How Not to Save the World

What if you don’t have to save the world in order to do something good?

How Not To Save The World is about what gets in the way of working for change, whether it’s the obstacles to trying at all, or the blind spots where we don’t see our own behaviour, or disregard it because the cause is urgent.

It’s a sympathetic exploration of alternatives to righteousness, purity traps and other unhelpful habits, showing that there are ways to work together for what matters, without alienating the people we need to convince.

How Not To Save The World is for long-standing activists and new ones, and all of the people who are worried about the state of the world and wondering where to start.

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"A wise, rich and crucial book, which is helping me to do better, and will help many others."

George Monbiot
"The stories in this book show how we can build bridges to work together for the world we want."

Brian Eno
“Read it and weep, laugh, cringe… It might bring more compassion and togetherness in a broken world.”

Dr Gail Bradbrook, co-founder of Extinction Rebellion
“Anthea Lawson’s provocative book provides us with deep insights into the tactical, emotional and ethical complexities of campaigning – and, in particular, of how best to set about saving the world.”

Sir Jonathon Porritt
“An urgent book, a scintillating call to match our outer activism with inner self-awareness. And this, not just to win campaigns, but towards the deeper transformation of the world.”

Professor Alastair McIntosh, author of Soil and Soul and Spiritual Activism
“A vital intervention. Even with the best intentions, organisations and individuals can inadvertently make things worse. This book points a way forward that invites us all into our agency as citizens, so we can build the world we want together.”

Jon Alexander, author of Citizens
“Deeply researched and refreshingly honest, this book is for activists – and the activism-weary. It helps readers interrogate their own protest practices, mindsets, and intentions, cultivating kinder, more reflective campaigning rooted in connection and community.”

Sarah P. Corbett, author of The Craftivist Collective Handbook
“Highly readable… Lawson’s book provides a map of the possible pitfalls of working towards a better world. A realistic, funny assessment of what to do if you worry about the cringe parts of activist culture but can’t stand to watch the world burn.”

Sarah Stein Lubrano, author of Don’t Talk About Politics
“Provides concrete storytelling and strategy about many different forms of social justice work while speaking directly to some of the ways that justice-oriented folk get in the way of the work we want to build. Anthea tells these stories with a mix of directness and compassion. This is humility and it is part of how we become the world we want to see.”

Susan Raffo, author of Liberated to the Bone
“Lawson invites us to critically reflect on our own assumptions, shortcomings and strengths, whilst offering hope that change is possible. An outstanding book and essential reading for every activist, practitioner and thinker concerned about the future of our planet.”

Emma River-Roberts, Founder and Director of the Working Class Climate Alliance
“Anthea Lawson’s book is a searing self-examination of her work as a climate activist. Her brutally honest account of her experience moved me in unexpected ways, especially as she came to realize the class divides that climate protestors have had such difficulty overcoming.”

Professor Catherine Liu, author of Virtue Hoarders
“This is a must read for anyone working in the NGO sector! A brilliant reflection on how the very systems that we are attempting to dismantle are recreated in our movements when we approach activism as a quest to “save the world”.”

Martha Awojobi, creator of Uncharitable Political Education
“Anthea Lawson is one of the world’s most serious thinkers on the limits of “activism”. Her thinking has been and continues to be very influential on vital efforts to create a new moderate flank to the most attention-grabbing environmental campaigners.”

Rupert Read, co-director of the Climate Majority Project and author of Why Climate Breakdown Matters

Pre-order US

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Introduction: The Save-The-World Script

Chapter 1: ‘I Am Good’

Chapter 2: ‘I Protest’

Chapter 3: ‘I Am Pure’

Chapter 4 ‘I Know Better Than You’

Chapter 5 ‘I Save People’

Chapter 6 ‘I Am A Hero’

Chapter 7 ‘I Must Save The World NOW!’

What if you don’t have to save the world in order to do something good?

"A wise, rich and crucial book, which is helping me to do better, and will help many others."

"The stories in this book show how we can build bridges to work together for the world we want."

“Read it and weep, laugh, cringe… It might bring more compassion and togetherness in a broken world.”

“Anthea Lawson’s provocative book provides us with deep insights into the tactical, emotional and ethical complexities of campaigning – and, in particular, of how best to set about saving the world.”

“An urgent book, a scintillating call to match our outer activism with inner self-awareness. And this, not just to win campaigns, but towards the deeper transformation of the world.”

“A vital intervention. Even with the best intentions, organisations and individuals can inadvertently make things worse. This book points a way forward that invites us all into our agency as citizens, so we can build the world we want together.”

“Deeply researched and refreshingly honest, this book is for activists – and the activism-weary. It helps readers interrogate their own protest practices, mindsets, and intentions, cultivating kinder, more reflective campaigning rooted in connection and community.”

“Highly readable… Lawson’s book provides a map of the possible pitfalls of working towards a better world. A realistic, funny assessment of what to do if you worry about the cringe parts of activist culture but can’t stand to watch the world burn.”

“Lawson invites us to critically reflect on our own assumptions, shortcomings and strengths, whilst offering hope that change is possible. An outstanding book and essential reading for every activist, practitioner and thinker concerned about the future of our planet.”

“Anthea Lawson’s book is a searing self-examination of her work as a climate activist. Her brutally honest account of her experience moved me in unexpected ways, especially as she came to realize the class divides that climate protestors have had such difficulty overcoming.”

“This is a must read for anyone working in the NGO sector! A brilliant reflection on how the very systems that we are attempting to dismantle are recreated in our movements when we approach activism as a quest to “save the world”.”

“Anthea Lawson is one of the world’s most serious thinkers on the limits of “activism”. Her thinking has been and continues to be very influential on vital efforts to create a new moderate flank to the most attention-grabbing environmental campaigners.”