Citation:
For the Conservation of the Earth, Vance Martin, (ed), (Colorado: Fulcrum, Inc., 1988), 418 pp.
For the Conservation of the Earth is the edited form of the proceedings of the 4th World Wilderness Congress of 1987. This work contains the work of multiple authors who address the degradation of the world's natural resource base, as evidenced by diminishing wilderness areas and increasing air and water pollution.
For the Conservation of the Earth will be of interest to those who seek an understanding of global environmental problems. The work is divided into five sections, the first of which addresses the challenge facing those who attempt to conserve the remaining Earth's wilderness areas. Gro Harlem Brundtland discusses the common future of the globe. The second essay in the first section addresses United Nations efforts to encourage wilderness conservation. Three essays are devoted to the logistical and methodological problems facing attempts to undertake a world wilderness inventory. A subsection on science and management discusses: the new resources manager, global climate change and it effects on wild lands, wetland protection, wildlife values, and the role of biosphere reserves. Alan Grainger examines the controversy over the treatment of tropical forests: are they a global resource, or a national responsibility?
The second section is a collection of case studies. Three essays discuss conservation efforts in Africa, including one which examines the conservation and development of the Ras Mohamed, located at the southern tip of the Sinai. The essays addressing issues of the Asian continent are separated into those addressing so-called 'Euro-Asia' and those addressing Asia. In the former category there is an examination of nature conservation in the (now former) USSR. In the latter category, the conservation movement in India with special emphasis on the Indian elephant is discussed. The final essay with a focus on Asia is one concerned with wildlife conservation efforts in the People's Republic of China.
The largest part of the second section is devoted to essays addressing issues in the Americas, the bulk of which focuses on the United States. Roderick Nash asks the question, "Why Wilderness?". Authors representing the: National Wildlife Federation, National Audubon Society, Sierra Club, Nature Conservancy, and Wilderness Society contribute essays to this section.
The third section is concerned with economics, development and the environment. The essays address the relationship between development and the environment. Included in this section is the essay "The need for Partnership" by David Rockerfeller. The fourth section addresses "... culture, man and the environment". The focus is upon native people's cultural representations of the natural world. The most notable essay in this section is Garrett Hardin's "Cultural carrying capacity and the defense of wilderness". The section concludes with a focus on the relationship between wilderness and human potential wherein several wilderness schools are examined. Specifically, the : Wilderness Leadership School, Outward Bound, National Outdoor Leadership School and Wilderness Vision Quest are discussed.
The concluding section of the book addresses key themes and items of the Congress. Herein is considered the relationship between conservation efforts and: the media, artists, non-governmental organisations, and the scientific community. The text is followed with a lengthy list of addresses of individuals and organisations which are associated with conservation efforts: either advocates of conservation or opponents of such efforts. The editors encourage correspondence with these individuals and organisations.
For the Conservation of the Earth is an ambitious effort to organize and present an overview of the problems and challenges facing global conservation efforts. The text is nicely supplemented with photographs and