"Facts and figures on Europe's biodiversity, 1998-1999"
Committed to nature conservation, Facts and figures is a publication which is not only informative with several figures and charts but also beautifully designed with glorious photography in full colour. According to the author's, it is meant to answer basic issues such as what is the current state of Europe's nature, what are the international policies for conserving this nature and how are these changing. Also reviewed are financing mechanisms available to implement European policies. (For more info: contact European Centre for Nature Conservation, PO Box 1352 / 5004 BJ Tilburg /The Netherlands, <www.ecnc.nl>).
"From grassroots to boardrooms"
The Worldwatch Institute presents shocking facts and promising trends on the world's material use in a new report. The report, entitled From Grassroots to Boardrooms: Slashing raw materials use to increase profits and protect the environment, tries to illustrate that economic growth and cutting back on the use of virgin materials do not conflict. Major companies such as the Xerox Corporation are used as examples of how the recycling of raw materials can facilitate company growth. Groups of companies are presented which exchange waste among themselves as a form of reuse. The potential of individual households to cut back on their use of materials and costs at the same time is examined, as are government efforts which encourage efficient waste management through legislation and taxing reforms. The report also lists new facts on the world's virgin material use and its impact on health and the environment. For example, the gold used in a single wedding ring generates three tons of mining waste. (For more info: <www.worldwatch.org> or contact Gary Gardner at (1-202) 452-1992, ext. 521).
"The reform of the common agriculture policy"
This publication discusses the oldest and most expensive collective policy of the European Union: the Common Agriculture Policy (CAP). The study focuses on efforts to reform the CAP and its decision-making process and adopts an interdisciplinary approach examining alternatives to neo-classical agricultural economics. The study centres on the MacSharry reform of 1992, examining why, when and how it was enacted. The book challenges the general assumption that casual links operating in a decision-making process are irrelevant to its output and also intends to shed light on how decisions are reached in making CAP policies. (For more info: contact CABI Publishing, Wallingford, Oxon, OX10 8DE, UK).
"The sustainable development agenda 1999"
Approaching a more sustainable world is a matter of cooperation, says Nitin Desai, Under-Secretary General for the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs in the foreword of this colourful publication. Studies include timely issues related to sustainability, European Union policy updates on the environment, developments on the climate change front, UN initiatives on moving toward a sustainable world and developments in several industrial sectors from energy to tourism. A major focus of the book is how the corporate world and CEOs are beginning to understand the challenges ahead as the world economy takes a new, more sustainable route. (For more info: Campden Publishing Limited, Threeways House, 40-44 Clipstone Street, London W1p 8LX, UK).
