Double Book Review: Two Perspectives on Five Cities: Modelling Asian Urban Population-Environment Dynamics,edited by Gayl Ness with Michael Low. Oxford University Press, 2000, 309 pp.

Population and Environment -     

Book Review: Australians and Their Environment: An Introduction to Environmental Studies, 2nd ed. Graeme Aplin,Melbourne: Oxford University Press, 2002, ISBN 0 19 551478 5, xvi + 543 pp., $54.50 (paperback)

Population and Environment -     

Problem Solving: Complexity,History, Sustainability

Sustainability or collapse follow from the success or failure of problem-solving institutions. The factors that lead to long-term success or failure in problem solving have received little attention, so that this fundamental activity is poorly understood. The capacity of institutions to solve problems changes over time, suggesting that a science of problem solving, and thus a science of sustainability, must be historical. Complexity is a primary problem-solving strategy, which is often successful in the short-term, but cumulatively may become detrimental to sustainability. Historical case studies illustrate different outcomes to long-term development of complexity in problem solving. These cases clarify future options for contemporary societies: collapse, simplification, or increasing complexity based on increasing energy subsidies.     

Book Review The Ostrich Factor: Our Population Myopia. Garrett Hardin. Oxford University Press (New York), 1999. 168 pages. ISBN 0-19-512274-7

Population and Environment -