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welcome!
Hello, my name is Laura Evans. Welcome to the Keeping Things Alive website!
I am the author of Silent Seasons: Chasing Sustainability through the Law and the host of The Keeping Things Alive Podcast. I am a former environmental lawyer and current environmental planner. I have a deep connection to Mother Earth, the home that we share with so many amazing plants, animals, fungi, and other human beings.
I am deeply passionate about sustainability, which has a lot of different meanings these days! Rather than misuse the term as a proxy for “green,” tech-based attempts at engineering ourselves out of environmental issues, I created my own definition (which can be found in my book, too!):
Sustainability: the practice of working with the Earth’s systems, physics, people, plants, animals, information, technology, and all other resources to support life on this Earth for current and future generations of people, plants, animals, and the Earth itself.
My life’s mission is to inspire others to adopt broader perspectives on sustainability and live a life that is more aligned with the Earth’s natural systems.
Thank you for your interest in this important, existential topic. Here’s to Keeping Things Alive!
Ready to live more sustainably?
In a world of climate change, species extinction, pollution of all kinds, and so much DOOM, it is important to stay present, connect with other people, and take whatever actions you can.
Step 1: Get Informed
Silent Seasons is a treasure trove of information about environmental law and ways to live sustainably in the modern world, told through stories of my various environmental jobs.
Step 2: Join the Community
Sign up to receive my bi-weekly email updates full of sustainability inspiration, delivered straight to your inbox. Learn about upcoming book talks, sustainability news, and lifestyle tips.
Step 3: Take Action
Transform your knowledge into action! Visit the Keeping Things Alive Resources page for public comment opportunities, gardening support, cooking advice, and other sustainability practices.
Laura's work is an eye-opener for this generation.
Bruno Ávila, Urban Planner
What 's inside the book?
Learn about
issues with
the US Law System
Despite some hard-earned victories for individual groups of people, species, water bodies, and pieces of land, the current U.S. environmental law system does not sustainably address our environmental problems. It is organized to fail us all.
Learn about
Sustainability Lessons & Practices
You can benefit from the sustainability lessons and practices that I learned along my winding environmental career path as a law firm lawyer, government lawyer, consultant, nonprofit staffer, and human surviving a global pandemic.
Learn about
how you can help
Learn a broader sustainability framework for addressing current problems like climate change, water pollution, air pollution, species extinction, and more. Understand how to identify and avoid false sustainability solutions.
Learn about
Environmental Law
It is important to understand the basics of how environmental laws function so we can make meaningful changes to the current system. Many chapters of Silent Seasons include high-level summaries of US environmental laws like the Endangered Species Act, National Environmental Policy act, and New York’s Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act.
Learn about
Chicken noodle soup
Spoiler alert: one of the most powerful sustainability practices involves cooking food with vegetables and herbs that you grow yourself. Silent Seasons includes my recipe for making chicken noodle soup from scratch (including the broth!), which supports the body’s immune system.
