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Books > Earth & environment > The environment
As economic growth continues to rise, so does economic degradation.
Though certain rules and regulations do exist, pollution is fast
becoming an unpaid factor of production, unlike the remunerations
of labour and capital inputs. In this context, the environment is
thus used as a factor of production which is not fully compensated.
However, its use in the production process can be accurately
captured by introducing emissions as an input in an aggregate
production function, as Mihir Kumar Pal and other leading experts
demonstrate. In a reverse approach, they examine the effect of
emissions on industrial growth as opposed to that of growth on
emissions, enhancing an awareness of this pivotal trade-off where
the intersection between economy and environment currently needs it
most. Offering both theoretical and empirical perspectives, The
Impact of Environmental Emissions and Aggregate Economic Activity
on Industry: Theoretical and Empirical Perspectives is an
insightful and original contribution to the sustainable development
and economics canon.
Who has access, and who is denied access, to food, and why? What
are the consequences of food insecurity? What would it take for the
food system to be just? Just Food: Philosophy, Justice and Food
presents thirteen new philosophical essays that explore the causes
and consequences of the inequities of our contemporary food system.
It examines why 842 million people globally are unable to meet
their dietary needs, and why food insecurity is not simply a matter
of insufficient supply. The book looks at how food insecurity
tracks other social injustices, covering topics such as race,
gender and property, as well as food sovereignty, food deserts, and
locavorism. The essays in this volume make an important and timely
contribution to the wider philosophical debate around food
distribution and justice.
Copper Nanostructures: Next-Generation of Agrochemicals for
Sustainable Agroecosystems considers the impact of copper-based
nanostructures on agri-food sectors. Sections highlight the green
synthesis of copper nanoparticles, production mechanisms,
eco-safety, and future perspectives, discuss the increasing
importance of copper nanomaterials in plant protection
applications, describe the use of copper nanostructures in plant
science applications, cover antimicrobial applications, explore
copper nanostructure applications, and summarize current
applications in agroecosystems, such as copper nanoparticles as
nanosensors, their negative ecological effects, estimation risks,
and more.
Ordinary people, community leaders, and even organizations and
corporations still do not fully comprehend the interconnected, "big
picture" dynamics of sustainability theory and action. In exploring
means to become more sustainable, individuals and groups need a
reference in which to frame discussions so they will be relevant,
educational, and successful when implemented. This book puts ideas
on sustainable communities into a conceptual framework that will
promote striking, transformational effects on decision-making. In
this book practitioners and community leaders will find effective,
comprehensive tools and resources at their finger-tips to
facilitate sustainable community development (SCD). The book
content examines a diverse range of SCD methods; assessing
community needs and resources; creating community visions;
promoting stakeholder interest and participation; analyzing
community problems; designing and facilitating strategic planning;
carrying out interventions to improve
The use of fracking is a tremendously important technology for the
recovery of oil and gas, but the advantages and costs of fracking
remain controversial. This book examines the issues and social,
economic, political, and legal aspects of fracking in the United
States. Hydraulic fracturing of oil and gas wells-known commonly as
"fracking"-has been in use in the United States for more than half
a century. In recent years, however, massive expansion of shale gas
fracturing across the nation has put fracking in the public eye. Is
fracking a "win win" like its proponents say, or are there
significant costs and dangers associated with the use of this
energy production technology? This book examines fracking from all
angles, addressing the promise of the United States becoming energy
independent through the use of the process to tap the massive
amounts of natural gas and oil available as well as the host of
problems associated with fracking-groundwater contamination and
increased seismic activity, just to mention two-that raise
questions about the long-term feasibility of the process as a
source of natural gas. The first part of the book provides a
historical background of the topic; a review of technical
information about fracking; and a detailed discussion of the
social, economic, political, legal, and other aspects of the
current fracking controversy. The second part of the book provides
a host of resources for readers seeking to learn even more in-depth
information about the topic, supplying a chronology, glossary,
annotated bibliography, and profiles of important individuals and
organizations. Written specifically for students and young adults,
the content is accessible to readers with little or no previous
knowledge regarding fracking. Provides readers with a complete
historical review of the origins, development, and expansion of the
use of fracking Explains the technical principles related to the
use of fracking in clear, nontechnical language Presents an
unbiased review of the arguments for and against the use of
fracking for the recovery of oil and gas Supplies a summary of the
history of the use of fracking in the United States
Michel Serres captures the urgencies of our time; from the digital
revolution to the ecological crisis to the future of the
university, the crises that code the world today are addressed in
an accessible, affirmative and remarkably original analysis in his
thought. This volume is the first to engage with the philosophy of
Michel Serres, not by writing 'about' it, but by writing 'with' it.
This is done by expanding upon the urgent themes that Serres works
on; by furthering his materialism, his emphasis on communication
and information, his focus on the senses, and the role of
mathematics in thought. His famous concepts, such as the parasite,
'amis de viellesse', and the algorithm are applied in 21st century
situations. With contributions from an international and
interdisciplinary team of authors, these writings tackle the crises
of today and affirm the contemporary relevance of Serres'
philosophy.
Despite the urgent need for action, there is a widespread lack of
understanding of the benefits of using green energy sources for not
only reducing carbon emissions and climate change, but also for
growing a sustainable economy and society. Future citizens of the
world face increasing sustainability issues and need to be better
prepared for energy transformation and sustainable future economic
development. Cases on Green Energy and Sustainable Development is a
critical research book that focuses on the important role renewable
energy and energy efficiency play in energy transition and
sustainable development and covers economic and promotion policies
of major renewable energy and energy-efficiency technologies.
Highlighting a wide range of topics such as economics, energy
storage, and transportation technologies, this book is ideal for
environmentalists, academicians, researchers, engineers,
policymakers, and students.
In Santa Barbara's Legacy: An Environmental History of
Huancavelica, Peru, Nicholas A. Robins presents the first
comprehensive environmental history of a mercury producing region
in Latin America. Tracing the origins, rise and decline of the
regional population and economy from pre-history to the present,
Robins explores how people's multifaceted, intimate and often toxic
relationship with their environment has resulted in Huancavelica
being among the most mercury-contaminated urban areas on earth. The
narrative highlights issues of environmental justice and the toxic
burdens that contemporary residents confront, especially many of
those who live in adobe homes and are exposed to mercury, as well
as lead and arsenic, on a daily basis. The work incorporates
archival and printed primary sources as well as scientific research
led by the author.
Despite decades of efforts to combat homelessness, many people
continue to experience it in Canada's major cities. There are a
number of barriers that prevent effective responses to
homelessness, including a lack of agreement on the fundamental
question: what is homelessness? In Multiple Barriers, Alison Smith
explores the forces that shape intergovernmental and multilevel
governance dynamics to help better understand why, despite the best
efforts of community and advocacy groups, homelessness remains as
persistent as ever. Drawing on nearly 100 interviews with key
actors in Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto, and Montreal, as well as
extensive participant observation, Smith argues that institutional
differences across cities interact with ideas regarding
homelessness to contribute to very different models of governance.
Multiple Barriers shows that the genuine involvement of locally
based service providers, with the development of policy, are
necessary for an effective, equitable, and enduring solution to the
homelessness crisis in Canada.
Hemingway and Ecocriticism focuses on the famous author's short
stories from ecocritical perspectives, which are concerned with the
relationship between humans and the landscape and plead for a
better understanding of nature. Of Hemingway's first 49 short
stories, 22 exhibit ecological concerns in some form or other. They
reveal great damage caused to nature and human beings alike. G.
Srilatha holds that while Hemingway was an unabashed hunter,
fisher, and sportsman, he was also a conservationist and conveyed
this attitude in most of his stories. Many show that human and
biological environments are mutually interdependent. Despite
ecological devastation, Hemingway's protagonists turn to nature to
escape from the trauma of war and to seek solace.
The capybara is the neotropical mammal with the highest potential
for production and domestication. Amongst the favorable
characteristics for domestication we can list its high prolificacy,
rapid growth rate, a herbivorous diet, social behavior and relative
tameness. The genus (with only two species) is found from the
Panama Canal to the north of Argentina on the east of the Andes.
Chile is the only country in South America where the capybara is
not found. The species is eaten all over its range, especially by
poor, rural and traditional communities engaged in subsistence
hunting. On the other hand, in large urban settlements wildlife is
consumed by city dwellers as a delicacy. The sustainable management
of capybara in the wild has been adopted by some South American
countries, while others have encouraged capybara rearing in
captivity.
This book looks at the question of what makes for successful change
in developing countries. It focuses on people at every level in six
developing countries in Africa and Asia who have helped foster
positive change and development, most of which has been successful.
Here, in contrast to so much academic writing on development which
focuses on leadership alone, the author tries to get beyond that
elite focus and highlight the people at all levels who make change
possible. He examines the role and significance of these ordinary
citizens and groups as well as leaders. Transformation almost
always requires action and support at multiple levels from
individuals, communities, and local leaders. The project analyses
the cases of Afghanistan, Madagascar, Sierra Leone, Ghana,
Pakistan, and South Africa.
In the past thirty years biodiversity has become one of the central
organizing principles through which we understand the nonhuman
environment. Its deceptively simple definition as the variation
among living organisms masks its status as a hotly contested term
both within the sciences and more broadly. In Eden's Endemics,
Elizabeth Callaway looks to cultural objects-novels, memoirs,
databases, visualizations, and poetry- that depict many species at
once to consider the question of how we narrate organisms in their
multiplicity. Touching on topics ranging from seed banks to science
fiction to bird-watching, Callaway argues that there is no set,
generally accepted way to measure biodiversity. Westerners tend to
conceptualize it according to one or more of an array of tropes
rooted in colonial history such as the Lost Eden, Noah's Ark, and
Tree-of-Life imagery. These conceptualizations affect what kinds of
biodiversities are prioritized for protection. While using
biodiversity as a way to talk about the world aims to highlight
what is most valued in nature, it can produce narratives that
reinforce certain power differentials-with real-life consequences
for conservation projects. Thus the choices made when portraying
biodiversity impact what is visible, what is visceral, and what is
unquestioned common sense about the patterns of life on Earth.
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