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For the first time at the beginning of the twenty-first century, urban dwellers outnumber rural residents and this trend is set to continue. Consequently one of the most pressing issues of our time is how to square the social and economic development of cities with their environmental limits and those of the wider environment. The theme of the environment and city is topical at every level, from the politics of global trade to local community networks. "Environment and the City" looks at the evolution of cities in the developed and the developing world and the implications for resource consumption and environmental impacts. It takes a cross-cutting approach with new thinking on multiple geographies - the configuration of networks, exclusion, consumption, risk and ecological footprint. Urban environmental themes and their related social, economic and political agendas are outlined. In turn the environmental impacts and environmental agendas relating to key sectors of the urban economy are discussed. The global context to such issues is then explored before the practical tools and methods of urban environmental management are investigated. The theme of the sustainable city emerges from this - not so much as a standard menu, but as a learning process between all sections of society. This book, a valuable resource, provides a concise, accessible route map for all students interested in the environmental issues emanating from our urban society. Written to aid student understanding, the easily navigable text features boxed practical examples, discussion points, signposts to reading and websites and a glossary.
1 Introduction; 2. Environment and the city; 3. Past and future trends; 4. Urban environment themes; Chapter 5. Urban activity; 6. Urban lifestyles; 7. Global context; 8. Urban - environment methods and tools; 9. Sustainable cities
Peter Roberts is Professor of Spatial Sustainable Development at the University of Leeds. He is an active researcher in the field of urban and regional planning, development and environmental management. His early work on ecological modernisation provided the foundations for Urban Mines. Joe Ravetz is Co-Director of the Centre for Urban & Regional Ecology at the University of Manchester. He is the author of the landmark book City-Region 2020. Clive George is Senior Research Fellow at the Institute for Development Policy and Management at the University of Manchester. He is co-author and editor of Environmental Assessment in Developing and Transitional Countries.
Reading this book may help dispel some myths and misunderstandings about cities and should give an enhanced appreciation of how the interconnections between increasingly urban lives and their environmental impacts and implications for sustainability fit together. Mike Clark, University of Central Lancashire, UK This is a very timely contribution to the debate around sustainable cities. The authors work to explore interdependent relationships through flows of resources, power and ideologies of sustainable cities in both the developed and developing world. As such the book deserves to be read widely not just by academics, but also by policy makers and practitioners. Professor David Gibbs, University of Hull, UK
