Author(s): David T. Suzuki

Environment

David Suzuki cuts through the gloom surrounding the current state of the world's natural resources, and draws attention to the numerous positive instances where private companies, communities and individual citizens are making a real difference to the environment.

We all know the bad news. The natural systems that support our lives are in trouble. They are threatened by the population explosion around the globe, the unfettered escalation of technology and the seemingly insatiable hunger for consumption that is fuelling the destruction of our natural environment.

But authors David Suzuki and Holly Dressel say there is hope yet for this troubled planet. The good news is that thousands of individuals, groups and businesses are already changing their ways. A growing number of organisations, corporations and individuals around the world are taking up a spontaneous global quest for sustainability. We are starting to base economic development strategies on our collective dependency on nature, while decreasing large-scale interference in our eco-systems. And we are finally learning to mimic the way natural systems function rather than attempting to conquer and control them.

Suzuki and Dressel have uncovered hundreds of working solutions that offer us all some much-needed hope. There really are things that can be done to help our environment before it's too late, and more than ever, we are learning to talk about solutions-and apply them. And what's more, many of the technologies we need to realise our goals-to save species, to conserve soil, to right social wrongs-are already within our grasp. If we change our ways now, there is hope yet that we might leave a living and viable planet for our children.