Environment, Development, and Sustainability

As the human population continues to place increasing demands on the planet we inhabit we face the biggest challenge of our time: how can we exploit the natural resources that we need - whether it be for water, food, or energy - in a way that preserves the environment, is equitable and doesn't compromise the long-term future of the planet and its biodiversity?Environment, Development, and Sustainability represents an examination of three integrated issues that form the main ongoing challenge of this century. Featuring a range of perspectives and case studies from North America, Europe, Africa, Asia and Australasia, the book reflects the multiple ways in which environment, development and sustainability are intertwined everywhere - in rich and poor countries, and those in between.Contributions from both practitioners and academics, bringing experiences as technologists, engineers, natural scientists and social scientists, expand further the many perspectives on the challenge. The book celebrates this diversity, using it positively as a resource for a more holistic learning approach to environment, development and sustainability.Environment, Development, and Sustainability is written as a student textbook where individual chapters can be stand-alone, or where, helped by a linking narrative, the book can be read as a whole. Its accessible style, however, makes it suitable for a broader audience, including practitioners, activists and citizens who simply wish to know more.