The classic, comprehensive primer on sustainable living skills—from food and water to shelter and energy to first aid and crisis-management skills—fully revised and updated for 2026 and beyond 
Matthew Stein’s When Technology Fails prepares you to embark on the path toward sustainability. But unlike any other book, Stein not only shows you how to live green in seemingly stable times, but to live in the face of potential disasters, lasting days or years, coming in the form of social upheaval, economic meltdown, or environmental catastrophe.   
When Technology Fails covers the gamut:  

The basics of installing a renewable energy system for your home or business  

How to find and sterilize water in the face of utility failure  

How to keep warm if you’ve been left temporarily homeless  

Practical information for dealing with water-quality issues  

Alternative health and first-aid techniques  

Each chapter describes skills for self-reliance in good times and bad. Chapters include:  

A survey of the risks to the status quo  

Supplies and preparation for short- and long-term emergencies  

Emergency measures for survival  

Prepping water, food, shelter, and clothing  

First aid, low-tech medicine, and healing  

Securing energy, heat, and power  

Metalworking  

Utensils and storage  

Low-tech chemistry engineering, machines, and materials