Landsmart: A Practical Guide to Transforming our Countryside
I once saw a slogan on a T-Shirt that read “Buy land—they don’t make it anymore”. That phrase still resonates with me years later and feels perhaps more relevant today. There is only a finite amount of land on Earth and it’s critical to our survival that we look after it. But there arises potential conflict. How do we balance the many competing demands between humans and the natural environment, allowing space for all to thrive? Tom Heap’s engaging and very readable book tackles this question head on.
Landsmart unpacks complex topics at various scales, like food production, climate change, water management, and biodiversity in an approachable and meaningful style. One of the strongest aspects of the book is the unbiased, solutions-focused approaches, rather than setting up a simplistic “humans versus nature” argument. Drawing on numerous real-world examples, primarily from the UK, the content feels highly relevant. Heap demonstrates how different and sometimes competing interests can work together, highlighting practical actions we can take at home alongside broader themes, such as regenerative agriculture and energy production. The case studies help ground the discussion to make the challenges and opportunities feel tangible.
Heap’s background in environmental journalism really comes through in the writing style. It’s clear, conversational and thought-provoking, with just enough detail to be informative without becoming heavy. He’s particularly good at stepping back and looking at the bigger systems at play, especially when it comes to how government decisions, economics, and environmental goals all interact.
Readers looking for deep technical detail in specific areas might find some of the narrative too high-level, but the facts and figures come at the reader in quick succession. Landsmart joins the dots effectively between a wide range of issues and provides meaningful context to the reader.
Overall, the book is thoughtful, balanced, and quietly optimistic. It doesn’t pretend the challenges are easy, but it does make a convincing case that better, more joined-up approaches of how we can manage our land to satisfy a range of requirements is both possible and already underway, but inevitably requires a dedicated and sustained effort by all.
Heap’s final thoughts on how to address food and energy security whilst allowing space for nature to thrive feel timely: produce, protect, reduce and restore. Perhaps that’s a new T-Shirt slogan right there.
Reviewed by Phil Merrin
DETAILS
BY: Tom Heap (2025) Atlantic Books, 320 pp.
ISBN: 9781838953409
PRICE: £10.99, available from Geoscientist’s bookshop
