believe this support will go a long way toward helping the One Book, One Community project become an essential and sustainable program at the University of Arkansas. We are working to build a program that enriches our students’ education and becomes a memorable experience for the entire community.”

Students in the fall English Composition course and several other classes will read, discuss and write about No Impact Man as part of their course assignments. Colin Beavan will visit Fayetteville Oct. 27 and 28 to speak with students and faculty, deliver a public lecture, and meet with local book club members at the Fayetteville Public Library.