ABSTRACT
The cliché “all politics are local” expresses a general characteristic of human decision making, and the generalization “all ecosystems are local” defines a natural property of living communities, from molecules to ecosystems, from mountains to seas. The onrush of industrialization, the plundering of nonrenewable resources, and the pressure of increasing human population have set the stage for negative changes in species survival and the integrity of the soil. Such rapid changes have not occurred perhaps since the Permian era. In the past, shifts in the planet’s population were due to natural forces. In contrast, those facing us today are likely due to our own activities. Recognition of the problem is the first step in finding a solution. “We have met the enemy,” said comic strip character Pogo, “and he is us!” However, this is not enough. Avoiding disastrous global warming, stopping habitat destruction and overfishing, ending smog and acid rain, and correcting all the insults to which the environment is heir sometimes appear beyond our abilities. To whom shall we turn? Big Business? Big Government? Big Green?
