The Doubly Green Revolution: Food for All in the Twenty-First Century (Comstock Book)

Book Description

Today more than three quarters of a billion people go hungry in a world where food is plentiful. A distinguished scientist here sets out an agenda for addressing this situation. Initially published in 1997 in the United Kingdom, the book is now available in the first edition produced for the Western hemisphere. In it, the author has updated information to reflect current economic indicators. This volume includes a foreword written for the previous edition by Ismail Serageldin of the World Bank. The original Green Revolution produced new technologies for farmers, creating food abundance. A second transformation of agriculture is now required--specifically, Gordon Conway argues, a "doubly green" revolution that stresses conservation as well as productivity. He calls for researchers and farmers to forge genuine partnerships in an effort to design better plants and animals. He also urges them to develop (or rediscover) alternatives to inorganic fertilizers and pesticides, improve soil and water management, and enhance earning opportunities for the poor, especially women.

Customer Reviews:

Incomplete analysis of an important problem.......2003-05-13

Gordon Conway presents to us a problem: an unacceptably large number in absolute terms suffers from staggering levels of poverty, malnutrition, and hunger. He acknowledges that there is enough food in the world to meet aggregate demand, and he indicates that he is not Malthusian or even Neo-Malthusian. The main problem, and theme of his book, is that certain high-population, low-income areas lack the purchasing power and access to technology and capital necessary to support a "doubly green revolution" to bring the successes of agricultural technology to all peoples. His normative analysis is that the costs of this are acceptable given humanitarian concerns and practicality for industrialized countries that would benefit from trade liberalization and some level or agricultural/economic convergence. He also believes that market forces alone are insufficient to fixing the problems he has outlined, and encourages nation-states and inter-government organizations to pursue policies that include stabilization of legal rights, subsidies for research in technologies to provide food and capital for the poor (especially women and ethnic minorities), and even redistribution of property.

I consider it a possibility that not enough time has gone by since the Green Revolution started showing diminishing returns to make judgments on the immense inequality of distribution. I would like to point out that most of the world lived in poverty for thousands of years, and only within the past century have we been able to make any significant progress at this level and perhaps the inequalities may smooth out over time if trade is liberalized.

Ultimately, Conway presents a well-researched book and some interesting ideas and alternatives to reach these ideas. I think that he could have explored market solutions more deeply and that this significantly weakens his book. His devotion to the poor and willingness to use governments to interefere significantly with trade and agriculture is disheartening. However, the topic is very interesting and the ultimate goal of increasing food production to meet aggregate demand and basic human needs is noble and important to all of us and generations to come.

Shows what can be done, how to do it, and why........2002-03-24

Participation in agricultural production, it has been repeatedly demonstrated, is the only clear guarantee of participation in food consumption.

The author's central theme is that it is possible to raise yields three-fold on most smallholder farms worldwide by practicing sustainable agriculture. As an architect of the original Green Revolution he can acknowledge its failings (and its successes) better than most. The book's title refers to a need to move beyond the original Green Revolution to a new and more environmentally friendly agenda.

The basic goals outlined in the book are:

-Increase crop yields of small-scale farmers threefold per farm.

-Do so at very low cost by making maximum use of indigenous resources: physical, biological, and human -thereby allowing even the very poor to benefit from improved methods.

-Improve the health of families living on small farms by raising nutrition levels.

-Expand access to food, energy, and water.

-Expand access to economic resources.

Disregard the neo-communist rhetoric of the first reviewer and buy this book - easily earns 8 stars on a scale of 1 to 5.

Now it includes the ecology, but where is the justice?.......2001-03-06

The original "Green Revolution" was presented by the Ford and Rockefeller foundations as a way to put off imminent starvation worldwide, buying time while humanity tackled the problem of population increase. While crop yields surely increased in the 1960s-1980s (though much less since then), efforts to limit population growth (outside China) mostly faltered. Worse, many of the chemical-intensive practices of the GR proved to be ecologically unsound. Worse still, the focus on yields and population effectively erased the question of food ACCESS from mainstream debates. While we have had food stocks adequate to feed every human on the planet for many decades, we have lacked the will and mechanisms to insure the poor access to that food. Indeed, millions of formerly self-sufficient smallholder farmers have "become" poor in the GR era because they no longer have access to land, nor access to sufficient cash.

This book rightfully states that future green-revolutionaries will need to pay far more attention to the environment, to ensure ecologically sustainable production in the future; and that agricultural scientists will need to work in genuine partnership with farmers (though previous efforts at so-called "partnerships" by such organizations as the World Bank or International Rice Research Institute have been laughably one-sided and dominated by elites). This is (nowadays, at least) relatively uncontroversial. But until and unless we make large political changes regarding food distribution -- food justice, if you will -- we're just rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic, as far as the poor are concerned.

More production, more ecologically done -- you bet. Population control -- crucial. Greater participation of farmers in agricultural decision-making -- essential. Food justice -- politically difficult, but indispensible. This book tackles elements of the food problem, but leaves a few things out as well.

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The Doubly Green Revolution: Food for All in the Twenty-First Century.(Review)(Brief Article): An article from: The Geographical Journal
Wendy J. Gill
Manufacturer: Royal Geographical Society
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital
ASIN: B00098X5TG
Release Date: 2005-07-28

Book Description

This digital document is an article from The Geographical Journal, published by Royal Geographical Society on July 1, 1999. The length of the article is 467 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: The Doubly Green Revolution: Food for All in the Twenty-First Century.(Review)(Brief Article)
Author: Wendy J. Gill
Publication: The Geographical Journal (Refereed)
Date: July 1, 1999
Publisher: Royal Geographical Society
Volume: 165 Issue: 2 Page: 233(2)

Article Type: Book Review, Brief Article

Distributed by Thomson Gale

Book Description

Two of the toughest challenges for any company are leadership transitions and rapid growth. How do you replace an enormously popular and beloved CEO? And how do you maintain a rapid growth rate without losing the culture and focus of a small company?

Over the past ten years, since the death of the legendary Sam Walton, Wal-Mart has passed both challenges with flying colors. It's now the first company to rank number one on both the Fortune 500 and the Fortune Most Admired lists. Sam Walton's successors have taken the company into far-flung new markets and new directions, without losing the down-to-earth retailing culture that made Wal- Mart thrive in its early years.

With unprecedented access to Wal-Mart's press-shy senior executives, Robert Slater offers new insights about how the company manages its people and its operations, how it is expanding around the world (even in China), and how it is dealing with its many critics and competitors.

Customer Reviews:

minimally useful: some basics, but no investigative reporting whatsoever.......2005-12-31

Wal-Mart has become a controversial company because it has grown immensely powerful - by revenue the biggest company in the world and the largest private employer. From its origins as a southern mid-western company going for neglected rural markets, its story is one of remarkable success.

This book offers a succinct history and some explanation of how Wal-Mart succeeded: it went to markets that its big competitors ignored, made everyday low prices an essential part of its brand image, cultivated a conscientious service mentality in workers, and pursued efficiency through both scale and operations. That is its business model in a nutshell. Slater presents this matter of factly, as a natural evolution that carried the seeds of genius in the personality of earthy founder Sam Walton. The bulk of the story is how Walton's successors expanded the company far beyond what the founder achieved, making it truly global and putting a bureaucratic system into place. This was a bit useful for me as I start to investigate the company for a writing project.

Unfortunately, this book felt to me like Slater was happy to propogate the myth that Wal-Mart wishes observers to believe about the company. He recounts how employees are taught to cheerlead, and acts like they want to, like they feel it sincerely rather than do it because they have to! I can say that I found it hard to believe: big companies are rarely happy and enthusiastic places. Is that conclusion surprising to anyone? It would be for Slater, who himself is a cheerleader.

Even worse, he only perfunctorily asks himself any of the hard questions - such as the company's treatment of labor, its transforming impact on local communities, its use of sweatshops, etc. etc. - and then quickly implies that they are largely superfluous or silly exaggerations. This is nothing short of a simple white wash, and reads like PR that is trying to pose as thoughtful. This is really mediocre and shallow, almost like a company brochure. Slater failed to get inside the company, though he did do some interviews with prepped top officials, or so it appeared to me.

Oddly, as a relatively conservative business writer, I would give Wal-Mart the benefit of the doubt, pending my own investigation as a reporter. But Slater seems to be openly endorsing the company as if it lived up to its own PR. It is appalling to me, and I am no leftie or automatic critic of big companies, but I am a skeptic as a reporter.

Indeed, where he did address issues, they were never detailed enough, but instead were the most simplistic and narrow-minded generalizations. For example, he writes: "A new attitude was beginning to surface...Rather than show disdain for the negativism, the feeling was growing that there was virtue in having the media and community activists monitoring Wal-Mart." That pap is emblematic of the tone of this book and perfectly reflects how superficial it is. It also flatly contradicts what I have heard through the corporate grapevine with only the most simple of inquiries among my contacts.

Unfortunately, I cannot recommend this book. Reading it is like getting a huge vanilla milkshake for dinner rather than a steak. I will have to look elsewhere for more balanced treatments of the many thorny issues that this huge company has helped to create.

Great Story Inside a Great Company!.......2005-08-20

Very interesting book! I also liked the book, which is similar to this, "The Wal-Mart Way" which describes the man who had a clear purpose and vision and his greatness of achieving success in forming the World's #1 company.

Book Description

A Primer of Conservation Biology, Third Edition incorporates background, theory, and examples in a lively and readable text that will appeal to a wide audience and stimulate interest in conservation biology. The book provides the most up-to-date perspective on many high-profile issues in the field, such as sustainable development, the effectiveness of conservation laws and treaties, the design of conservation areas, classification of conservation threats, and strategies to save species on the verge of extinction.

The Primer is divided into five chapters, focusing successively on biological diversity and its value, the threats to biological diversity, conservation at the population and species levels, protecting and managing habitats and ecosystems, and human societies and sustainable development. Case studies are included to demonstrate the controversies in the field, and to stimulate thought and discussion. The book provides many examples of successful conservation approaches and ends with suggestions for a future agenda. Throughout, the choice of examples is well balanced to show the full range of species, habitats, and geographic areas of the world. The links between conservation biology and environmental law, environmental economics, philosophy, social sciences and anthropology, park management, and government policy are clearly presented.

The book is very well illustrated, includes an extensive bibliography (covering literature through 2004) and a glossary, and has an annotated list of suggested readings and discussion questions at the end of each chapter. Sources of further information are given in an Appendix. A Primer of Conservation Biology is ideally suited for use in short undergraduate courses, either as a stand-alone text or supplemented by outside readings. It can also be used effectively as a supplemental resource for courses in introductory biology, general ecology, population biology, environmental science, and wildlife management. Its broad perspective, concise format, and appealing writing style make the Primer the perfect choice for students, volunteers, professionals, government policymakers, and others who are eager to learn more about conservation biology. These same qualities give the book a strong appeal to students whose first language is not English.

Customer Reviews:

Excellent introduction to Conservation Biology.......2000-03-31

Rihard Primack's Essentials of Conservation Biology was the the first textbook to present the fledgling field of conservation biology in a comprehennsive fashion. His Primer of Conservation Biology presents complex topics in a manner that makes this information accessible to a wider readership. The book covers a broad range of topics that includes an accounting of the origins and history of the field of conservation biology. The basic operating principles are offered with numerous examples of their application to real world problems. The author has chosen these examples from many different parts of the world so that all readers can relate to the practical approaches cited. This book serves as an excellent introductory text for readers that want a thorough introduction to conservation biology and access to the jargon of the field. I have recommended this book to students considering entering the field as well as to non-scientists that wish to become familiar with the basics of this new branch of science.

Book Description

This laboratory guide directs students through a series of dissection activities for use in the lab accompanied by full color phoos and figures.

Customer Reviews:

Cat Dissection: A Laboratory Guide.......2007-02-01

I found the guide to be very informative and instrumental in the course that I am taking right now. I would highly recommend it to anyone that is taking an Anatomy class now, or in the future. Thanks so much for supplying me with such a good point of reference for my studies in Anatomy.

Great guide for a cat dissection.......2006-05-09

If you don't like your neighbors cat or any cat for that matter this is the book to get. This book has both male and female cat internal parts properly labeled. Large detailed images are shown in each page. Helpful for a cat dissection lab.

A Laboratory Guide for the Dissection of the Cat an introduction to the study of anatomy

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A Laboratory Guide for the Dissection of the Cat an introduction to the study of anatomy
Frederic P. and Ralph W. Tower Gorham
Manufacturer: Charles Scribner's Sons
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000P7MY9I

Average customer rating:

A laboratory guide for the dissection of the cat: An introduction to the study of anatomy
Frederic P Gorham
Manufacturer: C. Scribner's sons
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

Average customer rating:

Cat Dissection: A Laboratory Guide
Connie Allen , and Valerie Harper
Manufacturer: Texas Woman's U./Wiley Custom Services
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: 0471708321

Laboratory Guide for the Dissection of Cat

Average customer rating:

Laboratory Guide for the Dissection of Cat
Frederic P Gorham
Manufacturer: Charles Scribner's Sons
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: 6000809166

Laboratory notes on the study of a mammal (cat): A guide to elementary dissection,

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Laboratory notes on the study of a mammal (cat): A guide to elementary dissection,
Spencer Trotter
Manufacturer: Swarthmore College
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

Customer Reviews:

good pictures.......2006-05-22

This book wasn't great. I don't like the format of this book the way it was written by several different contributors. I don't feel it has any particular flow or direction. It touches of some supplements and on the macro and micronutrients but doesn't outline any particular diets for anything. If you want to read a little about effervescent creatine, a little about protein, a little about calcium, and a little about a few other topics then I guess this book would be for you but you can find way better information in other books or online. I don't recommend this book.

Two stars because of its legacy..........2005-06-14

...I mean, after all, this is the Ironman series we're talking about...but for content, avoid this. Rather, do yourself a favor and pick up Franco Columbo's book. It is far, far superior and will give you much better results, and much superior advice.

However, all the other Ironman books, with the exception of the "natural bodybuilding" book, should be picked up.

one long advertisement for endless supplementation.......2000-12-05

This book basically is one long justification for taking lots of supplements. I've been down this road, and at some point started to ask myself -- do the guys writing this have a reason to want you to buy supplements? Of course they do. Ironman is a muscle mag. Its revenues come from advertisements from the people who sell supplements. If Ironman starts dinging the idea that supplements work, its revenues dry up and it goes out of business. Are protein bars useful as a quick meal replacement? I think so. Does taking chromium lead to six pack abs? Please. Hit the gym hard, watch what you eat, and save your money.

ironmans ultimate nutriton.......2000-08-28

I bought this book as well as the Ironmans ultimate mass guide.I found both books to be of great vaulue.I have learned a great deal about nutrition.Although the book does not cover a great deal, it does however explain how to build a good nutrional base.I suggest anyone wanting to learn about mass and nutrion,get both books as they complment each other very well.I rate this book 4 to 4 1/2.I did not know what I was missing til now.

Book Description

This book reveals the inherent relationship between personality type, brain function and writing style. Includes 40 proven songwriting strategies - guaranteed to spark songwriters' imaginations. 240 pages. 6x9.

Customer Reviews:

Good for the money.......2004-03-21

I hear this book is some kind of industry standard book for other musicians, and I enjoyed it.

Like the other reviews said though, the 40 strategies are really 40 different types of songs you could write.

i.e. "the childrens song" "breaking up" "the christmas song"

The first couple of chapters describe what she calls "whole brain writing", and is actually very clever.

This book helped me immensly, I just knocked a star off b/c of the bad title and I think it's too short.

For the money though, you absolutely cannot go wrong!

The cure for writer's block.......2003-09-30

Ever had writer's block? This book is the cure! Along with Davis' THE CRAFT OF LYRIC WRITING and SUCCESSFUL LYRIC WRITING, THE SONGWRITERS IDEA BOOK forms a brilliant trilogy that is essential for the person who wants to write lyrics. I'm rather surprised by reading some of the negative comments below. My guess is that those people merely leafed through the book without actually reading it. This book is NOT an easy read. It is not something that can be scanned. It must be read and studied very carefully. It is very important to understand part 2 of the book (pages 15 through 34) before moving ahead. This is the section wherein Davis analyzes the different types of the creative mind. In only a few short pages Davis introduces a lot of important concepts that need to be understood. The reader must take her tests and figure out which type he is. Then and only then is the book of value. I had to read part two several times before I really understood it. But once I had a firm grasp of those ideas, I found the book to be extremely valuable. Davis basically says that when one is blocked, that he needs to come at it from the other side of the brain. She then proceeds to give exercises that make it easy to access the unused part of the brain. While ostensibly for the lyricist, I think the principles can be adapted for any kind of writing. I think this is a great book and I am grateful to Sheila Davis for writing it.

Title is misleading.......2003-08-13

Pro: Excellent catalog of types of lyrics. Also good coverage of different elements that make hit songs.
Con: The title is misleading. The "40 strategies" is really no more than a catalog of 40 general types of lyrics, i.e. people get hit songs from: a holiday, a place, a town, a love lost, love gained, etc. Some useful ideas, but I was hoping for something more like writing or brainstorming exercise to open the imagination. This book was not at all useful for me.

Excellent for identifying your mind as well as song ideas.......2001-06-14

I refer to this book weekly and have owned it for 4 years. I spoke the author in 1997 and thanked her for her contribution to this subject. Her 3 books are 3 volumes of my songwriting bible. It is her books that finally gave me the ability to be happy with my own songwriting for the first time in my timespan of over ten years of not liking my lyrics. In this book, the author helps you identify your style of work and how it affects your first drafts. This info also has helped me in other parts of my thinking process. No other author, so far, has been as complete and detailed in their presentation of the songwriting process as Sheila Davis. Brilliant.

An Utter Waste of TIme and Money.......2000-03-25

I bought this book with great expectations from it, having heard just wonderful things about the author regarding her earlier work. Needless to say, I could not find anything of use in it whatsoever. It was an extremely hard read, besides (like a physics text). The only thing I got out of it was "alliteration." I think you should consider buying her earlier book, "The Craft of Lyric Writing".

Book Description

Acclaimed furniture designer George Nakashima (1905-1990) made boldly original pieces prized for their superb craftsmanship and their organic use of the natural lines and grain of wood. Today his beautiful creations are avidly sought by private collectors and are housed in museum collections all over the world. This survey of Nakashima's life and work-written by his daughter, the noted designer Mira Nakashima-is the most revealing look we have ever had at this woodworking genius and his profound influence on contemporary design. Mira Nakashima chronicles not only the furniture designs for which her father was best known, but also his equally fine work as an architect. Illustrated with a wealth of photographs never before published and containing much new information from the Nakashima studio archives, Nature, Form, and Spirit is timed to coincide with the release of a full-length documentary film on Nakashima and an exhibition at the Mingei International Museum in San Diego. In exploring his personal and philosophic journey, Mira Nakashima provides a remarkable look at the development of an artist whose reverence for nature was at the heart of his creative work.

Customer Reviews:

Timless.......2007-03-13

A great book about a even greater designer,
don't over look this one.

A true master.......2007-03-09

I just marvel at the grace and dignity of George and his work. The story of his life is just as interesting as his life's work. I do home remodeling and occasionally have the chance to make a piece of custom furniture for a client. I find his accomplishments truly amazing.

A carpenter dream.......2007-01-14

This is a superb book on George Nakashima, written by his daughter. It is a good complement to "Sould of a tree" written by Nakashima himself. While "Sould of a tree" looked at the furniture, "Nature form & Spirit" starts with the life of Nakashima and how he came to design all his furniture and the houses. It is not a technical book, but it gives an interesting insight on the philosophy and thinking process behind the designs. Much more than a coffe table book, an inspiration for all woodworking lovers

Gift.......2006-03-06

This was a gift to our son. He was thrilled to receive it and will continue to enjoy it for many years to come. He is a wood worker and is interested in all sorts of books about wood working and wood workers.

A Perfect Gift.......2006-02-25

My husband has been wanting this book for a long time; it was recommended to us by an old friend of Nakashima. We've always loved his work, that which is at the Metropolitan Museum and also the arboretum library in Minneapolis, completely furnished with Nakashima's work. The book was no disappointment; we loved it. Truly he understood "the soul of a tree."

Nature Form & Spirit: The Life and Legacy of George Nakashima

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Nature Form & Spirit: The Life and Legacy of George Nakashima
Mira NAKASHIMA
Manufacturer: see notes for publisher info
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000PKYGSM

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