Managing for Healthy Ecosystems

Rating:
Summary: Excellent book on the state of the World's Ecosystems
Review: One of the most critical issues of our times is the dwindling capacity of the planet to provide life-support for our species. The trends are unmistakable: a world population at unprecedented levels and continuing to climb; coupled with regional and global degradation of our life-support systems. Deterioration of ecosystems is occurring globally at an accelerating pace. The dependence of human health upon health of the biosphere presents a compelling case for a change in public health strategy. A new strategy focussed on restoring the ecological balance must be developed. Unless this is done, the gains in public health since the mid-18th century are in danger of becoming overshadowed by the accumulating loses as a result of the degradation of the biosphere. Ecosystem pathology (breakdown) is no longer a hypothesis but now a well-documented fact. This has the most severe implications for human sustainability in the 21st century. The gravity of the situation which threatens economic sustainability, food security, civil order, and human health, calls for new concepts and approaches that recognize the interplay between the social, natural, and health sciences. Halting ecosystem deterioration and initiating the processes of restoration for nonrenewable resources requires critical thinking and positive action. Global organizations, such as UNEP and the World Bank suggest that time is rapidly running out for recovering the health of the earth's ecosystems.

Managing for Healthy Ecosystems identifies key issues that must be resolved if there is to be progress in this complex area, such as, 1) evolving methods for regional ecosystem health assessment employing complex adaptive systems coupled with advanced technologies to permit accurate determination of changes in regional and global environments, 2) Issues and methods for assessing, monitoring and managing diversity and its impact on human health in the context of climate change, agroecosystems, restoration of forests, politics, culture, and tradition, 3) model case studies showing practical approaches to integrating the socio-economic, ecological, and human health implications of environmental degradation.

Collectively, the 137 chapters and 1510 pages in "Managing for Healthy Ecosystems" provide a wide spectrum of information on concepts and methods that will prove invaluable to ecologists, resource managers, policy makers in governments, directors or international bodies, environmentalists, urban planners, landscape specialists, and conservationists and other researchers in general. The hallmark of this effort is its transdisciplinary focus, integrating the social, natural, and human health sciences. This a must-read book for