The conventional approach to river protection has focused on water quality and maintaining some "minimum" flow that was thought necessary to ensure the viability of a river. In recent years, however, scientific research has underscored the idea that the ecological health of a river system depends not on a minimum amount of water at any one time but on the naturally variable quantity and timing of flows throughout the year. In Rivers for Life, leading water experts Sandra Postel and Brian Richter explain why restoring and preserving more natural river flows are key to sustaining freshwater biodiversity and healthy river systems, and describe innovative policies, scientific approaches, and management reforms for achieving those goals. Sandra Postel and Brian Richter: explain the value of healthy rivers to human and ecosystem health; describe the ecological processes that support river ecosystems and how they have been disrupted by dams, diversions, and other alterations; consider the scientific basis for determining how much water a river needs; examine new management paradigms focused on restoring flow patterns and sustaining ecological health; assess the policy options available for managing rivers and other freshwater systems; explore building blocks for better river governance. Sandra Postel and Brian Richter offer case studies of river management from the United States (the San Pedro, Green, and Missouri), Australia (the Brisbane), and South Africa (the Sabie), along with numerous examples of new and innovative policy approaches that are being implemented in those and other countries. Rivers for Life presents a global perspective on the challenges of managing water for people and nature, with a concise yet comprehensive overview of the relevant science, policy, and management issues. It presents exciting and inspirational information for anyone concerned with water policy, planning and management, river conservation, freshwater biodiversity, or related topics.

In this anthology, the author reflects on the mysteries of life and nature within the context of everyday life experiences, religious conflicts and scientific uncertainties. As he writes, he expands your horizons in tune with the religiosity of Albert Einstein who declared that Science without religion is lame and Religion without science is blind. Aimed at deconstructing the exclusive claims of organized religions and combating the indifference of organized science to spiritual phenomena, these reflections and publications like these by others will serve as nuclei for courses on Science, Religion and Values in schools and colleges, humanity's only hope to bridge the gap between science and religion within a secular context. "Science tells us the how of the phenomenal world. It does not answer its why. It is on such mysteries that the author reflects in his poems. He also raises questions pertaining to religion and consciousness, revealing in the process his own broad and interfaith sensitivities. And he says it all in poetic prose with clarity and simplicity. It was a pleasure for me to read these reflections. I feel that many more will have the same experience as they read them." V.V. Raman, PhD Emeritus Professor of Physics and the Humanities Rochester Institute of Technology.

"Sure to become a game-changing guide to the future of good food and healthy landscapes." —Dan Barber, chef and author of The Third Plate Prepare to set aside what you think you know about yourself and microbes. The Hidden Half of Nature reveals why good health—for people and for plants—depends on Earth’s smallest creatures. Restoring life to their barren yard and recovering from a health crisis, David R. Montgomery and Anne Biklé discover astounding parallels between the botanical world and our own bodies. From garden to gut, they show why cultivating beneficial microbiomes holds the key to transforming agriculture and medicine.