Leave the Lights on - by Elizabeth Dunn & Jiaying Zhao (Hardcover)

Book Synopsis

How to make an impact on climate change by taking actions that bring you joy

What if the most effective ways to fight climate change made you happy?

Psychologist Elizabeth Dunn and climate behavior scientist Jiaying Zhao challenge everything we think we know about sustainable living. While most climate advice demands self-denial--eat less, travel less, want less--this groundbreaking book offers a counterintuitive truth: you can make your life better while saving our species at the same time. The authors reveal how tweaking everyday decisions around food, travel, housing, and shopping can nudge us toward a tipping point of mass action--without tipping us into burnout.
You will discover that:

• Joy is a powerful climate strategy. When you enjoy the changes you're making, you're more likely to stick with them--and spread them.
• You don't have to go vegan or give up flying. Smart substitutions (chicken over beef, carry-on over checked bags) make a real dent in emissions with less personal friction.
• Small talk matters. Normalizing climate conversations with friends and family helps shift social norms and catalyzes cultural change.

• Give yourself permission to leave the lights on. Focus on higher-impact actions instead of smaller interventions.

Leave the Lights On is a bold invitation to reimagine climate action not as a burden, but as an opportunity to build a brighter future--without guilt, without gloom, and without giving up the things that make life worth living. With warmth, clarity, and a refreshingly optimistic voice, Zhao and Dunn reframe what it means to "do your part." Because sustainability doesn't lie in doing everything, it lies in doing something, joyfully.

Review Quotes

"Where do joy and climate action meet? Right here in this book--as they can in our lives. The authors offer us a guide to brightening the future we all share."--Katharine K. Wilkinson, co-editor of All We Can Save and author of Climate Wayfinding

"Dunn and Zhao combine rigorous research with practical wisdom to show that the most effective climate change actions are also the most personally rewarding ones - and that individual decisions can cascade into systemic change. The result is a remarkable book that is both scientifically sound and genuinely inspiring."--Daniel H. Pink, author of Drive, When, and The Power of Regret

"Leave the Lights On is that rare book that manages to be both inspiring and practical. Dunn and Zhao bust the myth that saving the planet requires sacrifice, showing us instead that low-carbon choices can bring more happiness, not less. With crisp science, witty stories, and actionable tips, they offer a brilliant playbook for making small choices that add up to a big impact. I loved it!"
--Sonja Lyubomirsky, author of The How of Happiness

"Be good to yourself or good to the planet? Give up driving cars and eating bacon, or do both and feel guilty about it? If you think these are your choices, you're in for quite a surprise--and quite a treat. Smart, funny, and truly illuminating, Leave the Lights On is grounded in cutting-edge science and filled with practical advice about how to live more joyfully and more sustainably at precisely the same time. Who knew that saving the world could be so much fun?"--Daniel Gilbert, author of Stumbling on Happiness

"Fixing climate change has often be sold as a sacrifice: if we want to have any future, we'll have to suffer today to get there. This book turns that thinking upside down. Improve your happiness and wellbeing while also reducing your carbon footprint? Many would argue that this is too good to be true; Dunn and Zhao expertly show us that it is not."--Hannah Ritchie, author of Not the End of the World

"Dunn and Zhao show that there are plenty of ways to find joy while tackling climate change. With actionable tips to uplevel happiness and have an impact through low-carbon treats, investments, vacations, and much more, Leave the Lights On is a must read. This book will help people make smarter, happier choices--and stick with them."--Annie Duke, author of Thinking in Bets

About the Author

Elizabeth Dunn is Professor of Psychology at the University of British Columbia and coauthor of Happy Money. She directs UBC's Happy Lab, which focuses on how to optimize valuable resources including time, money, and carbon to maximize human well-being. Her work has been featured in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, The Atlantic, TIME, Rolling Stone, and Harvard Business Review; and on numerous podcasts and television shows, including Hidden Brain, NPR's Short Wave, The Happiness Lab, Ten Percent Happier with Dan Harris, Morning Joe, and CBS Mornings. Dunn spoke on the TED mainstage in 2019, and her talk was selected as one of the top ten TED talks of the year.

Jiaying Zhao (JZ) is Associate Professor of Psychology and Sustainability and founded the Behavioral Sustainability Lab at the University of British Columbia, which designs and tests behavioral solutions that encourage climate action. She has worked with NASA, NOAA, and the US and Canadian Forest Service to develop pathways to net zero. Zhao has appeared on numerous podcasts and in documentary films, including Why Is This Happening? With Chris Hayes and Close the Divide. Her research has been featured in The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Atlantic, TIME, The Economist, Scientific American, CNN, and NBC. In 2023, Zhao gave a TED talk on climate strategies rooted in happiness, which was selected as one of the top TED Talks to be a better you in 2024.