Environmental Attitudes through Time

R. J. Berry, FRSE, is Professor Emeritus of Genetics, University College London. He has been president of: the Linnean Society, the British Ecological Society, the European Ecological Federation, the Mammal Society and Christians in Science. Professor Berry's research focuses on the interactions of genes and the environment. He has received both a Marsh Award for Ecology and a UK Templeton Award.

• Preface; 1. Choices; 2. No primeval Eden; 3. Striving with nature; 4. Nature's study; 5. Scientific method and the new biology - controlling; 6. Science in public affairs - organizing; 7. National nature - a digression; 8. The regulatory century; 9. Running out of world; 10. Reckoning, perhaps rueing; 11. From scavenging to supermarkets; Index.

'For those who think that environmentalism is a twenty-first Century obsession it will be a surprise to find that the burning of coal was banned in London because it was 'prejudicial to health' as long ago as 1273! These and a myriad of other facts litter the pages of this magisterial book which surveys centuries of environmental concern. Professor Berry shows that there is no human activity that is environmentally neutral. Drawing on science, philosophy, ethics and theology he examines the relationship between humanity and nature. From the Earth Charter to Ecosystems, from Gaia to God he explores the shifting attitudes to caring for creation. He is one of the elders of the environmental movement with his own distinctive and influential voice. His chapter on Awe is the best bridge over which any one could walk to survey the imaginary chasm between science and religion.' The Right Reverend James Jones, KBE, formerly Bishop of Liverpool