State of the Wild 2010-2011: A Global Portrait

by Eva Fearn (Editor), Ward Woods

State of the Wild is a biennial series that brings together international conservation experts and writers to discuss emerging issues in the conservation of wildlife and wild places.


In addition to evocative writings and a fascinating tour of conservation news highlights and vital statistics from around the world, this 2010-2011 edition examines how destabilization and war affect wildlife and wild places.
State of the Wild' s accessible approach educates a wide range of audiences while at the same time presenting leading-edge scientific overviews of hot topics in conservation. Uniquely structured with magazine-like features up front, conservation news in the middle, and essays from eminent authors and experienced scientists throughout, this landmark series is an essential addition to any environmental bookshelf.

264 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2009

Reviews

[Angie Reisetter · Rating 5 out of 5]

The State of the Wild is a fantastic publication. It's truly beautiful, with an artful arrangement of pictures and text that is enjoyable to read. It does what it says it will do: provide a snapshot of the state of conservation efforts in the world. It includes overviews by continent and species, as well as a number of articles on important contemporary issues. This particular year, the focus was on conservations efforts in war time, covering the expected difficulties in Africa, but also Afghanistan (I must admit I sometimes revert to the erroneous picture of a desolate desert with robed men in machine guns the only sign of life there, but the ecology is rich and varied) and a border disagreement between Peru and Ecuador resolved in the late 1990s I was unaware of. Poverty and war go together in our times, and these wars do tend to center on locations with ecosystems that are varied but under duress, due to global climate change as well as people and resources displaced by war.

I know I'm reading this publication late, but I've discovered the series and I love it. I recommend it to anyone interested in the state of conservation in the world today, or the health of planet Earth as a whole. The editors over and over state their hopes for what they can accomplish -- the picture is at times bleak, but this is in an of itself an act of hope. In turn, I hope they are successful and I want to spread the word about this publication.

I got a free copy from Net Galley.