Forests being the lungs of planet Earth are the most important ecosystems. They act as carbon sinks and sustain a huge amount of carbon in them. They play an extremely important role for the survival of the living beings on this earth. From human beings to the flora and fauna of the earth’s ecosystem depend on the forests in some way or the other. Forests are the repositories of enormous biodiversity on this planet. They are an adobe to millions of species of animals including human beings, plants and microorganisms. They also give massive ecosystem services to mankind and to all the living beings thriving on this earth. They regulate climate, water cycles and carbon sequestering on this planet. They even provide a livelihood to human beings all over the world. They check global warming on this earth. The parameter of sustainable development is that forest and biodiversity is conserved for the coming generations also. Forests are the most important repositories of terrestrial biological diversity. The diversity of life amongst the living beings and their distinct habitats, the interactions between the various components of the biodiversity makes this planet a habitable place for various life forms. Forest conservation is extremely important for intergenerational equity and the principle of sustainable development paves the way. The forests especially in the domains of forestry and agriculture provide 40% of the world’s economy. This is due to the biological diversity in the forest ecosystems. 70% of the world’s poor populace who live in rural areas is directly dependent on biodiversity for their livelihood. A rough estimate of 60 million indigenous folks are somehow reliant on forests for their daily needs. The Supreme Court of India in Rural Litigation and Entitlement Kendra v. State of Uttar Pradesh elucidated the importance of ecosystem services as provided by the forests.

A global assessment of potential and anticipated impacts of efforts to achieve the SDGs on forests and related socio-economic systems. This title is available as Open Access via Cambridge Core.

The loss of the earth's biological diversity is widely recognized as a critical environmental problem. That loss is most severe in developing countries, where the conditions of human existence are most difficult. Conserving Biodiversity presents an agenda for research that can provide information to formulate policy and design conservation programs in the Third World. The book includes discussions of research needs in the biological sciences as well as economics and anthropology, areas of critical importance to conservation and sustainable development. Although specifically directed toward development agencies, non-governmental organizations, and decisionmakers in developing nations, this volume should be of interest to all who are involved in the conservation of biological diversity.

This edited book deals with plant genetic resources and their status, availability, and ecological niche in natural habitat. Usage and conservation practices followed by various tribal communities and their rationale are also discussed in the book. The book explores application of biological tools to conserve plant species and optimization protocols for conservation and elicitation of secondary metabolites and other value addition products. The book is organized into sub-themes covering: (i) Ecological status of plant genetic resources (ii) Traditional ethnobotanical knowledge and conservation practices (iii) Ex-situ conservation practices and bioprospecting Globally, plant genetic resources are deeply rooted in culture and economy. Since the early 1990s, the changing socio-economic situation has increasingly put pressure on plant genetic resources, in some cases leading to a severe loss of their diversity. For this reason, most vulnerable areas at risk of genetic erosion have been demarcated and protected by forest laws and regulations. Therefore, this book brings to light the opinions of leading experts in the area of ecology, conservation biodiversity, ethanobotany, and bioprospecting of plant genetic resources. The book is for use by graduate and advanced undergraduate students and researchers in plant physiology, molecular biology, biochemistry, and agriculture. Additionally, it is extremely useful as a general reference on conservation of flora and large-scale cultivation.

Innovative Exploration Methods for Mineral, Oil, Gas, and Groundwater for Sustainable Development provides an integrated approach to exploration encompassing geology, geophysics, mining, and mineral processing. In addition, groundwater exploration is included, as it is central to the development of earth resources. As the demand for coal, minerals, oil and gas, and water continues to grow globally, researchers must prioritize sustainable exploration methods. Old technologies are being replaced speedily and exploration work has become fast, focused, meaningful, and readily reproducible keeping in pace with the changing global scenario. The themes of exploration of energy resources, exploration of minerals, groundwater exploration and processing and mineral engineering are separated out into sections and chapters included in these sections include case studies focusing on tools and techniques for exploration. Innovative Exploration Methods for Mineral, Oil, Gas, and Groundwater for Sustainable Development gives insight to modern concepts of exploration for those working in the various fields of energy, mineral, and groundwater exploration. - Presents innovative research that will both challenge and complement the traditional concepts of exploration - Covers a wide range of instruments and their applications, as well as the tools and processes that need to be followed for modern exploration work - Includes research on groundwater exploration with a focus on conservation and sustainable exploration and development

Mineral Exploration: Principles and Applications, Second Edition, presents an interdisciplinary approach on the full scope of mineral exploration. Everything from grass root discovery, objective base sequential exploration, mining, beneficiation, extraction, economic evaluation, policies and acts, rules and regulations, sustainability, and environmental impacts is covered. Each topic is presented using theoretical approaches that are followed by specific applications that can be used in the field. This new edition features updated references, changes to rules and regulations, and new sections on oil and gas exploration and classification, air-core drilling, and smelting and refining techniques. This book is a key resource for both academics and professionals, offering both practical and applied knowledge in mineral exploration. Offers important updates to the previous edition, including sections on the cyclical nature of mineral industry, exploration for oil and gas, CHIM-electro-geochemical survey, air-core drilling, classification of oil and gas resources, smelting, and refining technologies Presents global case studies that allow readers to quickly apply exploration concepts to real-world scenarios Includes 385 illustrations and photographs to aid the reader in understanding key procedures and applications

CONSERVATION BIOGEOGRAPHY The Earth’s ecosystems are in the midst of an unprecedented period of change as a result of human action. Many habitats have been completely destroyed or divided into tiny fragments, others have been transformed through the introduction of new species, or the extinction of native plants and animals, while anthropogenic climate change now threatens to completely redraw the geographic map of life on this planet. The urgent need to understand and prescribe solutions to this complicated and interlinked set of pressing conservation issues has lead to the transformation of the venerable academic discipline of biogeography – the study of the geographic distribution of animals and plants. The newly emerged sub-discipline of conservation biogeography uses the conceptual tools and methods of biogeography to address real world conservation problems and to provide predictions about the fate of key species and ecosystems over the next century. This book provides the first comprehensive review of the field in a series of closely interlinked chapters addressing the central issues within this exciting and important subject.

The existential environmental crisis prompted the United Nations to formulate the Millennium Development Goals at the turn of the 21st century in order to embark on an era of sustainable development. The progress and deficiencies in achieving the Millennium Development Goals provided impetus to the intelligentsia and policymakers to map out the pertinent goals for a sustainable growth trajectory for humanity and the planet. The United Nations’ 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which was adopted in September 2015, took the shape of 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and 169 targets. In effect, the 17 Sustainable Development Goals focus on protecting the earth's life support systems for intra- and inter-generational equity and for development that is rooted in sustainability science. Attaining these goals is an uphill task; nevertheless, scientific knowledge, trans and interdisciplinary inquiries, concerted global action and capacity building would provide an enabling environment for achieving the SDGs. This book explores the synergies and trade-offs between climate change management and other SDGs. It highlights the policy imperatives as well as the interrelations between combating climate change and its impacts (SDG 13) and food and nutritional security (SDG 2), water security (SDG 6), soil security (SDG 15), energy security (SDG 7), poverty eradication (SDG 1), gender equality (SDG 5), resilient infrastructure (SDG 9), and sustainable and resilient cities (SDG 11).