World on the edge: how to prevent environmental and economic collapse / by Lester Brown

1. Has the decline of civilization begun? –
I. The challenge –
2. Falling water tables and shrinking harvests –
3. Melting ice and food security –
4. Eroding soils and expanding deserts –
5. The emerging politics of food scarcity –
6. Environmental refugees: millions on the move –
7. Mounting stresses, failing states—
ii. The response plan b –
8. Building an energy efficient global economy –
9. Harnessing wind, solar, and geothermal energy –
10. Eradicating poverty, stabilizing population, and rescuing failing states –
11. Restoring the economy's natural support systems12. Feeding eight billion –
Iii. Watching the clock –
13. Can we rescue civilization?

"In this urgent time, World on the Edge calls out the pivotal environmental issues and how to solve them now. We are in a race between political and natural tipping points. Can we close coal-fired power plants fast enough to save the Greenland ice sheet and avoid catastrophic sea level rise? Can we raise water productivity fast enough to halt the depletion of aquifers and avoid water-driven food shortages? And can we cope with peak water and peak oil at the same time? These are some of the issues Lester R. Brown skilfully distils in World on the Edge. Bringing decades of research and analysis into play, he provides the responses needed to reclaim our future."--Publisher's description.