This book explores a compelling range of community-based activities from different cultures and nations which help nurture intercultural understanding and practices of sustainable development. The specially commissioned chapters from practitioners and academics offer a set of interconnected case studies, personal stories, philosophical discussions and critical reflections on direct experiences focussing on co-operative action, creative media innovation and community empowerment connecting individuals, groups, organisations from across our converging world. At the bookís core is a central belief that ecological sustainability can only be attained through social learning, community empowerment, participation and a commitment to global justice. It is the first in a series of books addressing issues emerging from the Schumacher Instituteís Converging World Initiative.

Aiming to explore theoretical advances in tourism studies, this book explores the relationship between tourism, sustainable development and empowerment. The theoretical framework is explored across three levels through five case studies drawn from the South Pacific.

Participatory research has emerged as an approach to producing knowledge that is sufficiently grounded in local needs and realities to support community-based natural resource management (CBNRM), and it is often touted as crucial to the sustainable management of forests and other natural resources. This book analyses the current state of the art of participatory research in CBNRM. Its chapters and case studies examine recent experiences in collaborative forest management, harvesting impacts on forest shrubs, watershed restoration in Native American communities, civic environmentalism in an urban neighborhood and other topics. Although the main geographic focus of the book is the United States, the issues raised are synthesized and discussed in the context of recent critiques of participatory research and CBNRM worldwide. The book's purpose is to provide insights and lessons for academics and practitioners involved in CBNRM in many contexts. The issues it covers will be relevant to participatory research and CBNRM practitioners and students the world over.

This book presents over 40 cases of bamboo development across 22 major bamboo-industry countries and explores the knowledge gained from their successes and failures. It synthesises experiences and exchanges with country experts from international training courses and consultations, study tours, and seminars. Each case includes observations and summaries of discussions related to the development of bamboo-based industries in a healthy, sustainable way, and the facilitation of strategic and balanced development of bamboo in different global regions. Industrial and artisanal bamboo growing and processing is expanding worldwide and this book brings together key experiences to help inform future developments. This book provides an analysis of bamboo plant features, including strong renewability, fast-growing, and high biomass production. It also reviews important ecological functions of bamboos, such as water and soil conservation, carbon sink and storage, and adaptation to climate change, as well as addressing the diversified culture of bamboo and key issues affecting the sector. Highly illustrated and in full colour throughout, this book is an essential resource for all those interested in bamboo, from private sector investors to governmental and development agencies, academic researchers and students.

THE CONVERGING WORLD tells the incredible story of one community's attempt to change their world for the better. Faced with the challenge of making the English village of Chew Magna a 'zero waste' society, Pontin developed a groundbreaking non-profit scheme that twinned them with Tamil Nadu, a poor rural community in southern India. He helped set up a system of wind turbines for Tamil Nadu that would not only reduce the community's reliance on fossil fuels but also provided a local source of sustainable income. The carbon credits produced through this scheme were then sold in Chew Magna to individuals and businesses to offset emissions they cannot yet reduce - all part of a larger local zero-waste effort. The effects of this scheme have been dramatic and exhilarating - while Chew Magna gets closer to zero waste, Tamil Nadu's carbon emissions and poverty levels are diminishing accordingly. Pontin's story presents a model of action for any individual or community concerned about climate change, environmental damage, social inequality and the plight of the third world.

This book serves the purpose of documenting and promoting African experiences on sustainable development, which encompasses both, formal and non-formal education. Sustainable development is very important to Africa, but there is a paucity of publication which documents and promotes experiences from African countries. Due to their complexity, the interrelations between social, economic and political factors related to sustainable development, especially at universities, need to be better understood. There is also a real need to showcase successful examples of how African institutions are handling their sustainability challenges. It is against this background that this book has been produced. It is a truly interdisciplinary publication, useful to scholars, social movements, practitioners and members of governmental agencies and private companies, undertaking research and/or executing projects focusing on sustainability from across Africa. As African nations strive to pursue the UN Sustainable Development Goals, it is imperative to cater for the information needs seen across the continent and foster the dissemination of experiences and case studies, which may support both, on-going and future efforts. The scope of the book is deliberately kept wide, and we are looking for contributions across the spectrum of sustainable development from business and economics, to arts and fashion, administration, environment, languages and media studies.