This timely and fascinating book illustrates how applied geography can contribute in a multitude of ways to assist policy processes, evaluate public programs, enhance business decisions, and contribute to formulating solutions for community-level problems. The book showcases studies by applied geographers from across the globe collaborating with the public sector, businesses, NGOs and communities to demonstrate how geography Ð with its space and place perspective and its explicitly spatial methods and tools Ð has been employed to address significant real-world issues. The 20 case studies have been conducted at a variety of levels of scale and situational contexts, and employ a range of quantitative and qualitative approaches including spatial and statistical modelling, Geographic Information Systems (GIS), impact analysis and action research. This enlightening and informative book will prove an invaluable reference tool for academics, students and practitioners with a specific interest in applied geography and spatial analysis.

Sustainability Metrics and Indicators of Environmental Impact: Industrial and Agricultural Life Cycle Assessment covers trending topics on the environmental impact of systems of production, putting emphasis on lifecycle assessment (LCA). This methodology is one of the most important tools of analysis, as mathematical models are applied that will quantify the systematic inputs and outputs of the processes in order to evaluate the sustainability of industrial processes and products. In this sense, LCA is mainly a tool to support environmental decision-making that analyzes the environmental impacts of products and technologies from a lifecycle perspective. The emergence of ever-larger global issues, such as the energy dilemma, the changing climate and the scarcity of natural resources, such as water, has boosted the search for tools capable of ensuring the reliability of the results published by the industries, and has become an important tool in order to achieve sustainability and environmental preservation. Thus, lifecycle assessment (LCA), including carbon footprint valuation is necessary to ensure better internal management. - Provides guidance on environmental impacts and the carbon footprint of industrial processes - Features guidelines in lifecycle assessment to support a sustainable approach, along with quantifiable data to support proposed solutions - Includes a companion website with slides and graphics to quantity environmental impact and other metrics of lifecycle assessment

Hotter summers and milder winters have already made most of us aware of what scientists say is a trend towards extensive global warming. Most of the experts accompany their predictions with dire warnings of the resulting rising sea levels and spreading deserts. Trausti Valsson's approach to the problem of global warming is a refreshing look at the advantages that will ensue. With the melting of the sea ice in the north, shipping routes will regularly include the passage north of Siberia and, slightly later, a north-west passage through the Canadian Archipelago. This means that countries bordering the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans will become "closer" to each other and that ships too wide for the Panama and Suez Canals can easily transport oil and other cargoes via the shorter routes over the Arctic Ocean. The warming climate and melting ice will make oil and mineral resources in northern areas easily accessible for exploitation and will make the far north comfortable for human habitation, replacing the living spaces around the central areas of the globe that will become too hot for habitation. Valsson recognizes the fact that the world's climate has changed many times in the past and that the present warming trend is not new. However, he underlines the importance of the international agreements for reducing greenhouse gas emissions, which are largely to blame for the current warming trend. He also promotes the view that even in the face of the very many negative consequences, we need to maintain a positive attitude towards the changes that are coming upon us, a refreshing view which he presents through text and a wealth of informative maps.