Saving the Planet: How to Shape an Environmentally Sustainable Global Economy kicks off the new Worldwatch Environmental Alert series. It tackles the most pressing question confronting the word as a whole today: How can we create a vibrant world economy that does not destroy the ecosystem n which it is based The natural systems on which humanity depends are crumbling:The earth,s forests are shrinking, its deserts expanding, its soils eroding- all at record rates. The protective ozone shield is disappearing twice as fast as we thought just a year ago. The very temperature of the earth appears to e rising, posing untold hazards for all life on the planet. Business as usual would mean rendering the planet uninhabitable But if the sruggle for a sustainable society is to succeed, we must have some vision of what we are aiming for. If not fossil fuels to power society, then what And if forests are no longer to be cleared to grow food, then how is a larger population to be fed If a throwaway culture leads inevitably to pollution and resource depletion, how can we satisfy our material needs In sum, if the present path is so obviously unsound, what vision of the future can we use to guide our actions toward a global community that can endure In Saving the Planet, the Worldwatch Institute pulls together a vision of a global economy that does not compromise the prospects of future generations. Just as important, Saving the Planet confronts head-on the hard political choices necessary to make such a vision a reality. The book spells out the major restructuring of energy systems, tax systems, industrial and developing economies, and international and that would promote the shift to a sustainable, and ultimately more satisfying, society. References: Saving the Planet: How to Shape an Environmentally Sustainable Global Economy