The Anthropocene refers to all societies' current era of environmental challenges. For the social sciences, the Anthropocene represents a historical "moment" with huge potential: it offers people new ways of considering the human condition, as well as how they interact with the rest of the living world and with the planet on all levels. At the turn of the 21st century, the idea of the Anthropocene burst onto the older, diverse and varied scene of risk studies. This "new geological era", which is entirely created by humanity, went on to revive our understanding of environmental issues, as well as the analysis of the social and political problems that constitute risk situations. Drawing together contributions from specialists in social sciences concerning risks and the environment, Risks and the Anthropocene explores the advantages that the idea of the Anthropocene can offer in understanding risks and their management, as well as the limitations it presents.

Although the full extent of the potential damages from global warming remain unknown, scientists have long argued that action should be taken now to mitigate any possible adverse consequences. However, in making such policy recommendations, economic arguments need to be considered as much as scientific ones. This volume examines the appropriate economic incentives for implementing policy to mitigate climate change and then exposes the flaws in current international agreements. The book begins by providing the economic foundations for understanding climate change. It examines how Kyoto's flexibility mechanism departs from more efficient and less-costly approaches for reducing atmospheric carbon dioxide, and highlights the problems that terrestrial carbon credits pose for emissions trading. Unique case studies of Canada, Japan and The Netherlands indicate that most countries will be unable to meet their own Kyoto obligations. The author then uses an economic analysis of the potential damages to show that even though some countries will experience a detrimental effect from climate change, the majority will actually benefit. In this way, he clearly demonstrates that not only will current policies do little to avert global warming, most countries will also have less incentive to sign up to any future international agreements. Academics, economists and policymakers involved in the climate change debate will find this succinct yet comprehensive analysis of the economic instruments available for mitigating climate change to be essential reading.

Old men used to sit in corner stores and discuss business, work, and politics. Women used to come together and talk about the men as they took care of the home and children, or even more recently as a part of the workforce. Today, however, politics is a shunned topic, and conversation is all but dead. It is difficult to stay informed and talk with each other about life and politics.

It is even more difficult to stay informed on a technical topic such as energy and something as double-sided as politics. Yet it is imperative that people stay informed and well-connected to direct their government.

This book shows how the government (President, House and Senate, left and right) have destroyed the energy industry, taxed the middle class, and prevented well thinking, regular folks from solving our energy supply crisis. This book has thirty-three charts and graphs, most from bi-partisan or independent government sources to make a case for less government involvement in the energy industry. There are some astonishing revelations and a compelling case for reducing air emissions by 60 percent and creating jobs at the same time by building a particular type of new generation. This is a compelling argument that has never been presented before. I hope you enjoy the read.

"State of the Wild "is a biennial series that brings together international conservation experts and writers to discuss emerging issues in the conservation of wildlife and wild places. Each volume in the series combines evocative writings with a fascinating tour of conservation news highlights and vital statistics from around the world. One-third of each volume focuses on a topic of particular concern to conservationists working to protect wildlife and our last wild places. This 2008-2009 edition considers the integration of wildlife health, ecosystem health, human health, and the health of domestic animals--a "One World-One Health" approach to disease and conservation.

This focus is complemented with essays clustered into sections that address other key issues--conservation of species; conservation of wild places; people, culture, and conservation; and the art and practice of conservation. Essays cover a broad range of topics, from restoring biodiversity on the prairies to mapping the state of the oceans to the conservation impacts of lawlessness and coca cultivation in Colombia. Essay contributions come from people directly involved in on-the-ground conservation efforts and offer a unique and valuable perspective on often-overlooked topics.

S"tate of the Wild"'s accessible approach educates a wide range of audiences while at the same time presenting leading-edge scientific overviews of hot topics in conservation. Uniquely structured with magazine-like features up front, conservation news in the middle, and essays from eminent authors and experienced scientists throughout, this landmark series is an essential addition to any environmental bookshelf.

In this book a distinguished group of international contributors, from both developing and higher income countries, identify and discuss major social conflicts, labour and distributional concerns, environmental issues and impacts arising from the very rapid increase in globalisation experienced since the early 1970s. Issues considered include possible alternatives to globalisation; cultural and linguistic inequalities associated with globalisation, consequences of growing regionalism and economic inequality between and within nations. Poverty, international migration, biodiversity conservation, natural resource sustainability, and global trade in genetically modified organisms (GMOs) are also discussed. A substantial introductory chapter provides a significant overview of the rate and process of economic globalisation and integrates the contributions and their interconnections for the reader. Economic Globalisation offers policy proposals and responses and represents divergent views and rigorous theoretical analysis. Economists, particularly those with an interest in international economics, labour, environmental and ecological economics, macroeconomics and social economics will all find this book of great interest.

In The Big Muddy, the first long-term environmental history of the Mississippi, Christopher Morris offers a brilliant tour across five centuries as he illuminates the interaction between people and the landscape, from early hunter-gatherer bands to present-day industrial and post-industrial society.
Morris shows that when Hernando de Soto arrived at the lower Mississippi Valley, he found an incredibly vast wetland, forty thousand square miles of some of the richest, wettest land in North America, deposited there by the big muddy river that ran through it. But since then much has changed, for the river and for the surrounding valley. Indeed, by the 1890s, the valley was rapidly drying. Morris shows how centuries of increasingly intensified human meddling--including deforestation, swamp drainage, and levee construction--led to drought, disease, and severe flooding. He outlines the damage done by the introduction of foreign species, such as the Argentine nutria, which escaped into the wild and are now busy eating up Louisiana's wetlands. And he critiques the most monumental change in the lower Mississippi Valley--the reconstruction of the river itself, largely under the direction of the Army Corps of Engineers. Valley residents have been paying the price for these human interventions, most visibly with the disaster that followed Hurricane Katrina. Morris also describes how valley residents have been struggling to reinvigorate the valley environment in recent years--such as with the burgeoning catfish and crawfish industries--so that they may once again live off its natural abundance.
Morris concludes that the problem with Katrina is the problem with the Amazon Rainforest, drought and famine in Africa, and fires and mudslides in California--it is the end result of the ill-considered bending of natural environments to human purposes.

This report aims to identify and map air pollution hotspots in South Asia in terms of concentration and exposure, understand the various sources of pollution in hotspot areas (from Kabul to Dhaka), and help categorise policy actions and interventions based on a systematic analysis of costs and benefits.

Industrial ecology is coming of age and this superb book brings together leading scholars to present a state-of-the-art overviews of the subject. Each part of the book comprehensively covers the following issues in a systematic style: * the goals and achievements of industrial ecology and the history of the field * methodology, covering the main approaches to analysis and assessment * economics and industrial ecology * industrial ecology at the national/regional level * industrial ecology at the sectoral/materials level * applications and policy implications. The authors are all experts at the cutting edge of the field and the bibliography alone will prove useful as a comprehensive guide to the literature. This outstanding handbook will be an indispensable reference for students and scholars working in environmental management, industrial ecology and environmental and ecological studies.

Global warming and the resulting climate change affect our cities the most. In the recent years, migration to cities from the rural areas has increased. With this, an orderly structuring occurred in the cities, and as a result, the quality of the urban environment started to decrease. For this reason, planners and designers have started to introduce different approaches to make cities more sustainable and livable. This book contains new theories, approaches and practices that scientists deal with regarding physical planning and design.

The changes the earth is currently undertaking has been at the forefront of scientific discourse in recent years. Humans as a species have needed to react to these changes and shift their behavior accordingly. Innovative Strategies and Frameworks in Climate Change Adaptation: Emerging Research and Opportunities is a critical scholarly resource that examines the relationship between humans and the changing earth as well as the ways in which humans react to these shifts. Featuring coverage on a wide range of topics such as neo-behaviorism, adaptation narrative, and taxonomy, this book is geared toward researchers, students, and academicians seeking current research on the human response to shifting conditions on the earth.

Although human beings are technically part of the ecosystem, there still remains a conceptual conflict between technology and nature. These concerns highlight the idea of human superiority in which the priority is given to technology versus living in synchronization with nature. Technology versus Ecology: Human Superiority and the Ongoing Conflict with Nature explores the issues revolving around the conflict between technology versus human beings, the concern for the separation of human beings in the ecosystem, and the negative consequences that may follow as ecosystems are being damaged. This book is a significant reference source for researchers, instructors, and students interested in the constant evolution of technology and ecology.

Tropical islands are fragile, vulnerable environments and yet they are coming under increasing strain due to coastal developments and global environmental change. As a result of their remote location, small size and limited natural resource endowments, tourism has become an important economic activity, leading to emerging conflicts between the interests of developers, tourists and residents. Whilst much has been written about tourism-related development in tropical islands from a socio-cultural and economic point of view, the political ecology of environmental change has received surprisingly little attention. Political ecology is a powerful tool with which to investigate the role and interests of different actors in the process of environmental change, and this highly original volume represents a first ever study of tourism and tropical island development employing this novel but effective approach. Central to the argument is the belief that environmental problems cannot properly be understood without considering their economic and political context. The political ecology focus allows the authors to compare a wide range of tropical islands and to identify more sustainable development paths. They are also able to analyse the role of the various actors involved in the tourism development versus environmental change debate such as the state, international organizations, the tourism industry, local communities and non-governmental organizations. The continued growth of tourism will undoubtedly cause greater environmental problems. This book makes a major contribution toward understanding and solving these conflicts, particularly in those islands where the problems are most pressing. It will be required reading for students, researchers and academics of tourism, service management, geography, environmental studies, human ecology and economic development.