Text Book Chapter Info - Environatics

About the Textbook

We distribute the user friendly scientific manual, An Ecological Guide to Sustainable Living in Southen Africa, by Prof M.L. Hugo and Jean Hugo, in eBook format with multiple hyperlinks to all paragraphs for further study.

If interested you can leave a message on (+27) 82 578 3023 or 082 390 5201 or contact us on jeanhugo1000@gmail.com or leonhugo7777@gmail.com. A complementary electronic copy may be requested.

Also available are 7 FREE introductory lessons (called ECOSYSTEMS for NEWBIES) for beginners that have not had specialized exposure to prepare them for further studies in the environmental field.

The website expands the practical application and relevance of the textbook. Together, the manual and website will draw you right into the very heart of nature and it is guaranteed to change the way you think about your part in it forever.

Chapter Headings:

Chapter 1: Meeting the challenge of human survival on earth. The environment is under real threat of a collapse and the only way to prevent this is by studying it in a holistic approach; understanding the environment as an integrated system.
Chapter 2: Structure and composition of the ecosphere. In order to understand the environmental system, we need to analyse its components.
Chapter 3: The dynamics of ecosystem functioning. Environmental elements are functionally integrated in a dynamic way through natural laws and principles.
Chapter 4: Classification and organisation in the ecosphere. An analysis of the earth’s biomes shows how they function as ecosystems (terrestrial, freshwater and marine).
Chapter 5: Human habitation of the earth. An historic analysis of how humans have utilized the earth from primitive societies, through the agricultural and industrial revolutions into the modern era. A view of how modern land use types such as agriculture and urban development function from an ecosystem perspective.
Chapter 6: The environment as a resource. A description of our resource base is offered and classified as energy and mineral resources; as well as biological, atmospheric, soil and water resources.
Chapter 7: Degradation of the environment. The way in which we have misused the earth by, for example, species eradication, habitat destruction, deforestation, desertification, pollution, etc. informs an understanding of the need to take care and live according to our limited resource base.
Chapter 8: Conserving the environment. The chapter addresses the current situation and the need for conservation. It discusses the various methods to do so by means of National Parks, Contractual (Peace) Parks, Biosphere Reserves, Ramsar sites, Conservancies, Natural Heritage sites, and so forth.
Chapter 9: Managing natural resources. A discussion on topics such as development versus conservation; eco-efficiency; sustainable development and sustainable living, and more. An application on how natural resources (water, soils, vegetation, etc.); sensitive environments (dunes, wetlands, etc.); as well as land uses (agriculture, mining, forestry, fisheries, tourism, urbanization, etc.) are managed.
Chapter 10: Evaluating the natural environment and development projects. The methods of determining land potential for sustainable living by means of Terrain Evaluation techniques, Environmental Impact Assessments (EIA), Social Impact Assessments (SIA) and Integrated Environmental Management (IEM).
Chapter 11: Solving the environmental crisis. What does the future hold? Examining the fundamental cause(s) of the environmental crisis and the role of technology, ethics, religion and social considerations in our quest towards a sustainable approach to land use.