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Contested Extractivism, Society and the State: Struggles over Mining and Land (Development, Justice and Citizenship)
by Bettina Engels Kristina DietzThis book empirically discusses recent struggles over land and mining, exploring state-society relations conflicts on various scales. In contrast with the existing literature, analyses in this volume deliberately focus on large-scale land use changes both in relation to the expansion of industrial mining and to agro-industry. The authors contend that there are significant parallels between contestations over different variants of resource extractivism, as they reflect the same global trends and processes. Chapters draw on critical theoretical approaches from political ecology, political economy, spatial theory, contentious politics, and the study of democracy. The authors not only provide empirical insights on actual resource struggles from different world regions based on in-depth field research, but also contribute to theory-building by linking concepts from various critical approaches to one another, developing a perspective for analysing struggles over resources related to current global crisis phenomena.
Contested Property Claims: What Disagreement Tells Us About Ownership (Social Justice)
by Maja Hojer Bruun Patrick Joseph Cockburn Bjarke Skærlund Risager Mikkel ThorupProperty relations are such a common feature of social life that the complexity of the web of laws, practices, and ideas that allow a property regime to function smoothly are often forgotten. But we are quickly reminded of this complexity when conflict over property erupts. When social actors confront a property regime – for example by squatting – they enact what can be called ‘contested property claims’. As this book demonstrates, these confrontations raise crucial issues of social justice and show the ways in which property conflicts often reflect wider social conflicts. Through a series of case studies from across the globe, this multidisciplinary anthology brings together works from anthropologists, legal scholars, and geographers, who show how exploring contested property claims offers a privileged window onto how property regimes function, as well as an illustration of the many ways that the institution of property shapes power relationships today.
Contested Property Claims: What Disagreement Tells Us About Ownership (Social Justice)
by Maja Hojer Bruun Patrick Joseph Cockburn Bjarke Skærlund Risager Mikkel ThorupProperty relations are such a common feature of social life that the complexity of the web of laws, practices, and ideas that allow a property regime to function smoothly are often forgotten. But we are quickly reminded of this complexity when conflict over property erupts. When social actors confront a property regime – for example by squatting – they enact what can be called ‘contested property claims’. As this book demonstrates, these confrontations raise crucial issues of social justice and show the ways in which property conflicts often reflect wider social conflicts. Through a series of case studies from across the globe, this multidisciplinary anthology brings together works from anthropologists, legal scholars, and geographers, who show how exploring contested property claims offers a privileged window onto how property regimes function, as well as an illustration of the many ways that the institution of property shapes power relationships today.
Contested Waters: An Environmental History of the Colorado River
by April R. Summitt"To fully understand this river and its past, one must examine many separate pieces of history scattered throughout two nations--seven states within the United States and two within Mexico--and sort through a large amount of scientific data. One needs to be part hydrologist, geologist, economist, sociologist, anthropologist, and historian to fully understand the entire story. Despite this river's narrow size and meager flow, its tale is very large indeed." -From the conclusion The Colorado River is a vital resource to urban and agricultural communities across the Southwest, providing water to 30 million people. Contested Waters tells the river's story-a story of conquest, control, division, and depletion. Beginning in prehistory and continuing into the present day, Contested Waters focuses on three important and often overlooked aspects of the river's use: the role of western water law in its over-allocation, the complexity of power relationships surrounding the river, and the concept of sustainable use and how it has been either ignored or applied in recent times. It is organized in two parts, the first addresses the chronological history of the river and long-term issues, while the second examines in more detail four specific topics: metropolitan perceptions, American Indian water rights, US-Mexico relations over the river, and water marketing issues. Creating a complete picture of the evolution of this crucial yet over-utilized resource, this comprehensive summary will fascinate anyone interested in the Colorado River or the environmental history of the Southwest.
Contesting Africa’s New Green Revolution: Biotechnology and Philanthrocapitalist Development in Ghana (Politics and Development in Contemporary Africa)
by Jacqueline A. IgnatovaGenetically modified crops have become a key element of development strategies across the Global South, despite remaining deeply controversial. Proponents hail them as an example of 'pro-poor' innovation, while critics regard them as a threat to food sovereignty and the environment. The promotion of biotechnology is an integral part of 'new Green Revolution for Africa' interventions and is also intimately linked to the rise of 'philanthrocapitalism,' which advances business solutions to address the problem of poverty. Through interviews with farmers, policymakers and agricultural scientists, Jacqueline Ignatova shows how efforts to transform the seed sector in northern Ghana – one of the key laboratories of this 'new Green Revolution' – may serve to exacerbate the inequality it was notionally intended to address. But she also argues that its effects in Ghana have been far more complex than either side of the debate has acknowledged, with local farmers proving adept at blending traditional and modern agricultural methods that subvert the interests of global agribusiness.
Contesting Africa’s New Green Revolution: Biotechnology and Philanthrocapitalist Development in Ghana (Politics and Development in Contemporary Africa)
by Jacqueline A. IgnatovaGenetically modified crops have become a key element of development strategies across the Global South, despite remaining deeply controversial. Proponents hail them as an example of 'pro-poor' innovation, while critics regard them as a threat to food sovereignty and the environment. The promotion of biotechnology is an integral part of 'new Green Revolution for Africa' interventions and is also intimately linked to the rise of 'philanthrocapitalism,' which advances business solutions to address the problem of poverty. Through interviews with farmers, policymakers and agricultural scientists, Jacqueline Ignatova shows how efforts to transform the seed sector in northern Ghana – one of the key laboratories of this 'new Green Revolution' – may serve to exacerbate the inequality it was notionally intended to address. But she also argues that its effects in Ghana have been far more complex than either side of the debate has acknowledged, with local farmers proving adept at blending traditional and modern agricultural methods that subvert the interests of global agribusiness.
Contesting Conservation: Shahtoosh Trade and Forest Management in Jammu and Kashmir, India (Advances in Asian Human-Environmental Research)
by Saloni GuptaThis book explores today’s changing intellectual climate, wherein understanding politics at different levels from global to local is considered mandatory in order to appraise the outcome of nature conservation interventions. By carefully examining two such processes – the ban on shahtoosh trade and the ‘National Afforestation Programme’ in the Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir, the book reveals how these processes are influenced by politics at different levels – from their introduction at the macro-level to their implementation at the micro-level – and in turn become coloured by the agendas and interests of the various stakeholders involved. Throughout the book, one priority is to give a voice to the poor resource-users who have been traditionally dependent on wildlife and forest resources for mere subsistence. Yet, these same people are who bear the brunt of nature conservation costs, rather than those actors who are responsible for the most serious violations in pursuit of greater profits. Contemporary Environmental Sociology is chiefly characterised by its focus on power relations in resource conservation and management. In ‘political ecology’ literature, too – especially after recognising the paradoxes and limitations of approaches such as ‘sustainable development’, ‘sustainable livelihoods’ and ‘community based natural resource management’ – there is a growing concern for critical analyses of multi-level politics in connection with nature conservation. The purpose of the book is not to challenge the gravity of environmental concerns, but to question the dominance of conservation interests over the subsistence needs of local communities, and to strike a balance between environmental and social justice. It argues that, unless and until more just accountability for the affected populations is ensured, conservation policies are unlikely to meet the goals of sustainable resource management. Given its critical engagement with human-nature conflicts in Jammu and Kashmir, the book offers a unique resource for students and scholars of Environmental Sociology, Political Ecology, Natural Resources Management, Conflict Studies and Human Rights Studies.
Contesting Hidden Waters: Conflict Resolution for Groundwater and Aquifers (Earthscan Water Text)
by W. Todd JarvisThe world increasingly relies on groundwater resources for drinking water and the provision of food for a growing population. The utilization of aquifer systems also extends beyond freshwater supply to include other resources such as heat extraction and the storage and disposal of substances. Unlike other books about conflict resolution and negotiations over water resources, this volume is unique in focusing exclusively on conflicts over groundwater and aquifers. The author explores the specific challenges presented by these "hidden" resources, which are shown to be very different from those posed by surface water resources. Whereas surface watersheds are static, groundwater boundaries are value-laden and constantly changing during development. The book describes the various issues surrounding the governance and management of these resources and the various parties involved in conflicts and negotiations over them. Through first-hand accounts from a pracademic skilled in both process and substance as a groundwater professional and professional mediator, the book offers options for addressing the challenges and issues through a transdisciplinary approach.
Contesting Hidden Waters: Conflict Resolution for Groundwater and Aquifers (Earthscan Water Text)
by W. Todd JarvisThe world increasingly relies on groundwater resources for drinking water and the provision of food for a growing population. The utilization of aquifer systems also extends beyond freshwater supply to include other resources such as heat extraction and the storage and disposal of substances. Unlike other books about conflict resolution and negotiations over water resources, this volume is unique in focusing exclusively on conflicts over groundwater and aquifers. The author explores the specific challenges presented by these "hidden" resources, which are shown to be very different from those posed by surface water resources. Whereas surface watersheds are static, groundwater boundaries are value-laden and constantly changing during development. The book describes the various issues surrounding the governance and management of these resources and the various parties involved in conflicts and negotiations over them. Through first-hand accounts from a pracademic skilled in both process and substance as a groundwater professional and professional mediator, the book offers options for addressing the challenges and issues through a transdisciplinary approach.
Contesting Leviathan: Activists, Hunters, and State Power in the Makah Whaling Conflict
by Les BeldoIn 1999, off the coast of the Pacific Northwest, the first gray whale in seven decades was killed by Makah whalers. The hunt marked the return of a centuries-old tradition and, predictably, set off a fierce political and environmental debate. Whalers from the Makah Indian Tribe and antiwhaling activists have clashed for over twenty years, with no end to this conflict in sight. In Contesting Leviathan, anthropologist Les Beldo describes the complex judicial and political climate for whale conservation in the United States, and the limits of the current framework in which whales are treated as “large fish” managed by the National Marine Fisheries Service. Emphasizing the moral dimension of the conflict between the Makah, the US government, and antiwhaling activists, Beldo brings to light the lived ethics of human-animal interaction, as well as how different groups claim to speak for the whale—the only silent party in this conflict. A timely and sensitive study of a complicated issue, this book calls into question anthropological expectations regarding who benefits from the exercise of state power in environmental conflicts, especially where indigenous groups are involved. Vividly told and rigorously argued, Contesting Leviathan will appeal to anthropologists, scholars of indigenous culture, animal activists, and any reader interested in the place of animals in contemporary life.
Contesting Leviathan: Activists, Hunters, and State Power in the Makah Whaling Conflict
by Les BeldoIn 1999, off the coast of the Pacific Northwest, the first gray whale in seven decades was killed by Makah whalers. The hunt marked the return of a centuries-old tradition and, predictably, set off a fierce political and environmental debate. Whalers from the Makah Indian Tribe and antiwhaling activists have clashed for over twenty years, with no end to this conflict in sight. In Contesting Leviathan, anthropologist Les Beldo describes the complex judicial and political climate for whale conservation in the United States, and the limits of the current framework in which whales are treated as “large fish” managed by the National Marine Fisheries Service. Emphasizing the moral dimension of the conflict between the Makah, the US government, and antiwhaling activists, Beldo brings to light the lived ethics of human-animal interaction, as well as how different groups claim to speak for the whale—the only silent party in this conflict. A timely and sensitive study of a complicated issue, this book calls into question anthropological expectations regarding who benefits from the exercise of state power in environmental conflicts, especially where indigenous groups are involved. Vividly told and rigorously argued, Contesting Leviathan will appeal to anthropologists, scholars of indigenous culture, animal activists, and any reader interested in the place of animals in contemporary life.
Contesting Leviathan: Activists, Hunters, and State Power in the Makah Whaling Conflict
by Les BeldoIn 1999, off the coast of the Pacific Northwest, the first gray whale in seven decades was killed by Makah whalers. The hunt marked the return of a centuries-old tradition and, predictably, set off a fierce political and environmental debate. Whalers from the Makah Indian Tribe and antiwhaling activists have clashed for over twenty years, with no end to this conflict in sight. In Contesting Leviathan, anthropologist Les Beldo describes the complex judicial and political climate for whale conservation in the United States, and the limits of the current framework in which whales are treated as “large fish” managed by the National Marine Fisheries Service. Emphasizing the moral dimension of the conflict between the Makah, the US government, and antiwhaling activists, Beldo brings to light the lived ethics of human-animal interaction, as well as how different groups claim to speak for the whale—the only silent party in this conflict. A timely and sensitive study of a complicated issue, this book calls into question anthropological expectations regarding who benefits from the exercise of state power in environmental conflicts, especially where indigenous groups are involved. Vividly told and rigorously argued, Contesting Leviathan will appeal to anthropologists, scholars of indigenous culture, animal activists, and any reader interested in the place of animals in contemporary life.
Contesting Leviathan: Activists, Hunters, and State Power in the Makah Whaling Conflict
by Les BeldoIn 1999, off the coast of the Pacific Northwest, the first gray whale in seven decades was killed by Makah whalers. The hunt marked the return of a centuries-old tradition and, predictably, set off a fierce political and environmental debate. Whalers from the Makah Indian Tribe and antiwhaling activists have clashed for over twenty years, with no end to this conflict in sight. In Contesting Leviathan, anthropologist Les Beldo describes the complex judicial and political climate for whale conservation in the United States, and the limits of the current framework in which whales are treated as “large fish” managed by the National Marine Fisheries Service. Emphasizing the moral dimension of the conflict between the Makah, the US government, and antiwhaling activists, Beldo brings to light the lived ethics of human-animal interaction, as well as how different groups claim to speak for the whale—the only silent party in this conflict. A timely and sensitive study of a complicated issue, this book calls into question anthropological expectations regarding who benefits from the exercise of state power in environmental conflicts, especially where indigenous groups are involved. Vividly told and rigorously argued, Contesting Leviathan will appeal to anthropologists, scholars of indigenous culture, animal activists, and any reader interested in the place of animals in contemporary life.
Contesting Leviathan: Activists, Hunters, and State Power in the Makah Whaling Conflict
by Les BeldoIn 1999, off the coast of the Pacific Northwest, the first gray whale in seven decades was killed by Makah whalers. The hunt marked the return of a centuries-old tradition and, predictably, set off a fierce political and environmental debate. Whalers from the Makah Indian Tribe and antiwhaling activists have clashed for over twenty years, with no end to this conflict in sight. In Contesting Leviathan, anthropologist Les Beldo describes the complex judicial and political climate for whale conservation in the United States, and the limits of the current framework in which whales are treated as “large fish” managed by the National Marine Fisheries Service. Emphasizing the moral dimension of the conflict between the Makah, the US government, and antiwhaling activists, Beldo brings to light the lived ethics of human-animal interaction, as well as how different groups claim to speak for the whale—the only silent party in this conflict. A timely and sensitive study of a complicated issue, this book calls into question anthropological expectations regarding who benefits from the exercise of state power in environmental conflicts, especially where indigenous groups are involved. Vividly told and rigorously argued, Contesting Leviathan will appeal to anthropologists, scholars of indigenous culture, animal activists, and any reader interested in the place of animals in contemporary life.
Contesting Leviathan: Activists, Hunters, and State Power in the Makah Whaling Conflict
by Les BeldoIn 1999, off the coast of the Pacific Northwest, the first gray whale in seven decades was killed by Makah whalers. The hunt marked the return of a centuries-old tradition and, predictably, set off a fierce political and environmental debate. Whalers from the Makah Indian Tribe and antiwhaling activists have clashed for over twenty years, with no end to this conflict in sight. In Contesting Leviathan, anthropologist Les Beldo describes the complex judicial and political climate for whale conservation in the United States, and the limits of the current framework in which whales are treated as “large fish” managed by the National Marine Fisheries Service. Emphasizing the moral dimension of the conflict between the Makah, the US government, and antiwhaling activists, Beldo brings to light the lived ethics of human-animal interaction, as well as how different groups claim to speak for the whale—the only silent party in this conflict. A timely and sensitive study of a complicated issue, this book calls into question anthropological expectations regarding who benefits from the exercise of state power in environmental conflicts, especially where indigenous groups are involved. Vividly told and rigorously argued, Contesting Leviathan will appeal to anthropologists, scholars of indigenous culture, animal activists, and any reader interested in the place of animals in contemporary life.
Contesting the Arctic: Politics and Imaginaries in the Circumpolar North (International Library of Human Geography)
by Philip E. Steinberg Jeremy Tasch Hannes Gerhardt Adam Keul Elizabeth A. NymanAs climate change makes the Arctic a region of key political interest, so questions of sovereignty are once more drawing international attention. The promise of new sources of mineral wealth and energy, and of new transportation routes, has seen countries expand their sovereignty claims. Increasingly, interested parties from both within and beyond the region, including states, indigenous groups, corporate organizations, and NGOs and are pursuing their visions for the Arctic. What form of political organization should prevail? Contesting the Arctic provides a map of potential governance options for the Arctic and addresses and evaluates the ways in which Arctic stakeholders throughout the region are seeking to pursue them.
The Contextual Determinants of Malaria
by Elizabeth A. Casman Hadi DowlatabadiAs malaria and other tropical diseases continue their resurgence, questions about the potential impacts of environmental and demographic factors are becoming more critical. Recent attempts to understand the increase in malaria incidence often acknowledge the importance of social, economic and other contextual variables, but fail to explicitly incorporate them into models or consider how they evolve in relation to one another. This problem is of crucial interest to the climate policy community, which has been buffeted by claims and counter-claims concerning the impact of climate change on malaria. This important volume examines the contextual determinants of malaria and attempts to develop methods for incorporating them into projections of future incidence. Internationally renowned health specialists, economists, and other social scientists provide regional and global perspectives on risk modeling, the history of eradication efforts, current determinants (including environmental, social, and economic factors), and prospects for new vaccines and drugs. The Contextual Determinants of Malaria argues that an association of climate change with increased malaria incidence will have at least as much to do with human aging, poverty, urbanization, and population movement as with a rise in global temperatures. By placing climate in this perspective, The Contextual Determinants of Malaria focuses attention on the public health needs most critical in both the immediate and long-term future. It encourages multidisciplinary analysis of malaria control, and improves our understanding of the interactions of the diverse range of factors involved in the incidence and spread of the disease.
The Contextual Determinants of Malaria
by Elizabeth A. Professor Casman Hadi Professor DowlatabadiAs malaria and other tropical diseases continue their resurgence, questions about the potential impacts of environmental and demographic factors are becoming more critical. Recent attempts to understand the increase in malaria incidence often acknowledge the importance of social, economic and other contextual variables, but fail to explicitly incorporate them into models or consider how they evolve in relation to one another. This problem is of crucial interest to the climate policy community, which has been buffeted by claims and counter-claims concerning the impact of climate change on malaria. This important volume examines the contextual determinants of malaria and attempts to develop methods for incorporating them into projections of future incidence. Internationally renowned health specialists, economists, and other social scientists provide regional and global perspectives on risk modeling, the history of eradication efforts, current determinants (including environmental, social, and economic factors), and prospects for new vaccines and drugs. The Contextual Determinants of Malaria argues that an association of climate change with increased malaria incidence will have at least as much to do with human aging, poverty, urbanization, and population movement as with a rise in global temperatures. By placing climate in this perspective, The Contextual Determinants of Malaria focuses attention on the public health needs most critical in both the immediate and long-term future. It encourages multidisciplinary analysis of malaria control, and improves our understanding of the interactions of the diverse range of factors involved in the incidence and spread of the disease.
The Continental-Scale Greenhouse Gas Balance of Europe (Ecological Studies #203)
by Riccardo Valentini Han Dolman A. FreibauerThis book assesses the current greenhouse gas (GHG) monitoring capabilities of Europe, identifies and quantifies the uncertainties involved, and outlines the direction to a continental scale GHG monitoring network. The book uniquely addresses both the methodology of carbon cycle science and the science itself, providing a synthesis of carbon cycle science. The methods included provide the first comprehensive coverage of a full GHG accounting and monitoring system.
Continuous Cover Forestry: Assessment, Analysis, Scenarios (Managing Forest Ecosystems #4)
by Klaus Von Gadow Jürgen Nagel Joachim SaborowskiThe large-scale application of new silvicultural systems has become a political reality in many parts of the world. This involves a gradual transformation of traditional silvicultural practice towards Continuous Cover Forestry, also known as near-natural forest management, favouring mixed uneven-aged stands, site-adapted tree species and selective harvesting. Selective harvesting systems have a long tradition. Specific CCF-related resource assessment, forecasting and sustainable harvest control techniques have been developed, but details about their use are not widely known. The objective of this volume is to present state-of-the-art research results and techniques relating to CCF management with an emphasis on systems engineering and modelling. Using a very simple classification based on the development of timber volume over age or time we may distinguish two types of sustainable forest management systems. Rotation forest management (RFM) systems, characterized by standard silvicultural treatments and repetitive cycles of clearfelling followed by planting; and continuous cover forestry (CCF) systems which are characterized by selective harvesting and natural regeneration, resulting in uneven-aged structures and frequently also in multi-species forests. The distinction is usually the result of decisions relating to the cost of timber harvesting, simplicity of management, or various intangible benefits. The oldest and most perfect examples of CCF systems are the so called plenter selection forests found in France, Switzerland, Slowenia and Germany. Today, CCF systems are encountered in various regions of Europe, North America and in some tropical and sub-tropical forests of South Africa, Asia and South America.
Continuous Cover Forestry: Theories, Concepts, and Implementation
by Arne PommereningCONTINUOUS COVER FORESTRY Gain expertise in the development of healthier, more sustainable forests with this indispensable guide Continuous Cover Forestry (CCF) is an approach to forest management with over a century of history, one which applies ecological principles to the project of developing biologically diverse, structurally complex forests. Long used as the standard forest management method in Central Europe, CCF is generating renewed interest globally for its potential to develop and sustain forests that can withstand climate change impacts, maintain forest biodiversity in the face of major ecological challenges and offer better recreation experience. There is an increasingly urgent need for forest scientists and policymakers to be familiar with the toolkit provided by CCF. Continuous Cover Forestry: Theories, Concepts, and Implementation provides a thorough, up-to-date introduction to the theory and practice of CCF. Beginning with an overview of the method’s history and its foundational principles, the book provides detailed guidance for applying CCF methods to a range of ecological scenarios and forest types. The result is a clear, comprehensive portrait of this increasingly effective set of forestry tools. Continuous Cover Forestry readers will also find: Case studies throughout showing CCF at work in real-world forests Detailed discussion of topics such as forest structure, transformation, silvicultural systems, training, carbon forestry, conservation and more R code ready to take and apply Simple, adaptable models for deriving quantitative guidelines for CCF woodlands Continuous Cover Forestry is ideal for students, scholars and practitioners of forest science, forest ecology, conservation, and environmental management, as well as policymakers dealing with forestry or climate policy.
Continuous Cover Forestry: Theories, Concepts, and Implementation
by Arne PommereningCONTINUOUS COVER FORESTRY Gain expertise in the development of healthier, more sustainable forests with this indispensable guide Continuous Cover Forestry (CCF) is an approach to forest management with over a century of history, one which applies ecological principles to the project of developing biologically diverse, structurally complex forests. Long used as the standard forest management method in Central Europe, CCF is generating renewed interest globally for its potential to develop and sustain forests that can withstand climate change impacts, maintain forest biodiversity in the face of major ecological challenges and offer better recreation experience. There is an increasingly urgent need for forest scientists and policymakers to be familiar with the toolkit provided by CCF. Continuous Cover Forestry: Theories, Concepts, and Implementation provides a thorough, up-to-date introduction to the theory and practice of CCF. Beginning with an overview of the method’s history and its foundational principles, the book provides detailed guidance for applying CCF methods to a range of ecological scenarios and forest types. The result is a clear, comprehensive portrait of this increasingly effective set of forestry tools. Continuous Cover Forestry readers will also find: Case studies throughout showing CCF at work in real-world forests Detailed discussion of topics such as forest structure, transformation, silvicultural systems, training, carbon forestry, conservation and more R code ready to take and apply Simple, adaptable models for deriving quantitative guidelines for CCF woodlands Continuous Cover Forestry is ideal for students, scholars and practitioners of forest science, forest ecology, conservation, and environmental management, as well as policymakers dealing with forestry or climate policy.
Continuous Cover Forestry (Managing Forest Ecosystems #23)
by Timo Pukkala and Klaus GadowAlthough the majority of the world’s forest ecosystems are dominated by uneven-sized multi-species stands, forest management practice and theory has focused on the development of plantation monocultures to maximize the supply of timber at low cost. Societal expectations are changing, however, and uneven-aged multi-species ecosystems, selectively managed as Continuous Cover Forestry (CCF), are often believed to be superior to monocultures in addressing a wide range of expectations. This book presents methods which are relevant to CCF management and planning: analysing forest structures, silvicultural and planning, economic evaluation, based on examples in Europe, Asia, Africa and North and South America.
Contraceptive Steroids: Pharmacology and Safety (The Plenum Behavior Therapy Series)
by A. T. GregoireOne of the United States Food and Drug Administration's most difficult tasks is the assessment of risk-benefit ratios for a broad spectrum of therapeutic and prophylactic drugs. Furthermore, it is now widely recog nized that no drug, chemical or even natural substance is completely devoid of risk. Nowhere has this issue been the subject of more controversy than with steroidal contraceptive drugs. Regulated as a special class of products because of their prophylactic use in healthy individuals for prevention of pregnancy rather than for treatment of disease, steroid contraceptives drugs undergo more extensive animal safety tests than any other pharmaceutical agent. This view also contemplates the availability of alternative contraceptive measures posing fewer risks, but the use of less effective methods must take into consideration the hazards associated with pregnancy itself. In April 1983, the Food and Drug Administration and the National Insti tutes of Health in cooperation with the World Health Organization, the Population Council, and the Agency for International Development sponsored a three-day workshop to evaluate current guidelines for preclinical safety studies of contraceptive drugs in light of our extensive knowledge of the side effects of marketed products. The meeting included presenta tions by experts in the fields of comparative metabolism, pharmacokinetics, pharmacology, carcinogenicity, toxicology, coagulation, lipid metabolism, epidemiology and pathology at a meeting of the Fertility and Maternal Health Drugs Advisory Committee of the National Center for Drugs and Biologics, Food and Drug Administration.
A Contract with the Earth
by Newt Gingrich Terry L. MapleFocusing the environmental debate on the principle of common commitment, former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich and eminent conservationist Terry L. Maple present A Contract with the Earth. They declare a need for bipartisan environmentalism—a new era of environmental stewardship with principles that they believe most Americans will share. While acknowledging that liberals and conservatives do not see eye to eye on many issues, Gingrich and Maple argue successfully that environmental stewardship is a mainstream value that transcends partisan politics. Their thoughtful approaches to our environmental challenges are based on three main premises: environmental leadership is integral to America's role in the world, technologically savvy environmental entrepreneurs can and should be the cornerstone of environmental solutions, and cooperation and incentives must be dramatically increased to achieve workable and broadly supported environmental solutions.Gingrich and Maple believe that most people—regardless of how they categorize themselves politically—are weary of the legal and political conflicts that prevent individuals and communities from realizing the benefits of environmental conservation. The foundation of the book—a ten-point Contract with the Earth—promotes ingenuity over rhetoric as the way forward.