Sustainable Solutions Problem Solving for Current and Future Generations

There has been a recent proliferation in the number of undergraduate and graduate programs in sustainability-related areas, but the number of textbooks that can serve these new curricula is extremely limited. Sustainable Solutions: Problems for Solving Future Generations fills that void by offering a problem-solving and solutions-based approach to teaching sustainability. The book is ideal for undergraduates and entering graduate students from a variety of disciplinary backgrounds that have had some exposure to environmental issues, who are now ready to access this content within an analytical and solutions-based context.

Dr. Richard A. Niesenbaum is a Professor of Biology at Muhlenberg College where he serves as the Director of the Sustainability Studies Program, and co-directs the Office of Campus Sustainability. He served as Chair of The Biology Department, one of the largest programs at the College, for six years. A prolific researcher and teacher, Rich has published dozens of scholarly articles in the areas of ecology, environmental and science education, and sustainable development; and has mentored over 60 undergraduate research students who have gone on to have successful careers in the sciences and related fields. Rich has been consistently recognized as an innovative teacher and was one of the founders of Muhlenberg's Faculty Center for Teaching.

PART I. AN INTRODUCTION TO SUSTAINABILITY

CHAPTER 1. THE PROBLEMS WE MUST SOLVE
Introduction: A Solutions Based Approach
Natural Resources and Global Environmental Issues
The Human Condition
Developing Sustainable Solutions

CHAPTER 2. DEVELOPING SUSTAINABLE SOLUTIONS
2.1 From Environmentalism to Sustainability: An Historical Context
2.2 A Working Definition of Sustainability
2.3 Implementing and Assessing Sustainable Solutions
2.4 A Lexicon for Sustainable Problem Solving


PART II: THE EARTH AS A RESOURCE: MOVING TOWARDS A SUSTAINABLE FUTURE

CHAPTER 3. THE AIR WE BREATHE
3.1. Air Pollution
3.2 Sustainable Solutions for Air Pollution
3.4 Assessing the Sustainability of Clean Air Action

CHAPTER 4. WATER: USING OUR PLANET TO QUENCH OUR THIRST
4.1 Hydrology: The Storage and Movement of Water
4.2 Limited Access to a Vital Resource
4.3 Impacting Aquatic Ecosystems
4.4 Policies to Sustain Water
4.5 Innovative and Technical Solutions
4.6 Ecological Approaches for Sustaining Aquatic Resources
4.7 Assessing Sustainable Solutions to the Water Crisis
4.8 Recipes for Greater Success

CHAPTER 5. FOOD & AGRICULTURE: USING OUR PLANETS TO SUSTAIN OURSELVES
5.1 A Brief History of Agriculture
5.2 Sustainable Solutions: Food & Agriculture
5.3 Assessing Food Systems Sustainability

CHAPTER 6. FROM FOSSIL FUELS TO A SUSTAINABLE FUTURE
6.1 Fossil Fuels
6.2 A Sustainable Energy Future: Renewable Technologies
6.3 New Technologies to Manage and Distribute Energy
6.4 Transportation
6.5 Barriers to a Renewable Future
6.6 Overcoming Barriers to a Sustainable Energy Future
6.7 Assessing Our Sustainable Energy Future
6.8 The Transition Is Underway

CHAPTER 7. FOREST AND MINERAL RESOURCES: MATERIALS TO MAKE STUFF
7.1 Forest Resources
7.2 Sustaining Our Forests
7.3 Can We Sustain Our Forest Resources?
7.4 Mineral Resources
7.5 Making Mineral Resources More Sustainable
7.6 Is Sustainable Mining Achievable?
7.7 Systems Thinking and Sustainable Resource Management

CHAPTER 8. SOLVING OUR GARBAGE PROBLEM
8.1 The Garbage We Produce
8.2 Policy Solutions for Managing and Reducing Waste
8.3 Applied Solutions for the Global Garbage Problem
8.4 Garbage and the Linear Economy
8.5 A New Paradigm for Economic Growth and Development


PART III: INTEGRATING SUSTAINABLE SOLUTIONS AT DIFFERENT LEVELS OF ORGANIZATION

CHAPTER 9. THE POWER OF INDIVIDUALS
9.1 Individual Action
9.2 Individuals as Effective Agents of Change
9.3 Individual Action for Diverse Populations
9.4 Increasing the Power of Individuals

CHAPTER 10. ORGANIZATIONS, INSTITUTIONS AND SUSTAINABILITY
10.1 Educational Institutions
10.2 Corporate and Business Institutions
10.3 The Role of Other Institutions
10.4 New Institutional Paradigms

CHAPTER 11. SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES, CITIES, AND REGIONS
11.1 Community Sustainability
11.2 Smart Growth, New Urbanism, and Regional Sustainability
11.3 Barriers to Community and Regional Sustainability
11.4 Removing the Barriers to Community and Regional Sustainability

CHAPTER 12. SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT AND GLOBAL SUSTAINABILITY
12.1 Sustainable Development
12.2 Sustainable Development Initiatives
12.3 Barriers to Global Sustainability
12.4 Our Sustainable Future

APPENDIX I: List of Abbreviations
INDEX