About the Book
Sustainable Planet is a two-volume resource that provides comprehensive coverage on the world's most pressing environmental issues, their impact in countries around the world, and how—or if—they are being addressed.
Sustainable Planet: Issues and Solutions for Our Environment's Future examines contemporary challenges to sustainability, including population, climate change, decreasing biodiversity, land degradation, and water quality. Each chapter analyzes one of these challenges by first providing an introduction to the topic as well as key concepts to provide readers with a basic understanding of the issue. Essays deepen comprehension by investigating different aspects of the challenge.
Case studies written by experts in the field follow. Each case study considers how a specific country is affected by the particular issue as well as the measures the country is taking to find solutions that will provide for a more sustainable future. The final chapter of the book explores sustainability at a global level by examining, through annotated primary documents, a number of multinational initiatives and alliances intended to create a more sustainable planet.
Table of Contents:
VOLUME ONE
Preface,
Introduction,
Chapter 1: Population, Development, and Mobility,
Introduction: World Populations,
Concepts for Understanding,
Essays,
Poverty, Consumption, and Development,
Risk Exposure, Pathogens, and Disease,
Migrants, Environment, and Mobility,
Country Studies,
Population, Development, and Environment in Kazakhstan,
The Growing Prevalence of Lyme Disease and West Nile Virus in Canada,
Population, Development, and Environment in Turkey,
Venezuelan Migration to World Cities,
Myanmar Population, Development, and the Environment: Challenges for the Twenty-First Century,
Chapter 2: Safe and Resilient Cities,
Introduction: Sustainable Cities,
Concepts for Understanding,
Essays,
Identifying Livable Cities,
Increasing Natural Disasters Affecting Safe Cities,
Urbanization,
Country Studies,
Urban Flooding in Australia,
Inner-City Concerns, United States,
Organized Crime, Waste, and Environmental Issues in Naples, Italy,
The City of Venice: A Dynamic Environment,
Chapter 3: Quality Water Resources,
Introduction: World Water Crisis,
Concepts for Understanding,
Essays,
Creating Useful and Sustainable Water Policies,
Quality Fresh Water: Concerns for the Future,
The Future of Potable Water,
Country Studies,
Tourism and Fresh Water and Coastal Zone Management Challenges in the Caribbean,
Bottled Water in the United States,
Bringing Well Water to Sub-Saharan Africa,
Controversy in Patagonia, Chile: Water versus Energy Needs,
Chapter 4: Energy Transitioning with Climate Change,
Introduction: Renewable and Alternative Energy Sources,
Concepts for Understanding,
Essays,
The Future of Oil and Gas Production,
Wind Power into the Future,
The Revolution in Solar Power,
Country Studies,
Atoms in the Desert: Introducing Nuclear Energy in the United Arab Emirates (UAE),
Future Perspectives of Wind Power in Sweden,
United States: Energy Arguments as Conflicts,
Coal, Wind, and Solar Power,
Geothermal Energy Production in Iceland,
Chapter 5: Agriculture and Changing Land Use,
Introduction: Sustainable Agriculture,
Concepts for Understanding,
Essays,
Using Soil Wisely for the Future,
Sustainable Forests,
Agriculture without Chemicals,
Country Studies,
Scotland: Sustainable Land Use,
Land Reform in Caribbean Island Environments,
Agriculture in the Netherlands,
Brazilian Ranching Concerns,
VOLUME TWO
Chapter 6: Marine Protection,
Introduction: Protecting Ocean and Marine Environments,
Concepts for Understanding,
Essays,
Oceans and Sustainable Fisheries,
Reefs and Estuaries into the Future,
Marine Protected Areas,
Country Studies,
Canada: The Future of Fisheries,
Protecting the Environmental Integrity of the Great Barrier Reef, Australia,
Sustainable Fisheries in Japan,
Chapter 7: Conservation and Biodiversity Loss,
Introduction: Threats to Biodiversity,
Concepts for Understanding,
Essays,
Biodiversity Concerns,
Terrestrial Protected Areas,
Indigenous Ecological Knowledge,
Country Studies,
The Conservation Values of Wetlands for the Future of Canada,
Belize: Ecotourism to Save the Environment,
Australia, Nonindigenous Species Introduction,
Chapter 8: Storing and Eliminating Wastes,
Introduction: Why Waste Matters?,
Concepts for Understanding,
Essays,
Packaging for Consumption,
Landfills for the Future: Electronic Wastes,
Toxic Wastes, Reduction and Disposal,
Country Studies,
Mining and Extractive Activities in Brazil, Guyana, and Peru: Environmental Impacts and Social Conflicts,
Indigenous Peoples and Toxins in Canada,
Israel: The Politics of Waste,
The United States: Producing, Collecting, and Eliminating Wastes,
India: So Many People and So Much Pollution,
Chapter 9: Citizen Involvement,
Introduction: Diverse Viewpoints and Citizen Participation,
Concepts for Understanding,
Essays,
The Healthy Parks, Healthy People Movement: Origins, Principles, Global Action, and Local Outcomes,
Being a Citizen Scientist,
Including Young People in Nature,
Country Studies,
Faith-based Approaches to Poverty and Climate Change Resilience in the Philippines,
Nonprofits in the United States,
Citizen Science in the United States,
Chapter 10: Creating Partnerships and Alliances,
Introduction: Environmental Policy,
Concepts for Understanding,
Essays,
Creating Environmental Agreements,
Legal Issues of Climate Change,
Transboundary Governance,
International Alliance Documents with Commentary,
1. International Alliance Document 1: The 2030 Sustainable Development Goals,
2. International Alliance Document 2: The Convention on Biodiversity,
3. International Alliance Document 3: The Paris Agreement (Paris Accord of 2016),
4. International Alliance Document 4: Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC),
5. International Alliance Document 5: The New Urban Agenda,
6. International Alliance Document 6: The United Nations World Water Development Report 2019, Leaving No One Behind,
7. International Alliance Document 7: United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS),
8. International Alliance Document 8: United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP),
9. International Alliance Document 9: Pathways to Zero Hunger,
10. International Alliance Document 10: The Antarctic Treaty System,
Recommended Reading,
About the Editor and Contributors,
Index,
About the Author :
Barbara J. McNicol was professor of geography in the earth and environmental sciences department at Mount Royal University in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, from 2000 until her retirement in 2020.
Review :
The strength of this work is that it provides a good introduction to sustainability issues.
Recommended. General readers.
