To Catch the Rain

This book is for everyone, and is especially written for:

• Community members: Get inspired and take action. Learn from others building their own systems around the world. We have already received requests and sent pre-releases to Kenya, Tanzania, India, Mexico, Nepal, Dominican Republic, and the US.
• Makers: Find the DIY details ready to be adapted to your local and global projects. See how other makers solved their problems.
• Teachers: Use this in your Middle School, High School, and University courses. Provides context for education and practical experience to back up math, science, and social curriculum. Includes problem-sets to reinforce the knowledge in the book.
• Students: Rejoice in strong practical reasons to be learning. The real stories bring the math and technical details to life. The custom diagrams and pictures deepen the learning.
• Practivistas: Expand the resilience and impact of the idea that, instead of telling people what not to do, we can build better systems that people want to do.
• People looking for inspiration and follow-through.

To Catch the Rain includes project details and images from dozens of Appropedia contributors. The Appropedia Foundation is a non-profit dedicated to "sharing knowledge to build rich, sustainable lives." Up-to-date resource pages on Appropedia support each of the projects and resources in the book for long term follow-up. Some of the projects have been updated periodically online for over a decade!

Thanks to a special arrangement with the publisher, Humboldt State Press, all of the net proceeds from sales will go back into the book and to the Appropedia Foundation. In addition, the content is licensed open source, as Creative Commons, so you can share it however you like!

A book for people looking to build a better future together. Inspiring stories: Real life accounts of catching rain in communities. Technical details: Straightforward descriptions of rainwater system parts, replete with examples from existing systems. Math and science: Easy-to-follow math that allows readers to simply size rainwater systems.

"Rainwater harvesting not only makes great practical sense, it also brings communities together, teaching them how to work to accomplish critical goals. Community is our greatest asset going forward, and as this book makes clear it can be nurtured and bolstered at every turn." -Bill McKibben, Author of Deep Economy

"It is both touching and empowering to see people helping one another by sharing what works for providing rain water for practical engineered use like the simple act of drinking a clean cup of water. This is a must read for anyone that is being denied that simple pleasure." -Dr. Joshua Pearce, Director of Michigan State's Open Sustainability Technology Research Group

"At the core of his argument is that working together allows us to find the best solutions as well as multiple workarounds to overcome obstacles. This book is our satellite roadmap." -Mary Mattingly, Visionary Artist behind Swale, Waterpod, and Flock House; Instructor at Pratt Institute

"Rainwater catchment provides one of the many business solutions to poverty. To Catch the Rain is a manual to make that happen." -Paul Polak, founder of IDE and Author of The Business Solution to Poverty

"Lonny is a force of nature, and his work is incredibly important. I'm delighted that he is finally sharing his wisdom, creativity, and experience with the world. This book is for anyone who wants to really understand how communities can come together to solve real problems." -Tina Seelig, Director of Stanford Technology Ventures Program, Author of Creativity Rules and What I Wish I Knew When I Was 20

"Not just sensible how tos, but also uplifting case studies, to catch our world's most precious resource-the rain." -Summer Rayne Oakes, Environmental Activist and Author

"A fascinating book that's both inspiring and technical for anyone intereseted in collaboration, sustainability, rainwater harvesting and thriving in general. To Catch the Rain will provide you with skills to make better use of rainwater and also show you the power of positie human interaction." -Arch. Wilfredo Mena, Co-founder Colectivo Revark