"Holistic Management is a systems-thinking approach developed by biologist Allan Savory to restore the world's grassland soils and minimize the damaging effects of climate change and desertification on humans and the natural world. This long-awaited third edition of this title is comprehensively updated with reorganized, streamlined chapters and new color photos featuring before-and-after examples of land restored through livestock manipulation designed to mimic wildlife migrations of the past. Written for new generations of ranchers, farmers, pastoralists, social entrepreneurs, government agencies, and NGOs working to address global environmental degradation, it offers new hope for a sustainable future."--Page [4] of cover.

Holistic management considers humans, their economies, and the environment as inseparable. At the heart of the approach lies a simple testing process that enables people to make decisions that simultaneously consider economic, social and environmental realities, both short- and long-term. A useful handbook for anyone involved with land management and stewardship.

A companion to Holistic Resource Management, the Holistic Resource Management Workbook provides the practical instruction in financial, biological, and land planning necessary to apply the holistic management model. Allan Savory's teaching approach was developed and tested in classes for ranchers, farmers, and government agency personnel. Case studies drawn from real-life situations and presented in clear language lead the reader through the planning process.

Increasingly sophisticated technology and an ever-expand-ing base of knowledge have not been enough to allow humans to halt the worldwide progression of environmental degradation. Extensive fieldwork in both Africa and the United States convinced Allan Savory that neither the forces of nature nor commonly blamed culprits -- overpopulation, poor farming practices, lack of financial support -- were causing the decline of once-healthy ecosystems. He also noted that once land has become degraded, leaving it alone seldom helps revitalize it. Savory eventually came to realize that on the most fundamental level, environmental problems are caused by human management decisions, and only through wholesale changes in the way decisions are made can functioning ecosystems be restored. In response to that startling discovery, Savory began to develop a revolutionary new approach to decision-making and management. Known initially as Holistic Resource Management, and now as simply Holistic Management, it considers humans, their economies, and the environment as inseparable. It includes a common-sense decision-making framework that requires no specialized knowledge or elaborate technology to utilize, and is applicable in any environment or management situation. At the heart of the approach lies a simple testing process that enables people to make decisions that simultaneously consider economic, social, and environmental realities, both short- and long-term.Holistic Management is a newly revised and updated edition of Holistic Resource Management (Island Press, 1988), which was the first book-length treatment of Savory's decision-making framework and how it could be applied. A decade of trial-and-error implementation has strengthened and clarified the book's ideas, and has expanded the scope of the process to include all manner of decisions and management situations, not just those that relate to land and resource management.Holistic Management has been practiced by thousands of people around the world to profitably restore and promote the health of their land through practices that mimic nature, and by many others who have sought a more rewarding personal or family life. This book is an essential handbook for anyone involved with land management and stewardship -- ranchers, farmers, resource managers, and others -- and a valuable guide for all those seeking to make better decisions within their organizations or in any aspect of their personal lives.

Holistic management, as described by Allan Savory in the books Holistic Resource Management (Island Press, 1988) and the revised edition, Holistic Management (Island Press, 2001), has been practiced by thousands of people around the world to profitably restore and promote the health of their land through practices that mimic nature, and by many others who have sought a more rewarding personal or family life. Holistic Management Handbook offers a detailed explanation of the planning procedures presented in those books and gives step-by-step guidance for implementing holistic management on a ranch or farm. Holistic Management and Holistic Management Handbook are essential reading for anyone involved with land management and stewardship, and together represent an indispensable guide for individuals interested in making better decisions within their organizations or in any aspect of their personal or professional lives.

This book presents two recently developed knowledge areas that can significantly improve the management and the performance of business enterprise: System Science and Cybernetics and Key Performance Areas. Included in this book are advanced (and evolving) methods and technologies for planning and budgeting, creating and keeping customers, quality and productivity, innovation, improving organization capability, sustainability in the company's social and ecological environments, and profitability-all integrated with this new viable systems model and system thinking.

The complex and dynamic interlinks between natural resource management (NRM) and development have long been recognized by national and international research and development organizations and have generated voluminous literature. However, much of what is available in the form of university course books, practical learning manuals and reference materials in NRM is based on experiences from outside Africa. Managing Natural Resources for Development in Africa: A Resource Book provides an understanding of the various levels at which NRM issues occur and are being addressed scientifically, economically, socially and politically. The book's nine chapters present state-of-the-art perspectives within a holistic African context. The book systematically navigates the tricky landscape of integrated NRM, with special reference to Eastern and Southern Africa, against the backdrop of prevailing local, national, regional and global social, economic and environmental challenges. The authors' wide experience, the rich references made to emerging challenges and opportunities, and the presentation of different tools, principles, approaches, case studies and processes make the book a rich and valuable one-stop resource for postgraduate students, researchers, policymakers and NRM practitioners. The book is designed to help the reader grasp in-depth NRM perspectives and presents innovative guidance for research design and problem solving, including review questions, learning activities and recommended further reading. The book was developed through a writeshop process by a multi-disciplinary team of lecturers from the University of Nairobi, Egerton University, Kenyatta University, the University of Zimbabwe, the University of Malawi, Makerere University and the University of Dar es Salam. In addition, selected NRM experts from regional and international research organizations including the World Agroforestry Center (ICRAF), the Africa Forest Forum, RUFORUM, IIRR and the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) participated in the writeshop and contributed material to the book.