Media & Communications

The Climate and the Commons

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The premise of this chapter is that there is a proliferating movement of initiatives seeking to defend the commons (mostly in the Global South) or restore the commons (mostly in the Global North), to ensure our survival and well-being. This chapter is also premised on the notion that we still have time to act to restore our socio-ecological sustainability.

Carving up Africa’s hunger markets

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In mid-May 2012, the United Nations Development Programme (the UNDP) released its Africa Human Development report for 2012. Entitled ‘Towards a Food Secure Future’, the report is unremarkable for its assessments and language – these have changed but little where Africa is concerned over the last 30 years – and is remarkable for the implications it contains concerning the agriculture and food focus to human development.

The new energy reality (upcoming webinar)

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Dr. Hall will provide an assessment of global energy trends from his perspective as a systems ecologist and pioneer in the emerging field of biophysical economics. This webinar will examine key concepts regarding energy quality and energy return on investment in the context of current world energy and economic challenges. A critique of neoclassical economics and its divergence from the laws of physics and ecology regarding energy will be implicit in the discussion. Dr. Hall will also provide highlights from his recent book, Energy and the Wealth of Nations, co-authored with Kent Klitgaard.

The Upside of Default

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A growing number of observers are starting to edge nervously around the possibility that the global financial industry may be headed for some very rough sailing this autumn — potentially even a major crash. Inevitably, the blogosphere is starting to churn out claims that this will lead to the apocalyptic collapse for which so many people seem to be longing just now. There may be a brighter side to the approaching mess, however; setting aside a cheap magazine, the Archdruid explains.

The Blueprint: Averting Global Collapse (free ebook download for 7/26 only)

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We are faced with an impending calamity that threatens to bankrupt the planetary ecosystem and with it much of the manmade world. Rirdan submits a plan that truly goes the distance: a highly detailed, planetary-wide blueprint that lays out a new course for our technological and industrial engines. It calls for sweeping adjustments in the way every person thinks and lives.

Farming Without Machines: A Revolutionary Agricultural Technology

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Originally published in 1974, How to Grow More Vegetables, Eighth Edition: (And Fruits, Nuts, Berries, Grains, and Other Crops) than You Ever Thought Possible on Less Land than You Can Imagine) remains a vital resource for farmers, agricultural researchers and planners, sustainability activists and home gardeners, as the world confronts the challenge of feeding a global population of 7-9 billion without access to the cheap fossil fuels that have run “industrial” agriculture for the last century.