front cover of Ecoagriculture
Ecoagriculture
Strategies to Feed the World and Save Wild Biodiversity
Future Harvest, Jeffrey A. McNeely, and Sara J. Scherr
Island Press, 2002

Although food-production systems for the world's rural poor typically have had devastating effects on the planet's wealth of genes, species, and ecosystems, that need not be the case in the future. In Ecoagriculture, two of the world's leading experts on conservation and development examine the idea that agricultural landscapes can be designed more creatively to take the needs of human populations into account while also protecting, or even enhancing, biodiversity. They present a thorough overview of the innovative concept of "ecoagriculture" - the management of landscapes for both the production of food and the conservation of wild biodiversity. The book:

  • examines the global impact of agriculture on wild biodiversity
  • describes the challenge of reconciling biodiversity conservation and agricultural goals
  • outlines and discusses the ecoagriculture approach
  • presents diverse case studies that illustrate key strategies
  • explores how policies, markets, and institutions can be re-shaped to support ecoagriculture
While focusing on tropical regions of the developing world -- where increased agricultural productivity is most vital for food security, poverty reduction, and sustainable development, and where so much of the world's wild biodiversity is threatened -- it also draws on lessons learned in developed countries. Dozens of examples from around the world present proven strategies for small-scale, low-income farmers involved in commercial production.

Ecoagriculture explores new approaches to agricultural production that complement natural environments, enhance ecosystem function, and improve rural livelihoods. It features a wealth of real-world case studies that demonstrate the applicability of the ideas discussed and how the principles can be applied, and is an important new work for policymakers, students, researchers, and anyone concerned with conserving biodiversity while sustaining human populations.

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front cover of Expanding Partnerships in Conservation
Expanding Partnerships in Conservation
Edited by Jeffrey A. McNeely
Island Press, 1995

Protected areas around the globe national parks, wildlife reserves, biosphere reserves will prosper only if they are supported by the public, the private sector, and the full range of government agencies. Yet such support is unlikely unless society appreciates the importance of protected areas to its own interest, and the protected areas are well-managed and contribute to the national welfare in a cost-effective way.

A crucial foundation for success is full cooperation between individuals and institutions. Based on papers presented at the IVth World Congress on National Parks and Protected Areas, Expanding Partnerships in Conservation explores how new and stronger partnerships can be formed between managers of protected areas and other sectors of society. It describes a range of activities currently underway in many parts of the world that are intended to improve conservation efforts at the international, national, and local levels.

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front cover of Farming with Nature
Farming with Nature
The Science and Practice of Ecoagriculture
Edited by Sara J. Scherr and Jeffrey A. McNeely
Island Press, 2007
A growing body of evidence shows that agricultural landscapes can be managed not only to produce crops but also to support biodiversity and promote ecosystem health. Innovative farmers and scientists, as well as indigenous land managers, are developing diverse types of “ecoagriculture” landscapes to generate cobenefits for production, biodiversity, and local people.

Farming with Nature offers a synthesis of the state of knowledge of key topics in ecoagriculture. The book is a unique collaboration among renowned agricultural and ecological scientists, leading field conservationists, and farm and community leaders to synthesize knowledge and experience across sectors. The book examines:
  • the knowledge base for ecoagriculture as well as barriers, gaps, and opportunities for developing improved ecoagriculture systems
  • what we have learned about managing landscapes to achieve multiple objectives at a landscape scale
  • existing incentives for farmers, other land managers, and investors to develop and invest in ecoagriculture systems
  • pathways to develop, implement, manage, and scale up successful ecoagriculture
Insights are drawn from around the world, in tropical, Mediterranean, and temperate environments, from farming systems that range from highly commercialized to semi-subsistence. Farming with Nature is an important new work that can serve as a foundation document for planners, farm organizations, researchers, project developers, and policy makers to develop strategies for promoting and sustaining ecoagriculture landscapes. Replete with valuable best practice guidelines, it is a critical resource for both practitioners and researchers in
the field.
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front cover of Invasive Alien Species
Invasive Alien Species
A New Synthesis
Edited by Harold A. Mooney, Richard N. Mack, Jeffrey A. McNeely, Laurie E. Neville, Peter Johan Schei, and Jeffrey K. Waage
Island Press, 2005

Invasive alien species are among today's most daunting environmental threats, costing billions of dollars in economic damages and wreaking havoc on ecosystems around the world. In 1997, a consortium of scientific organizations including SCOPE, IUCN, and CABI developed the Global Invasive Species Programme (GISP) with the explicit objective of providing new tools for understanding and coping with invasive alien species.

Invasive Alien Species is the final report of GISP's first phase of operation, 1997-2000, in which authorities from more than thirty countries worked to examine invasions as a worldwide environmental hazard. The book brings together the world's leading scientists and researchers involved with invasive alien species to offer a comprehensive summary and synthesis of the current state of knowledge on the subject.

Invasive alien species represent a critical threat to natural ecosystems and native biodiversity, as well as to human economic vitality and health. The knowledge gained to date in understanding and combating invasive alien species can form a useful basis on which to build strategies for controlling or minimizing the effects in the future. Invasive Alien Species is an essential reference for the international community of investigators concerned with biological invasions.


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