Preface

The Chinese ideogram for "crisis" combines the character wei, meaning danger, with the character ji, denoting opportunity. This is a good description of our global environment situation. We are dangerously close to pushing biological communities and biophysical processes beyond the point from which they can recover. At the same time, our greatly increased understanding of the natural world and how it works gives us an opportunity to repair the damage we have caused and to find new, more efficient, and more environmentally friendly ways of providing the goods and services we need. British ecologist Norman Myers points out that the current generation of students has the advantage of being the first in history to have the information, resources, and motivation to do something to solve our environmental crisis. Unfortunately, he adds, if solutions to some of our most pressing problems aren't found quickly, this generation also may be the last to have a chance to do so.

We hope that you will find this book a valuable source of information about our global environment, as well as an inspiration for solutions to the dilemmas we face. Everyone has a role to play in this endeavor. Whether as students, educators, researchers, activists, or consumers, each of us can find ways to contribute in solving our common problems.

Who makes up the audience for this text?
This book is intended for use in a one- or two-semester course in environmental science, human ecology, or environmental studies at the college or advanced placement high school level. Because most students who will use this book are freshman or sophomore non-science majors, we have tried to make the text readable and accessible without technical jargon or a presumption of prior science background. At the same time, enough data and depth are presented to make this book suitable for many upper-division classes and a valuable resource for students who will keep it in their personal libraries after their formal studies are completed.

Why this cover photo?
The photo on the cover of this book reflects the intimate connections we all have with our natural environment. Whether or not we think about it from day to day, each of us depends on clean water and clean air to keep us healthy. The health and beauty of natural systems that support us are essential to our own health and happiness.

How often have you drunk pure water directly from a living stream? In many parts of the world, clean, natural water sources are taken for granted. Until relatively recently in human history, all of us would have relied on such sources for water. Today most of us get our water only from a bottle or tap. Water is an excellent example of a shared resource. It is cycled and filtered endlessly through environmental systems, so our lives depend on maintaining the health of those systems. Everyone needs clean, drinkable water, but no one can independently provide or purify enough water for his or her own needs. Instead, each of us must rely on society and the environment to maintain and protect this resource that is the essence of life. We interact with water in intimate, personal ways, and in global ways. Each of us uses water directly, but global decisions on land use, forest clearing, and greenhouse gas emissions affect the availability of water in distant places. Water is also one of the greatest sources of beauty in our world. The way it captures and reflects light and color gives us pleasure and contentment. Even if it were not the essence of all life, water's beauty alone would make it one of the world's most precious resources.

Introducing a New Co-Author
With this edition, a new author is joining Environmental Science, A Global Concern. Mary Ann Cunningham teaches physical geography, geographic information systems (GIS), and environmental studies at Vassar College. She is not entirely new to the book, having written and reviewed a variety of aspects of the book starting with the first edition in 1983, as well as creating the current Environmental Global Issues web page, found on the Online Learning Center for this book. Mary Ann's research and teaching interests include grassland environments and grassland birds, rural land-use policies, applying GIS and spatial data to landscape-level environmental problems, developing field experiences for students, and encouraging students to develop a sense of personal responsibility and opportunity in their environment.

How You Can Contribute to Sustainability
Ultimately the aims of this book are to foster attitudes of stewardship and environmental citizenship, and to encourage the goals of economic, ecological, and social sustainability. In the preamble to the United Nations Earth Charter, the authors declare, "In an increasingly interdependent world, it is imperative that we, the citizens of Earth, declare our responsibility to one another, the greater community of life, and future generations." Among the principles proposed by the Earth Charter are:

1. Respect Earth and all life, recognize the interdependence and intrinsic value of all beings.
2. Care for the community of life in all its diversity as a responsibility shared by everyone.
3. Strive to build free, just, participatory, and sustainable communities.
4. Secure peace and Earth's abundance and beauty for present and future generations.

Acknowledgments Many people have contributed in a variety of ways to each edition of this book. Chuanqi Chen provided the Chinese characters for crisis that appear in this preface. David Mech, Peter Jordan, Bill Wilcke, Karen Oberhauser, and Mark Nelson, all of the University of Minnesota, generously loaned us some of their photographs. Barry Barker of Nova Southeastern University has graciously made his superb photographic collection available to us. Many of his photos appear in this text and more are available in the Visual Resource Library. Melvin Northrup of Grand Valley State University suggested a new table on taking notes in the introductory chapter. Joel Burken of the University of Missouri provided information for the case study about arsenic in drinking water in India for chapter 20. Amanda Woods McConney authors an excellent Class Activities and Assessment Guide on the Online Learning Center that is a great help for instructors teaching with this book. We remain grateful to Karen Warren of Macalester College for her insights on critical thinking and environmental philosophy.

We're also indebted to all the students and teachers who have sent helpful suggestions, reviews, corrections, and recommendations for improving this book. Unfortunately, space didn't permit inclusion of all the excellent ideas that were provided. All have been saved, however, and will be helpful in future editions. We hope that those who read this edition will offer their advice and insights as well. Little of the vast range of material in this book represents our own personal research. All of us owe a great debt to the many scholars whose work forms the basis of our understanding of environmental science. We stand on the shoulders of giants. If errors persist in spite of our best efforts to root them out, we accept responsibility and ask for your indulgence.

We want to express our appreciation to the entire McGraw-Hill book team for their wonderful work in putting together this edition. Kathy Loewenberg oversaw the developmental stages and has made many creative contributions to this book. Mary Lee Harms, as production project manager, kept everything running smoothly and has been extremely tolerant and accommodating. Cathy Conroy did an excellent job of copyediting and spotting errors and inconsistencies. Connie Mueller found superb photographs. The folks at Precision Graphics did an excellent job of composition and page layout. Heather Wagner and Marge Kemp have supported this project with their enthusiasm and creative ideas.