A little promotion for a friend in the sociology dept. at Univ. of Hawaii whose dissertation got published in book form recently as 'Ecocide: A Short History of Mass Extinction of Species' by Franz Broswimmer
It's a special treat to see this book published, not only because of the content, but also since this close friend or mine and many in Hawaii nearly lost his life this spring in a horrible motorcycle accident....4 operations and one amputation later...and somehow he managed to survive and get the galley proof work done during the summer....here's the result:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0745319343/ref=pm_dp_ln_b_6/10 2-6325912-5288954?v=glance&s=books&vi=reviews
Charles Secrett, Director, Friends of the Earth "Broswimmer's complelling polemic should be required reading for politicians and captains of industry everywhere."
Vandana Shiva "Essential reading for anybody who cares about the future of humanity and the diversity of species..."
Stephen Hubbel, biologist "We are almost out of time to save much of the diversity of life on Earth."
Book Description At the dawn of the twenty-first century, it is clear that - for the first time since the extinction of the dinosaurs 65 million years ago - changes of enormous ecological significance are occurring on our planet. The ozone layer is beginning to disintegrate. Since 1970 the world's forests have almost halved. A quarter of the world's fish have been depleted. We live in an age of ecocide.
Seven out of ten biologists believe the world is now in the midst of the fastest mass extinction of species in the 4.5-billion-year history of the planet, according to a poll conducted by the American Museum of Natural History. Biodiversity loss is rated as a more serious environmental problem than the depletion of the ozone layer, global warming, or pollution and contamination.
How have we come to be in this situation, and what can be done to conserve our environment for the future? "Ecocide: A Short History of Mass Extinction of Species" examines the facts behind the figures to offer a disturbing account of the ecological impact that the human species has on the planet.
Franz Broswimmer takes the reader on a historical odyssey starting with the impact of premodern societies on the environment, through to the commercial exploitation of species and the large-scale habitat destruction that we see today. Broswimmer argues that in the open marketplace nature has been reduced to an assortment of exploitable resources. Focusing in particular on corporate-driven neoliberal forms of globalization, the industrial war economy and the massive increase in human population, he shows how we are wilfully destroying our world. Highlighting important counter-movements who are working for ecological democracy, this is a truly unique book that will be of interest to anyone who cares about conserving our environment for the future.
About the Author Franz J. Broswimmer is a research specialist at the Globalization Research Center at the University of Hawaii at Manoa.