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Title details for A World Without Soil by Jo Handelsman - Available

A World Without Soil

The Past, Present, and Precarious Future of the Earth Beneath Our Feet

by Jo Handelsman
Kayla Cohen
Audiobook
57 of 57 copies available
Borrow Listen to a sample Listen to a sample
57 of 57 copies available
A scientist's manifesto addressing a soil loss crisis accelerated by poor conservation practices and climate change
This book by celebrated biologist Jo Handelsman lays bare the complex connections among climate change, soil erosion, food and water security, and drug discovery.

Humans depend on soil for 95 percent of global food production, yet let it erode at unsustainable rates. In the United States, China, and India, vast tracts of farmland will be barren of topsoil within this century. The combination of intensifying erosion caused by climate change and the increasing food needs of a growing world population is creating a desperate need for solutions to this crisis.

Writing for a nonspecialist audience, Jo Handelsman celebrates the capacities of soil and explores the soil-related challenges of the near future. She begins by telling soil's origin story, explains how it erodes and the subsequent repercussions worldwide, and offers solutions. She considers lessons learned from indigenous people who have sustainably farmed the same land for thousands of years, practices developed for large-scale agriculture, and proposals using technology and policy initiatives.

  • Creators

  • Publisher

  • Release date

    November 23, 2021

  • Formats

    • OverDrive Listen audiobook

      • ISBN: 9781666155099
      • File size: 218021 KB
      • Duration: 07:34:12

  • Languages

    • English

  • Reviews

    • AudioFile Magazine
      Narrator Rosemary Benson expresses alarm as she delivers Jo Handelsman's plea for global and U.S. government action on the looming soil crisis. The audiobook is the "memo" Handelsman would like to have sent President Obama while she served as a White House science adviser. Expressing clear concern Benson ticks off soil problems that include deforestation, erosion, and shortsighted farming practices around the world. She makes listeners hear Handelsman's fascination at seeing a legume grow from lava rock. She also brings a sense of high-stakes drama to a competition intended to help teach soil classification. Handelsman tells listeners that proper soil stewardship could alleviate climate concerns, even as we feed a growing global population. J.A.S. © AudioFile 2022, Portland, Maine

Formats

  • OverDrive Listen audiobook

subjects

Languages

  • English

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