Whilst scientific research can be crucial in guiding innovation and development throughout the world, it can be too detached from real world applications, particularly in developing and emerging countries. "Technologies for Sustainable Development" brings together the best 20 papers from the 2012 Conference of the EPFL-UNESCO Chair in Technologies for Development with the aimto explore and discuss ways to link scientific research with development practices to assist practitioners and reply directly to social needs.

In order for technologies to be adopted it is not sufficient that they are low cost and affordable but also socially, culturally and environmentally accepted by the intended users. "Technologies for Sustainable Development" aims to explore and answer the following three questions:

What is an appropriate technology?

How can we ensure a sustainable, integrated development?

What are the conditions for co-creation and transfer of such technologies?

Focusing on the importance of improving working relationships between stakeholders; researchers and decision-makers; between scientists and industrial sectors; between academics and the population; "Technologies for Sustainable Development "opens a dialogue necessary to create and implement the best solutions adapted to social demands."

Commissioned by the Intergovernmental Meeting (IGM) of the Asia-Pacific Network for Global Change Research (APN), this book offers a detailed survey of the current status of climate change and climate variability in the Asia-Pacific region, a thorough and thoughtful assessment of climate and security and clear recommendations on the best paths of climate research in the future.

This book builds up on the experience and lessons learnt by academics at the Graduate Program in Sustainability Science, Global Leadership Initiative (GPSS-GLI) at the University of Tokyo. A number of scholars in the new field of sustainability science describe how field methods and exercises are carried out in this discipline, together with the theoretical basis for such exercises. Case studies of various countries around the world where these exercises are carried out are showcased, emphasizing the various socio-economic considerations and problems facing humanity and possible ways forward to build more sustainable and resilient societies. The final objective is to enrich the field of sustainability science by describing the novel aspects used in the field exercises carried out by practitioners of this cross-disciplinary field.

The author explores the fraught politics of energy transitions in an age of climate change. She does so through an ecological modernisation and corporate social responsibility lens which she contends shapes and underpins sustainability today. Case studies cover climate policy, unconventional gas and renewable energy.

As the importance of sustainability in strategy and development grows, so does the importance of cross-border cooperation (CBC) to facilitate green projects. Border territories, however, are complex and fragile areas, and thus, their planning through CBC projects should be deeply analyzed and studied. It has become crucial to understand this issue across many different disciplines. Cross-Border Cooperation (CBC) Strategies for Sustainable Development is a pivotal reference source that provides relevant theoretical frameworks and trends in border area dynamics as well as cross-border cooperation's influence on sustainable development. Highlighting topics such as CBC in insular territories, biodiversity policy, and sustainable planning and development, this book is ideally designed for culture analysts, sustainability specialists, policymakers, researchers, academicians, and students.

2007 marked the 20th anniversary of the G.H.Brundtland Commission report that broke new ground by addressing the issue of sustainable development as a means of avoiding an ecological catastrophe. This led to a multitude of political declarations, documents and scientific articles while Agenda 21 - adopted in 1992 in Rio de Janeiro - has been accepted by the governments of more than 100 countries. Sadly, however, this has not prevented certain recent dangerous trends, nor have the wider public, journalists, business circles or politicians grasped the urgency of the problem. It is therefore important to make humanity understand its real place in the natural environment and the gravity of the ecological threat before us.

The exclusive role of natural ecosystems is a key factor in the maintenance of the biospheric equilibrium. The current global crisis is largely caused by their dramatic decline by 43% in the past hundred years. Ignoring the immutable laws and limitations which determine the existence of all living things in the biosphere could lead humanity to an ecological catastrophe. This book presents the ecological, demographic, economic and socio-psychological manifestations of the global crisis and outlines the immutable laws and limitations which determine the existence of all living things in the biosphere.

This book presents specific key natural and artificial systems that are promising biocatalysts in the areas of health, agriculture, environment and energy. It provides a comprehensive account of the state of the art of these systems and outlines the significant progress made in the last decade using these systems to develop innovative, sustainable and environmentally friendly solutions. Chapters from expert contributors explore how natural enzymes and artificial systems tackle specific targets such as: climate change, carbon footprint and economy and carbon dioxide utilisation; nitrogen footprint and fixation and nitrous oxide mitigation; hydrogen production, fuel cells and energy from bacteria; biomass transformation and production of added-value compounds, as well as biosensors development. This book provides an important and inspiring account for the designing of new natural and artificial systems with enhanced properties, and it appeals not only to students and researchers working in the fields of energy, health, food and environment, but also to a wider audience of educated readers that are interested in these up-to-date and exciting subjects.Chapter "Carbon Dioxide Utilisation-The Formate Route" is available open access under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License via link.springer.com.

The book presents the results of the research project Fleets Go Green from different engineering disciplines. It includes comprehensive empirical data as well as different methods and tools for evaluating and integrating electric vehicles into corporate fleets. Finally, the authors give recommendations for fleet owners, vehicle manufacturers and political decision. The aim of the joint research project Fleets Go Green was the integrated analysis and evaluation of the environmental performance of electric and plug-in-hybrid vehicles in everyday usage on the example of fleet operations. The potential of electric vehicles for reducing the harmful environmental impacts of road transport in everyday conditions can only be analyzed and evaluated in field tests. If electric vehicles should realize their potential to reduce emissions and minimize the consumption of resources, an integrated life cycle assessment is required.

This book presents eleven case studies of success about Latin America tourism. The cases are embedded in a framework describing the economic and cultural foundations of tourism development in the continent. Mexico, Brazil, Chile and Costa Rica are some of the Latin countries which have become examples and models for touristic development, respect for the environment and social inclusion. The book showcases some of the best practices, along with an analysis of how these projects helped improving the environmental and social surroundings and how return on investments has been ensured. Latin America is shown as an excellent example, with the Gross Domestic Product of the continent expanding intensely in the tertiary sector like leisure, hospitality, travel, tourism, entertainment, gastronomy, events and indoor and outdoor recreation. This book is a valuable resource both for professionals in the tourism industry and for researchers in tourism management.

Eco-Resorts is a design guide for low impact, environmentally friendly tourist resorts in the tropics. The book is the first to offer architects practical, detailed guidance in developing resort buildings that work with a tropical climate and meet the needs and expectations of the client and building inhabitants. The book includes both architectural design and material solutions, supported by theoretical principles, to present a sustainable approach to resort design. It demonstrates that tropical resort buildings do not necessarily require large energy input, in compliance with green building standards. Case studies show how principles of sustainable design have been successfully applied in tropical environments. written by an industry insider with practical design experience, knowledge and expertise demonstrates design practices related to site planning and layout, and re-assesses best practices for a tropical environment, allowing architects to apply design principles to their own projects includes international case studies from several countries to illustrate best practice from a variety of tropical climate destinations around the world.

Encompassing a thorough survey of the lighting techniques applied to internal illumination characterized by high efficiency, optimized color and architectural integration, a consolidated summary of the latest scientific, technical and architectural research is presented in order to give the reader an overview of the different themes with their interactions and mutual effects. This book describes light principles, methodologies and realisations for indoor illumination at low consumption. Power efficiency, color characteristics and architectural aspects are analyzed in terms of their practical application, with the interactions between scientific, technological and architectural features considered in order to supply a complete overview, which can be read both at technical level and at user level. Introducing photometric and radiometric quantities and laws, the book first discusses tests and measurements assessing lighting and color characteristics before examining in detail artificial light sources with particular attention paid to measures to reduce consumption and optimize efficiency. Key sources are illustrated with producers and suppliers with technical details and use specifications included. Serving to maximize reader insights into the use of sunlight - considering light transfer, application to indoor illumination and in particular to museum lighting - in the color rendering properties of light sources and the architectural aspects for natural indoor lighting, the final part of this boo collects other related but important elements including architectural issues, environmental integration and the possibility of changing the light color by introducing suitable coatings. The physiological effects of internal illumination quality on user comfort is discussed and several possibilities for energy saving using domotics are outlined.

Analysing and synthesising vast data sets from a multitude of disciplines including climate science, economics, hydrology and agricultural research, this volume seeks new methods of combining climate change mitigation, adaptation, development, and poverty reduction in ways that are effective, efficient and equitable. A guiding principle of the project is that new alliances of state and non-state sector partners are urgently required to establish cooperative responses to the threats posed by climate change. This volume offers a vital policy framework for linking our response to this change with progressive principles of global justice and sustainable development.

No dig organic gardening saves time and work. It requires an annual dressing of compost to help accelerate the improvement in soil structure and leads to higher fertility and less weeds. No dig experts, Charles Dowding and Stephanie Hafferty, explain how to set up a no dig garden. They describe how to: Make compost, enrich soil, harvest and prepare food and make natural beauty and clean ing products and garden preparations. These approaches work as well in small spaces as in large gardens. The Authors' combined experience gives you ways of growing, preparing and storing the plants you grow for many uses, including delicious vegetable feasts and many recipes and ideas for increasing self reliance, saving money, living sustainably and enjoying the pleasure of growing your own food, year round. Charles' advice is distilled from 35 years of growing vegetables intensively and efficiently; he is the acknowledged no dig guru and salad expert both in the UK and internationally. Stephanie, a kitchen gardener, grows in her small, productive home garden and allotment, and creates no dig gardens for restaurants and private estates.She presents truly delicious seasonal recipes, made from the vegetables anyone can grow. She also explains how to use common plants you can grow and forage for to make handmade preparation for the home and garden.

This textbook systematically addresses why and how Circular Economy should be developed and practiced by employing a Discussion and Research (D&R) teaching method. This method allows us to show the whole process of academic research, from formulating the key questions, to methodology design, and ultimately to conclusions and applications. In addition, the suggested class discussions and group homework provide good opportunities for participant cooperation and exchange. In this textbook, all chapters and sections are intended to answer specific scientific key or sub-key questions, while all chapters are also internally structured logically and systematically, from question to final conclusion. This textbook may help to boost student performance in science and research and was selected for inclusion in the 13th Five-Year planning teaching materials for regular higher education in China.

This landmark work lauds the benefits of decreased energy consumption, investigating its relationship to public policy and analyzing its potential billion-dollar benefits to the U.S. economy. U.S. consumers tend to use energy indiscriminately-something they may no longer be able to do with impunity. This game-changing book asserts that reducing energy consumption should be a frontline strategy to address global climate change, threats to energy security, and the challenge of grid reliability. The book supports two bold arguments: that policies motivating greater investment in high energy efficiency should be a priority, and that energy efficiency can help the nation in times of crisis. To make their case for the necessity of prioritizing demand reduction, the authors examine the policies and markets operating in a number of leading cities, states, and nations across the globe to uncover the keys to their success. These examples show how demand-side strategies can significantly reduce pollution, cut costs, and make the electric grid more resilient. The authors explain why these technologies are not widely adopted and assess the potential savings they can produce. The book will be an eye-opener for policymakers, energy professionals, and the public as it demonstrates how cost-effective demand reduction policies can improve air quality, strengthen electricity markets, and generate jobs. Addresses broad questions concerning electricity systems and the economy Documents innovative, energy-efficiency technologies, practices, and policies Estimates the achievable cost-effectiveness and economic impact of energy efficiency in the United States Illustrates a range of promising strategies for expanding green savings Argues for more market intelligence, monitoring, and evaluation so that energy, economic, and climate goals are met Showcases the policy environments that have enabled energy efficiency to thrive in leading cities, states, and countries around the world

The politics of water have taken centre stage in global concerns about sustainable development. "The Governance of Water and Sanitation in Africa" investigates a new mode of achieving the Millennium Development Goal of halving the number of people who lack access to safe water and sanitation by 2015. Instead of aid delivered via deals between governments, an initiative arising out of the 2002 World Summit established multi-stakeholder partnerships involving the private sector, civil society and governments to work together in a more effective way.This title includes fieldwork and interviews with key players in Europe, South Africa, Zambia, Ghana and USA, and an examination of three partnerships in Africa, including the EU Water Initiative, that reveal that despite current weaknesses this model offers a promising mode of delivery in the long term. This book is invaluable for all those concerned with issues of water, sanitation and sustainable development, as well as the politics of international aid.

This book debunks the foundations of contemporary government-led development policy. The author questions the predictability of success when using mainstream development doctrines and its underlying assumptions, approaching development from a sceptical standpoint, as opposed to the more common optimistic view. The book uses international development and aid as a case study of how rich countries define how change should happen. Further, it suggests alternative ways of thinking about and organizing social change.

The book explores how unused and under-used urban spaces - from grass verges, roundabouts, green spaces - have been made more visually interesting and more productive, by informal (and usually illegal) groups known as "guerrilla gardeners". The book focuses on groups in the English Midlands but the work is set in a broad international context and reveals how and why they undertake this illegal activity. Guerrilla gardening is usually viewed uncritically and promoted as a worthwhile activity: this study provides a more balanced evaluation and focuses on its contribution in terms of local food production.

This two-volume work is a testament to the increasing interest in the role of microbes in sustainable agriculture and food security. Advances in microbial technologies are explored in chapters dealing with topics such as plant-microbe interactions, rhizoremediation and cyanoremediation, and bio-immobilization. Volume II is a collection of research findings that invites readers to examine the application of microbes in pollution reduction, decontamination of agro- and aquatic ecosystems, and remediation of various toxic compounds. Highly readable entries attempt to close the knowledge gap between soil microbial associations and sustainable agriculture. Traditional agricultural management techniques have relied heavily on application of chemical fertilizers and pesticides; and recent land use change practices have led to over exploitation of natural resources. Strategies outlined here simplify a complicated picture of the way microbial communities can improve the quality of environment and eliminate food scarcity in the coming generations. This work is a significant contribution to research in this increasingly important discipline of soil sciences, and will appeal to researchers in microbiology, agriculture, environmental sciences, and soil and crop sciences.

Some of the most exciting architecture in the world can be found on university campuses. In Europe, America and the Far East, vice chancellors and their architects have, over several centuries, produced an extraordinary range of innovative buildings. This book has been written to highlight the importance of university architecture. It is intended as a guide to designers, to those who manage the estate we call the campus, and as an inspiration to students and academic staff. With nearly 40 per cent of school leavers attending university, the campus can influence the outlook of tomorrow's decision makers to the benefit of architecture and society at large.

While restoration ecology has traditionally aimed to re-create some putative more 'natural' ecological state, forest landscape restoration (FLR) has emerged over the last decade as an approach aimed more at restoring natural functions, while focusing on meeting human needs. With a view to exploring the practical potential of this approach, this book draws together a team of experts from the natural and social sciences to discuss its success so far in addressing critical issues such as biodiversity, ecological function, and human livelihoods. Applying principles of landscape ecology, restoration ecology, planning theory and conflict management, the book presents a series of case studies which document the approach, and discusses how the approach can help with priority setting for the future. The book will provide a valuable reference to graduate students and researchers interested in ecological restoration, forest ecology and management, as well as to professionals in environmental restoration, natural resource management, conservation, and environmental policy.

This open access book addresses the issue of diffusing sustainable energy access in low- and middle-income contexts. Access to energy is one of the greatest challenges for many people living in low- income and developing contexts, as around 1.4 billion people lack access to electricity. Distributed Renewable Energy systems (DRE) are considered a promising approach to address this challenge and provide energy access to all. However, even if promising, the implementation of DRE systems is not always straightforward. The book analyses, discusses and classifies the promising Sustainable Product-Service System (S.PSS) business models to deliver Distributed Renewable Energy systems in an effective, efficient and sustainable way. Its message is supported with cases studies and examples, discussing the economic, environmental and socioethical benefits as well as its limitations and barriers to its implementation. An innovative design approach is proposed and a set of design tools are supplied, enabling readers to create and develop Sustainable Product-Service System (S.PSS) solutions to deliver Distributed Renewable Energy systems. Practical applications of the book's design approach and tools by companies and practitioners are discussed and the book will be of interest to readers in design, industry, governmental institutions, NGOs as well as researchers.