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Library Journal Review
This significant new reference book profiles environmental projects and their personnel. It covers 140 countries, 7000 projects, and 3000 people. Arranged by country, it lists governmental, nongovernmental (NGO), private, and educational organizations conducting projects dealing with acid rain, population, endangered wildlife, rain forests, ozone depletion, and more. Each profile gives the group's address and phone and FAX number, background, key personnel, and current activities. Entries average one page per project, as compared with one-paragraph entries in the Gale Environmental Sourcebook: A Guide to Organizations, Agencies, and Publications ( LJ 6/1/92), which is also international in scope but focuses more on U.S. agencies. A ``Global/Regional'' section at the beginning of the guide identifies international organizations such as the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO). Also included is a useful list of acronyms and abbreviations. Appendixes and an index cross-reference topics, names, countries, and institutions. With a distinguished panel of advisors and a foreword by Vice President Al Gore, this is one of the best new reference books of the year. Highly recommended.-- Laura Lipton, Miller Horticulture Lib., Seattle (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
CHOICE Review
One of the most comprehensive directories of environmental agencies yet produced, citing agencies from 115 countries. Alphabetic by country, each listing has extensive information including addresses, telephone numbers, activities, organizational structure, projects, personnel, resources, and publications. Federal, state and province, and private organizations are cited. All summaries are thorough and informative, including the history and mission of the organization. US organizations predominate, but researchers looking for worldwide agencies will find this a wonderful tool. An appendix lists all organizations by topic--e.g., air quality, biodiversity, recycling/waste management, sustainable development, global warming, health, deforestation, energy, population, transportation, and water quality. A thorough subject index and a helpful table of abbreviations and acronyms are included. An important research tool for anyone looking for information on environmental organizations. Recommended for all libraries. J. C. Stachacz; Dickinson College
Booklist Review
The climate is right for a book of this nature. Then-Senator Al Gore penned the foreword as he prepared to attend the 1992 Earth Summit in Brazil. An impressive board of advisers includes experts in botany, endangered species, conservation, climate, and energy. The authors' stated purpose is to create "a resource that actually describes how, why, and where environmental efforts have been undertaken" and who makes them happen. They contacted embassies for suggestions and sent surveys to 5,000 individuals and organizations worldwide. Replies were received from 115 countries. Preceded by a short "Global/Regional Organizations" section, the countries appear alphabetically from Algeria to Zimbabwe. Each entry begins with a small locator map accompanied by boxed text describing salient environmental features, such as forest reserves, mineral deposits, and troublesome issues: deforestation, overpopulation, etc. Organizations within each country profile fall into one of four categories: "Government" (local and state governments are specified), "NGO" (nongovernmental), "Private," and "Universities." Not all types of organizations appear in every entry. Length of entries depends on information submitted. United States of America occupies 320 pages, more than one-third of this hefty guide; in contrast, the Vietnam entry is a little more than one page. Profiles begin with the name of the organization in its native language and in English, an acronym if there is one, address, contact person, telephone number, and activities, issues, and meetings. A brief descriptive overview is followed by "Projects and People," which describes the organization's programs and the people who carry them out. "Resources" briefly mentions publications, symposia, and, occasionally, as in the China entry, a call for contact with colleagues in other countries. A detailed 135-page index identifies people, issues, species, legislation, and groups. Subjects like energy are broken down into 20 subheadings. An appendix is arranged by subject ("Biodiversity/Species Preservation," "Global Warming," etc.), with countries and organizations arranged alphabetically under each. This volume demonstrates that there is a fascinating worldwide diversity of effort to protect the environment. The list of acronyms at the beginning of the book illustrates this diversity, from the Association for Arid Land Studies (AALS) to the World Wide Fund for Nature or the World Wildlife Fund (WWF). The work is an excellent purchase for libraries that can afford it. Libraries owning the World Directory of Environmental Organizations (4th ed., California Institute of Public Affairs, 1992) may find that volume's coverage adequate. It provides directory information on UN organizations, intergovernmental and nongovernmental organizations, and agencies of many nations of the world at a low cost. Gale Environmental Sourcebook: A Guide to Organizations, Agencies, and Publications [RBB Ap 15 92] is also international in scope and offers much of the information found in the book under review at a lower price. Many directories of U.S. environmental organizations have been reviewed in RBB: Conservation Directory, The Nature Directory, and Your Resource Guide to Environmental Organizations are some examples. One of these inexpensive volumes may provide adequate coverage for small libraries. (Reviewed Oct. 1, 1993)
