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For hundreds of
millennia, humans connected tightly to the land and the life forms their
survival depended upon, because that was how it had to be. Failure to connect
was not an option; if you didn’t know how plants grew, how animals bred, how
rivers ran, how the seasons and the weather changed, then you did not survive.
In some parts of the world – the Native American tribal lands of West Coast
USA, the dense forests of West Papua, the deep valleys and jagged mountains of
northern India – these connections remain, and cling on despite the best
efforts of those who seek to gain more from the land than “mere” survival.
This connection has ebbed away from the majority of humanity, in many cases to
the extent that people feel nothing for anything humans have not created
themselves. But we cannot eat tarmac; we cannot breathe television; we cannot
drink money.
"Monbiot and Lynas are good but they
don’t go far enough. This is the book I wanted to read – full of ‘fancy
that’ moments, it’s unexpectedly entertaining and a page turner. It’s also
the most subversive book I’ve ever read." (Ana
Salote, Author of Tree Talk.)
"Keith Farnish skilfully joins his natural science training to his gifts
in narrative writing. If 'utopia' is an imaginative reconstruction of one of
many preferable societies, the concluding part is utopian. On the cusp of the
Apocalypse, enjoy it." (Robert
E. Lane, Professor of political science Emeritus, Yale University.)
"A Matter of Scale is a powerful read. Farnish is a long-time
environmental writer, and his experience shows. Farnish implores us to expand
our narrow perspectives about what’s going on with our planet by examining
issues that often slip by the naked eye: issues of scale." (Caroline
Savery, Sustainablog.)
Read the Earth Blog article: A
Matter Of Scale - The Story Behind The Book
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The book is offered free to read online because getting the message out is the most important thing. However, I always need funds for giving talks, making phone calls and producing materials - any donation is welcome. Please ignore this if you have nothing to spare.
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