Written by an international team of contributors from Scandinavia, Germany, the UK, and the US, this book examines in-depth the relationship between sustainability and the good life. It explores where contemporary visions of the sustainable good life come from; what functions they serve; how they are expressed in current transition processes; and whether a sustainable and satisfying life is possible for all. It frames the eco "crisis" in an optimistic way, showing it to be full of potential for creative unfolding and democratic participation at all levels - personal, community, and societal.

1. Enough Is Enough? Re-Imagining an Ethics and Aesthetics of Sustainability for the 21st Century Lawrence Buell 2. The Essayistic Spirit of Utopia Thorunn Gullaksen Endreson 3. Towards a Sustainable Flourishing: Democracy, Hedonism and the Politics of Prosperity Kate Soper 4. Is the Good Life Sustainable? A Three-Decade Study of Values, Happiness and Sustainability in Norway Ottar Hellevik 5. Well-Being and Environmental Responsibility Bengt Brülde 6. The Problem of Habits for a Sustainable Transformation Hal Wilhite 7. Well-Being in Sustainability Transitions: Making Use of Needs Felix Rauschmayer and Ines Omann 8. Human Needs and the Environment Reconciled: Participatory Action-Research for Sustainable Development in Peru Mònica Guillen-Royo 9. On the Good Life and Rising Electricity Consumption in Rural Zanzibar Tanja Winther 10. Celebrity Chefs, Ethical Food Consumption, and the Good Life Karen Lykke Syse 11. Follow the Food. How Eating and Drinking Shape Our Cities Jesper Pagh 12. Caged Welfare. Evading the Good Life for Egg Laying Hens Kristian Bjørkdahl 13. Being Salmon, Being Human. Notes on an Ecological Turn in the Modern Narrative Tradition Martin Lee Mueller 14. Afterword: Beyond the Paradox of the Big, Bad Wolf Thomas Hylland Eriksen