Agroforestry-- The future of global land use /

This book is derived from the 2nd World Agroforestry Congress, held in Kenya in 2009. Each of its three sections provides a different perspective on agroforestry. The first section contains the keynote addresses of the conference presented as separate chapters, each with big ideas and their implications. The chapters would make good starting points for class or seminar discussions. The second section takes a global view of current important topics, such as climate change, and the role agroforestry plays in those topics. The chapters in the third section focus on specific geographic regions. Had the chapter authors merely reported on activities in each region, this section could have been a tiring, repetitive read. However, each chapter not only discusses regional priorities and concerns, but also usually presents an interesting local system or problem. For example, the chapter on Japan documents long-term changes in a specific landscape and the cultural and ecological importance of the landscape. Though the book is expensive, the synthesis of recent information is not duplicated in typical journal articles and represents a significant contribution to the understanding of agroforestry today. Summing Up: Highly recommended. Upper-division undergraduates through professionals. B. D. Orr Michigan Technological University