This book explores the role of institutions in policy-making and the states' role in promotion of technology, focusing on environmental technology development. Case studies include wind power diffusion in the UK and Germany, waste recycling in a variety of countries, and green automobile technology in the US and Japan.

Solar Thermal Conversion Technologies for Industrial Process Heating presents a comprehensive look at the use of solar thermal energy in industrial applications, such as textiles, chemical processing, and food. The successful projects implemented in a variety of industries are shown in case studies, alongside performance assessment methodologies. The book will be useful for researchers, graduate students, and industry professionals with an aim to promote mutual understanding between sectors dealing with solar thermal energy. The book includes various solar thermal energy conversion technologies and new techniques and applications of solar collectors in industrial sectors. Features: Covers the key designs and novel technologies employed in the processing industries. Discusses challenges in the incorporation of the solar thermal system in industrial applications. Explores the techno-economic, environmental impact, and life cycle analysis, with government policies for promoting the system. Includes real-world case studies. Presents chapters written by global experts in the field. The book will be useful for researchers, graduate students, and industry professionals with an aim to promote mutual understanding between sectors dealing with solar thermal energy.

Carbon Dots in Agricultural Systems integrates and crystallizes the emerging knowledge and application strategies of carbon dots as a powerful tool in agriculture systems. The book includes practical insights into the synthesis of carbon dots from indigenous raw materials and how to employ them in agriculture systems to increase crop productivity and provide renewable and cost-effective strategies that meet agricultural needs. Presented by an international team of experts, this resource updates on the latest in synthesis, physical, chemical and optical properties, along with the effects and mechanisms of carbon dots, all further explained in real-world studies. Finally, the book highlights emerging innovative topics which are of great relevance to scientists, academicians and innovators in agriculture (soil science, agricultural chemistry and agronomy) and biotechnology for further research and development.

What is the carbon footprint of your libido? In this highly original book, Dominic Pettman examines the mutual influence and impact of human desire and ecological crisis. His account is premised on a simple but startling observation: the decline of libido among the world's population, the loss of the human sex drive, closely tracks the destruction of environments worldwide. The advent of the Anthropocene leads to the decline of eros, the weakening of the link between sexual pleasure and human reproduction, and thus, potentially, to human extinction. Our capacity to care for one another in any meaningful way is being replaced by a restless, technologically-enhanced zombie drive. The environmental crisis of our time is also, and simultaneously, a crisis of human reproduction and of interpersonal intimacy. What Freud called 'libidinal economy' has morphed into libidinal ecology. Drawing on the work of a wide range of thinkers from Georges Bataille to Donna Haraway, Pettman explores the implications of peak libido, linking this development to the new cultural interest in eco-sexuality, polyamory, and other cases of the 'greening of the libido'. Peak Libido is a forceful reminder that our hearts and loins are primarily ecological organs, beholden to their wider environments, and, as such, they share the same fate.

Although much scholarly and critical attention has been paid to the relationship between rhetoric and environmental issues, media and environmental issues, and politics and environmental issues, no book has yet focused on the relationship between popular culture and environmental issues. This collection of essays provides a rigorous and multifaceted rhetorical and critical perspective on the ways in which the language and imagery of nature is incorporated strategically into various popular culture texts--ranging from greeting cards to advertisements to supermarket tabloids. As a distinguished group of scholars reveals, our notions about the environment and environmentalism are both reflected in and shaped by our popular culture in fascinating ways never previously examined in an academic context.

The consumptive vision of nature presented in these texts represents a wholly American view, one promoting leisure and comfort, and nature as the place to experience them. This good life attitude toward the environment often serves to commodify it, to render it little more than space in which to pursue conventional notions of the American dream. As such, the volume represents a bold and striking vision both of popular culture and of popular notions of an environment that can be either protected or just simply consumed.

Pesticides in the Natural Environment: Sources, Health Risks, and Remediation presents the direct and indirect impacts of the use of pesticides on the environment, human health, and agriculture. The book explores sustainable alternatives to pesticide use, along with policies for regulations and remediation techniques. Bridging the gap between regulations and the tangible environmental threat, the book proposes practical solutions while also providing important context on the hazards of pesticides. It highlights the influence on climate change, offering a holistic perspective for researchers in environmental science, policymakers, and land managers. The book introduces pesticides and their applications, then goes on to cover their impact on various ecosystems in the natural environment. Health risks are covered, followed by various remediation techniques, such as biological processes, phytoremediation, and chemical treatments.

This book investigates the interconnections between textile and architecture via a variety of case studies from the Middle Ages through the twentieth century and from diverse geographic contexts. Among the oldest human technologies, building and weaving have intertwined histories. Textile structures go back to Palaeolithic times and are still in use today and textile furnishings have long been used in interiors. Beyond its use as a material, textile has offered a captivating model and metaphor for architecture through its ability to enclose, tie together, weave, communicate, and adorn. Recently, architects have shown a renewed interest in the textile medium due to the use of computer-aided design, digital fabrication, and innovative materials and engineering. The essays edited and compiled here, work across disciplines to provide new insights into the enduring relationship between textiles and architecture. The contributors critically explore the spatial and material qualities of textiles as well as cultural and political significance of textile artifacts, patterns, and metaphors in architecture. Textile in Architecture is organized into three sections: "Ritual Spaces," which examines the role of textiles in the formation and performance of socio-political, religious, and civic rituals; "Public and Private Interiors" explores how textiles transformed interiors corresponding to changing aesthetics, cultural values, and material practices; and "Materiality and Material Translations," which considers textile as metaphor and model in the materiality of built environment. Including cases from Morocco, Samoa, France, India, UK, Spain, the Ancient Andes and the Ottoman Empire, this is essential reading for any student or researcher interested in textiles in architecture through the ages.

The environmental performance of SMEs (Small and Medium sized Enterprises) is an area of major policy concern. SMEs in Europe reports on factors influencing the environmental performance of SMEs across four European countries: the UK, Ireland, Germany and Italy. While there are a range of factors which are expected to influence the take up of clean technology, this book focuses on three key hypotheses, namely firm competitiveness, culture and use and availability of information and advice. The book is unique as it is based on in-depths interviews conducted in 300 SMEs and an additional postal survey with more than 800 replies.

Quantified Societal Risk and Policy Making is the result of an international workshop on societal risk organized by the Dutch Ministry for Transport, Public Works and Water Management with additional financial support from the Directorate for Transportation (DG VII) of the European Union. Managing risks, whether there is a strong man-made or natural component, basically means assessing alternative options under uncertainty. The possibility of multiple fatalities is one of the factors that can vary between options. This volume is concerned with one particular type of risk - the risk of death of a number of people in one accident - and with one particular tool - probabilistic risk analysis - as they are developing in various domains of society nowadays. Generally, this risk is labelled societal risk. This book shows how such comparisons are shaped at present in various hazard domains, such as: flood protection location and physical planning of industry transportation of chemicals, and prevention of aircraft accidents. It examines how to represent aggregate risks from major hazards in ways that can be handled by policy-makers. The purpose of the book is to increase the awareness of societal risk, disseminate available knowledge of existing approaches, and exchange information on applications from various domains. Quantified Societal Risk and Policy Making should be of interest to all those professionally concerned with defining the optimal separation between hazardous activities and equally desirable developments nearby.

1 AUK ISMAIL-ZADEH ,2, TOM BEER3 1 International Institute of Earthquake Prediction Theory and Mathematical Geophysics, Russian Academy of Sciences, Warshavskoye shosse 79-2, Moscow 113556, Russia; e-mail: [email protected] 2 Geophysikalisches Institut, Universittit Karlsruhe, Hertzstr. 16, Karlsruhe 76187, Germany; e-mail: [email protected] 3 CSIRO Environmental Risk Network, CSIRO Atmospheric Research, Aspendale, Vic. 3195 Australia; e-mail: [email protected] The world faces major threats to the sustainability of our planet. These threats are accompanied by the immediate dangers of natural and man-made disasters. Our vulnerability to them is greatly magnified with each passing year undermining our ability to maintain a sustainable and productive world into the 21st Century and beyond. Both history and common sense teach us that science has a tremendous potential to find ways to cope with these threats. 1 The EUROSCIENCE working group "Science and Urgent Problems of Society" 2 and the IUGG Commission on Geophysical Risk and Sustainability were initiators of the EUROSCIENCE - IUGG Advanced Research Workshop "Science for Reduction of Risk and Sustainable Development of Society" sponsored by the NATO Science Program. The Workshop was held on 15-16 June 2002 in Budapest, Hungary. More than 40 participants from 17 countries took part in the Workshop. Talks and discussions addressed mainly the question of how science can help in reduction of risk and sustainable development of society.

The fragile forest ecosystems in Latin America have long served domestic economic interests through timber production, mining, land resettlement, and cattle ranching. Over the past two decades, the demands on this natural resource base have been exacerbated by transnational commercial and political forces. These forces include MERCOSUR (the world's second largest customs union, composed of Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Paraguay, and Uruguay), the Kyoto Protocol, and international environmental organizations. As threats to the region's endangered ecosystems have grown, so have new approaches to stem the damage by incorporating local populations in decentralized systems of resource management. This volume examines several of the innovative strategies being tested in the Amazon rainforest. These attempts, involving multi-institutional responses to environmental threats, are showing initial results that offer cautious hope for the future. Contributors include Martin Coy (Geographical Institute, University of Innsbruck, Austria), Herv? Th?ry (Ecole Normal Superieur, Paris and Centre for Sustainable Development, University of Brasilia), David Cleary (Nature Conservancy, Brazil), Phil Fearnside (National Institute for Amazonian Studies, Brazil), Neli Aparecida de Mello (Centre for Sustainable Development, University of Brasilia), John Redwood (Environmentally and Socially Sustainable Development for Latin America and the Caribbean, World Bank), Martina Neuburger (University of Tuebingen, Germany), Dan Pasca (University of Tuebingen), Judith Lisansky (World Bank), Sergio Rosendo (Centre for Social and Economic Research on the Global Environment, University of East Anglia, UK), F?bio de Castro (Anthropological Center for Training and Research on Global Environmental Change, Indiana University, and Nucleo de Estudos e Pesquisa Ambiental, University of Campinas, Brazil), and Larissa Chermont (London School of Economics and Political Science, and Federal University of Par?, Bel?m, Brazil).

If architectural judgment were a city, a city of ideas and forms, then it is a very imperfect city. When architects judge the success or failure of a building, the range of ways and criteria which can be used for this evaluation causes many contentious and discordant arguments. Proposing that the increase in number and intensity of such arguments threatens to destabilize the very grounds upon which judgment is supposed to rest, this book examines architectural judgment in its historical, cultural, political, and psychological dimensions and their convergence on that most expressive part of architecture, namely: architectural character. It stresses the value of reasoned judgment in justifying architectural form -a judgment based on three sets of criteria: those criteria that are external to architecture, those that are internal to architecture, and those that pertain to the psychology of the architect as image-maker. External criteria include, philosophies of history or theories of modernity; internal criteria include architectural character and architectural composition; while the psychological criteria pertain to 'mimetic rivalry', or rivaling desires for the same architectural forms. Yet, although architectural conflicts can adversely influence judgment, they can at the same time, contribute to the advancement of architectural culture.

During the past five years work has been in progress to examine and treat the acidity of Loch Fleet in south west Scotland and its catchment waters. This text describes the background to the research, the application and effects of liming, and relates the experience gained in the project to practice and research in other parts of the world. In particular the success achieved in restoring fish populations to the loch is described as well as the consequences for other flora and fauna.

In 1984, the Conference on Environmental Quality, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the National Science Foundation, convend a series of panel meetings to discuss long-term environmental issues. "Environmental Monitoring, Assessment, and Management" is the result of that prestigious conference. Drawing on contributions from nationally recognized scientists and experts from industry and government, this collection of papers will help to redirect long-term environmental research and development.

Biophilic Connections and Environmental Encounters in the Urban Age takes a multi-disciplinary approach, drawing on the authors' wide range of experience, to provide a greater understanding of the different dimensions of environmental engagement. It considers the ways that we interact with our environments, presenting a comprehensive account of how people negotiate and use the urban landscape. Set within current debates concerning urban futures, societal issues, sustainable cities, health and well-being, the book explores our innate need for contact with the natural world through biophilic design thinking to expand our knowledge base and promote a wider understanding of the importance of these interactions on our collective well-being. It responds to questions such as, what are the urban qualities that support our well-being? As an urbanised society what are the environmental determinants that promote healthy and satisfying lifestyles? Beginning with an overview of concepts relating to biophilia and environmental engagement, it moves through current theory and practice, different pathways and their characteristics, before presenting real world examples and applications through illustrated case studies in the UK, USA and across Europe. With a particular focus on the experience of individuals, the book is essential reading for students, researchers, and practitioners of architecture, landscape architecture, urban planning, design and health sciences, interested in the future of our cities and the importance of green spaces.

Governments, big business and communities are coming under increased pressure to develop low carbon energy supply technologies. Within the context of the climate change debate a delicate balance has to be reached between local environmental protection and our need for reliable low carbon energy. This books brings together ten years of research conducted by the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research and uses a range of case studies from carbon capture and storage to on-shore wind farms to explore the complex nature of disputes between a wide variety of stakeholder groups. Topics covered include: the importance of context the relationship between risk and trust sense of place role of the media An invaluable resource for researchers and readers in local or national government, industry or community groups who wish to deepen their understanding of controversy around low carbon technology and how to overcome it.

Nowadays, the environment looms large in the analysis of conflict in developing societies, and the precise role it plays is the subject of an ongoing debate. The de bate has moved on from the earlier, but still popular, notions of 'power struggles', 'class struggles' and 'ethnic conflicts', to a perception of conflict as the product of intense group competition for resources. Where the state controls the distribu tion of resources, itself inevitably becomes party to conflicts whose bone of con tention is access to state power as the most efficient means of gaining access to resources. The resources in question are social (health, education, transportation, communication, recreation, etc. ) and material (land, water, housing, jobs, con tracts, licenses, permits, etc. ). In parts of the world, and especially in Africa, di minishing resources and authoritarian state rule exacerbate group competition leading to political confrontation. This is the line I have followed in analysing conflict in the Hom of Africa (Markakis, 1987, 1998). Mohamed Salih's first contribution in this volume is to move the debate a step beyond this line, which can be criticized as unduly materialist. He does it by bringing culture into the realm of resources, not only as a resource in itself, but also as the agency that assigns natural resources their value. Culture thus becomes a contextual element in conflict over resources whose value is culturally deter mined."

This edited collection explores how narratives about the future of the Arctic have been produced historically up until the present day. The contemporary deterministic and monolithic narrative is shown to be only one of several possible ways forward. This book problematizes the dominant prediction that there will be increased shipping and resource extraction as the ice melts and shows how this seemingly inevitable future has consequences for the action that can be taken in the present. This collection looks to historical projections about the future of the Arctic, evaluating why some voices have been heard and championed, while others remain marginalised. It questions how these historical perspectives have shaped resource allocation and governance structures to understand the forces behind change in the Arctic region. Considering the history of individuals and institutions, their political and economic networks and their perceived power, the essays in this collection offer new perspectives on how the future of the Arctic has been produced and communicated.

This book discusses energy transfer, fluid flow and pollution in built environments. It provides a comprehensive overview of the highly detailed fundamental theories as well as the technologies used and the application of heat and mass transfer and fluid flow in built environments, with a focus on the mathematical models and computational and experimental methods. It is a valuable resource for researchers in the fields of buildings and environment, heat transfer and global warming.

Accurate assessment of environmental hazards and related risks is a primary prerequisite for effective environmental health protection, at both the individual and collective level. National and regional policies on environmental health need to be guided by knowledge about the risks to the populations involved; as the Environmental Action Plan for Europe notes, 'priority setting requires the comparative assessment of risks to health of different environmental factors against the cost of controlling them.' In recent years this has assumed particular importance, for with the encouragement of the World Health Organisation (WHO), all countries in Europe are committed to producing National Environmental Health Action Plans (NEHAPs), which will define priorities and targets for environmental health and the actions needed to achieve them. Reliable information on risks is clearly fundamantal to this process. Individual risk assessment is no less important in this context. Much of the responsibility and capacity to improve public health lies ultimately in the choices (e.g. about diet, smoking, alcohol consumption, sexual activities, sporting activities, travel mode, place of residence and occupation) which we make as individuals. If we are to improve and protect our own health, therefore, and in so doing play our personal role in achieving the targets set by these Plans, we need to be guided by a clear understanding of the risks involved.

Shipping and port systems are vital to societies and lifestyles around the world. In the late twentieth century, however, assumptions concerning the robustness of these systems were severely shaken by economic shocks triggered by oil crises. This volume explores how many of the consequent uncertainties have been resolved, and how adapted systems have been shaped to meet the challenges of the new millennium. To explore these issues, contributors focus on issues such as: * economic integration of emerging economies - in particular China * sectors as diverse as the high-speed ferry and offshore oil industries * pollution problems generated by shipping Contributors' investigations, such as those into the homogenisation of the container industry and the port cluster concept and 'model' vessels for the offshore oil industry, make for a rewarding book that will be of interest to academics working in many fields including transport studies, marine and coastal studies and economic geography. Professional organizations and policy-makers will also appreciate the book.

Future Risks and Risk Management provides a broad perspective on risk, including basic philosophical issues concerned with values, psychological issues, such as the perception of risk, the factors that generate risks in current and future technological and social systems, including both technical and organizational factors. No other volume adopts this broad perspective. Future Risks and Risk Management will be useful in a variety of contexts, both for teaching and as a source book for the risk professional needing to be informed of the broader issues in the field.