We have poisoned the air and water on which our lives depend. Poor countries exhaust their land in the struggle to survive while rich countries demand more and more. The Earthscan Action Handbook spells out why things have gone so terribly wrong and what each of us can do to clean up the mess. Each chapter deals with one of the major problems people and the planet now face: meeting the human needs of health, education and social justice as well as the environmental needs of our dying lakes and forests, polluted seas, threatened habitats and endangered species. Packed with suggestions for positive action, this book also gives details of who to contact, what to read and where to go if you want to do more. Whether you care about buying safe food or feeding the world, The Earthscan Action Handbook is indispensable. Originally published in 1990

Table of Contents:
About This Book Aims of the book; Action: Solutions; Letter-writing; Campaigning; Definitions; Acknowledgements List of Abbreviations Part One: Human Needs 1. Food - the Right to Eat The Problem: Peoples of the past: in Tune with Nature; the First Environmentalists; Colonialism: Cash Crops and Commodities; No Food for the Landless; Farming for the Rich: International Trade; Aid and Inefficiency; Environmental Destruction: Mechanized Agriculture; Wood for Fuel; Overfishing; Escaping the Consequences; the 'green revolution': Miracle Seeds?; New Problems; Pests and Pesticides; Irrigation; who Gained?; Food Aid: 'Grain Junkies'; Political Bias. Action: Hunger: Children; Women; Land Reform; Soil Restoration; Rural Development; Social Change; the NGOs; Self-reliance; Northern Production and Consumption; Fishing; Food Aid. Getting Involved: Consumer and Lifestyle Choices: buy Direct; Boycott Products; Go Vegetarian; Buy Organic; Grow your Own; your Lifestyle; Community and Political Action: Videos; World Food Day; Oxfam - Hungry for Change; Tell them what you Think; Organizations. 2. Wealth - Greed versus Need The Problem: Unequal Partners; Multinationals; The World Bank: Giant Dams; Displacing People; Southern Debt: what Went Wrong?; the Power of Oil; Money Down the Drain; Enter the IMF; the Debt Crisis; And the Good News? Action: The Wealth Gap: Human Development; Grass Roots; New Priorities; Self-reliance; Regional Co-operation; Controlling the Corporations; Appropriate Development; Urban Renewal of Rural Investment; Exploited Labour; Rewriting Debts; Reforming World Trade; what we Owe the South. Getting Involved: Consumer and Lifestyle Choices: Fair Trading; Boycott the Offenders; Ethical Investment; Community and Political Action: Intermediate Technology; Oxfam 2000; In Whose Interest?; Tell them what you Think; Organizations. 3. Population and Health 60 The Problem: Population - Still Soaring: Population Mathematics; Upsetting the Balance; Disease in the South: Water and Sanitation; Health Care; the Corporations; Poisons on the Land; Legal Standards; Misuse and Accidents; Different Safety Standards; do Pesticides Work?; Nitrates; Chemical Poisons in Industry: Worldwide Problem; Dioxins; Landfill and Contamination; Accidents will Happen; Weak Laws; the Poison Trade; Contaminated Air; Radiation: the Anti-nuclear Case; Nuclear Tests; Nuclear Accidents. Action: Population and Health: Appropriate Family Planning; Better Opportunities for Women; Preventive Health Care; Water and Sanitation; Local Solutions; Primary Health Care; the Multinationals; Traditional Medicines; Fewer Poisons; Integrated Pest Management; Tighter Controls; Alternative Processes; Polluter Pays; Nuclear Waste. Getting Involved: Consumer and Lifestyle Choices: Small Families; Wealth and Income Redistribution; Consumer Boycotts; Buying Safely; Converting Giving up your Car; Water Quality; Better Personal Health; Community and political Action: Tell them what you Think; an End to Secrecy; Water Contamination; Waste Dumping; Nuclear Power; Organizations. 4. Women - Present Burdens and Future Role The Problem: Discrimination under the Law: the Weight of Tradition; Work in the Home; Women's Health; Marriage and Motherhood; Domestic Violence; Divorce; Women as Farmers: Colonial Disruption; Ignoring Women's Role; Women in the Modern Economy: Inequality in Employment; Obstacles for Working Mothers; New Technology; Unemployment and Poverty; Women in a Man's World: Education; Fertility; Politics; Rape. Action: Women's Burdens and Role: Collective Action; Legal Rights; Culture; Women and Work; Women and Development; Rural Women. Getting Involved: Consumer and Lifestyle Choices: Buy from Women; Changes at Home; Equal Treatment for Boys and Girls; Women's Refuges; Workplace, Community and Political Action: Equal Pay; Co-ops; Child Care; Self-development; Organizations. 5. Human and Civil Rights The Problem: Children and Education: Early Drop-outs; Child Labour; Street Children; the Adoption Trade; Victims of War; Indigenous Peoples: European Conquest; Pushed into Poverty; Forest and Mountain People; Oppression Worldwide; Genocide; the Cost; The Violent State: Political Prisoners; Latin America; Asia; Middle East; Africa; South Africa; Rights in the North: Poverty and Injustice in the West; the High Cost of Northern Wealth; Support for Oppression; Eastern Europe; The Future. Action: Human Rights: Making Choices; Rights of the Child; Community Schooling; Protection; Indigenous Peoples; a Change in Material Values; Political Will; Public Opinion; Strengthening the UN; better Democracy. Getting Involved: Consumer and Lifestyle Choices: Buy from Fair traders; Community and Political Action; Letter-Writing; in the Workplace; Education; Survival International; Amnesty International; Central America Week; Broader Issues; UK Democracy; Organizations. Part Two: The Planet 6. Working the Land to Death The Problem: Disappearing Forests: an Essential Resource; Worldwide Destruction; Deforestation - the Causes: Blaming the Rural Poor; Rural Defenders; Commercial Exploitation; Dams and Mining; Migration Programmes; Deforestation - the Real Costs: who Benefits?; Environmental Damage; Less Rainfall more Drought; Firewood Crisis; Forest Peoples; Death of the Soil: Soil Loss Ancient and Modern; the Deserts Advance; Destructive Farming; Mismanaged Irrigation. Action: Deforestation and Soil Loss: Problems with 'Sustainability'; Damage Limitation; International Bans and Campaigns; Alternatives; Extractive Reserves; no More Big Developments; New Trees; Local Control; Local Solutions; Soil Management; Livestock; Irrigation. Getting Involved: Consumer and Lifestyle Choices; Avoid Hardwoods; Tell them what you Think; Food Choices; Recycling Paper and Card; Plant Trees; Community and Political Action: Join Campaigns; National Tree Week; Reforest the Earth; Make the Connections; Letter-writing; Organizations. 7. Water - the Most Precious Resource The Problem: Water Rich and Water Poor: Heavy Water Users; Exhausting Supplies; Access to Water; Increasing Demand; Flooding; Irrigation and Large Dams - Hidden Costs: Irrigation; how Dams Go Wrong; Dirty Inland Waters: Disease and Waste; Waters of the North; Chemical and Nuclear Contamination; Filthy Seas: the Effects of Dumping; Nuclear Waste; no Escape Route; Damage to Fishing. Action: Water Use and Abuse: Conservation; Dual Solution; Political Action; Flood and Irrigation Controls; Recovery Time; Industry and Agriculture; Recycling; Meeting the Cost; Enforcement of Standards. Getting Involved: Consumer and Lifestyle Choices: use Water Sparingly; Buy Wisely; Fewer Chemicals and Batteries; Recycle Paper and Other Products; Plastics; Boat Users; Community and Political Action; Water Metering; Recycling Schemes; Limiting Landfill; Report Pollution Incidents; Organizations. 8. The Atmosphere -the Sky's the Limit The Problem: Global Warming: the Stratosphere; Rising Temperatures; Greenhouse Gases; too Hot to Handle; Rising Seas and Refugees; Disappearing Habitats; The Hole in the Ozone Layer: what Causes it?; Depletion Rate; the Effects; Airborne Acid: the Causes; Widely Travelled Pollution; how Serious?; 'Forest Death'; Waterways and Fish; Other Damage. Action: Atmosphere and Climate: Preventive Measures; Planting New Trees; Curbing CO,; Energy Efficiency; Recycling; Government Action; Restoring a Balance; Nuclear Power; Alternative Energy; Less Motor Car Use; CFCs; Acid Pollution; Cleaner Power Stations; Catalytic Converters. Getting Involved: Consumer and Lifestyle Choices: Conserve Energy and Heat; Recycling Schemes; Organic Foods; Avoid CFCs; Less Driving more Cycling; Environmental Transport Association; Community and Political Action: for Youngsters; UK Government; Campaign against Nuclear Power; Environment-Friendly Transport; Organizations. 9. Habitats and Species - Nature under Siege The Problem: The Importance of Biological Diversity: Species Co-operation; Disrupting the System; Nature's Wealth; Medicinal Plants; Untapped Potential; Disappearing Worlds: the Rainforests; Wetlands and Coral Reefs; Islands; Grassland and Wilderness; Antarctica; Vanishing Species: Wildlife Trade; Plants; Invertebrates; Fish, Amphibians and Reptiles; Birds; Larger Mammals; Elephants; Rhinos; on the Brink; Migration Routes; the Big Cats; Primates; Modern Farming; Mammals at Sea. Action: Habitats and Species: Parks and Reserves; Wilderness Corridors; Success Stories; Zoos and Gardens; Farming for Conservation; Strategy for Survival; Species Census; the Rainforests; Wildlife Trade Convention; Alternatives to Trade; Wildlife Ranching; Whaling Ban; 'World Park' for Antarctica; a New Outlook. Getting Involved: Consumer and Lifestyle Choices: Interrelated Action; Care for Wildlife; Consume Carefully; Criticize and Boycott; Teach Respect; Wildlife Gardens, Trees, Recycling; Community and Political Action: Protect Local Habitats; Conservation Volunteers; Lobby the Government; Support Campaigns; Organizations. 10. A World without War? The Problem: Weapons and Wars: the Nuclear Threat; who has the Bomb?; Chemical and other Weapons; Worldwide War; Today's Battlefields; Superpowers and Cold War: the Cold War; the Arms Race; Star Wars; the Future; The Real Cost of Military Spending: Opportunity Costs; Inflation and Jobs; the Myth of the Spin-off; Social Costs; Knock-on Effects; the Price of Power; Wasting Resources; Environmental Damage; the Military Obsession; The Arms Trade: the Background; Competitive Market; Prolonging War; Secret Deals. Action: War and the Arms Race: the Role of the UN; International Treaties; Strengthening the UN; Peace Dividend?; NATO and the Warsaw Pact; Nuclear Test Ban; Dissolve the Alliances; Chemical Weapons; Disarmament and Development; Controlling Sales; Arms Conversion; the Peace Movement. Getting Involved: Consumer and Lifestyle Choices: Make Do with Less; Avoid Competition; Oppose Violence; Workplace, Community and Political Action:-International Links; Industrial Conversion; Lobby for Peace; Peace Studies; Organizations. Glossary Notes Recommended Reading Index