Emilio F. Moran - People and Nature: An Introduction to Human Ecological Relations

1. Chapter 02
2. Chapter 04

1. Chapter 01
2. Chapter 02
3. Chapter 03
4. Chapter 04
5. Chapter 05
6. Chapter 06
7. Chapter 08
8. Chapter 09

Each volume in this series offers a lively take on a traditional area of anthropological study. Written explicitly for nonspecialists by top scholars, these concise books provide theoretically sophisticated yet accessible and engaging introductions. They will be invaluable to students and all those who seek pithy overviews on central topics.

1. People and Nature: An Introduction to Human Ecological Relations, Second Edition

   Emilio F. Moran

2. Living Language: An Introduction to Linguistic Anthropology, Second Edition

   Laura M. Ahearn

Second Edition

Emilio F. Moran

This second edition first published 2017
2017 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Edition history: Blackwell Publishing Ltd (1e, 2006)

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Library of Congress CataloginginPublication Data

Names: Moran, Emilio F., author.
Title: People and nature : an introduction to human ecological relations / Emilio F. Moran.
Description: Second edition. | Chichester, West Sussex, UK : John Wiley & Sons, Inc., [2017] | Includes bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2016016091| ISBN 9781118877470 (pbk.) | ISBN 9781118877319 (epdf) | ISBN 9781118877418 (epub)
Subjects: LCSH: NatureEffect of human beings on. | Human beingsEffect of environment on. | Environmental degradation. | Environmental policy.
Classification: LCC GF75 .M67 2017 | DDC 304.2dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2016016091

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

Cover image: Getty/jakkreethampitakkull

This book is dedicated to
MARIA CLAUDIA,

with love and affection

My goal in this book, in its first edition and in this new second edition, is to introduce the reader to the evidence, both historical and contemporary, for how the reciprocal interactions between people and nature have developed, the urgency for action now to prevent truly disastrous consequences, and to make the reader reflect as to how we might go about doing so. While the book does not follow the usual organization for an introduction to human ecology, cultural ecology, or ecological anthropology text, it does cover much of this material in what I hope is a more engaging organization. In this second edition I have added a new chapter on Population and Environment that provides an uptodate discussion of the challenge to sustainability coming from our growing population. There is a great deal of misunderstanding about the role of population, and population growth, that needs demystification and I hope this chapter begins to do that. In this book, all chapters have been substantially updated, and some topics have received expanded treatment such as sustainability, positive responses to the environmental crisis, more about climate change and changes in the mindset of some corporations that recognize the urgency of responding to climate change. I give priority to recognizing that this subject is not just of academic interest, but has to do with our very existence on this planet as biological and social entities. That having been said, the solutions must come from people as cultural and historical entities, and the solutions that people come up with will vary across the planet as a result of this rich human and biological diversity. There are no truly global solutions, no panaceas, to contemporary global environmental problems but, rather, a diversity of pathways to achieve sustainability.

Because the book is written to engage the reader from the outset, I hope it is of interest to the lay reader who wishes to be up to date on the evidence for our current crisis, and who is looking for possible ways to think and to act about this urgent problem. One of the important messages in the book is that changing businessasusual (which has gotten us in this current environmental crisis) begins with individuals making choices to change their priorities. This means changing consumption behavior (i.e., to give priority to meeting human needs not our infinite wants); changing behavioral patterns (e.g., turning off the television, walking instead of driving); and sending a message to government and industry that we want a very different set of goods and services delivered to us consumers, products more attuned with the value of our natural world of which we are an integral part.

I have tried to minimize the use of jargon, although in the interest of accuracy I have sometimes left technical terms in the text but tried to provide a clear sense of the meaning. Throughout the book I use the term we, in many cases referring to those of us who live in urbanindustrial societies of the West and North. Sometimes it is used to refer to us as members of the human species. I trust the difference will be clear in the context in which it is used. Because of the language in which this is written originally (i.e., English), and its distributor (i.e., WileyBlackwell), the text is written with a EuroAmerican audience in mind primarily. There is a Portuguese language edition,