Review written by
Curtis M Goodman

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Biodiversity and Democracy; Rethinking Society and Nature is an interesting and provocative narrative of the evermore apparent need for balance between humankind and nature.  Paul M. Wood explores the issue of biodiversity across the globe, presenting a thorough analysis of our current land-use decision model, and the resultant effects on species and ecosystems.  This book provides an excellent resource for students, professors, or stakeholders involved in land-use decision making and environmental sciences.  In reviewing this book criterion include: background of the author; overall content; organization; and personal reflections.  In brief, this book is a challenging read, often logically cumbersome, but an excellent resource for better understanding issues of biodiversity and the potential implications on democratic societies.

Author Paul Wood, is currently a professor specialized in forest resource management at the University of British Columbia.  He presents a unique perspective, addressing how land-use decision making is carried out within the forestry sector.  His findings are also applicable to promoting greater environmental well-being.  Woods has a background in biology, philosophy, and political theory; this is evident with the thorough and coherent arguments presented.  For many years Wood served as a conservation policy consultant for the province of British Columbia and multiple timber-firms.  The varied experience and academic background is reflected in the writing style. The tone of the book adds great significance of the greater societal implications of biodiversity loss – adding a sense of urgency to the issue.

Wood explores the correlation of population growth patterns and environmental damages, mainly loss of biodiversity.  The beginning line grabs reader’s attention; “biodiversity loss is one of the greatest threats to human tenure on Earth.”  With the threat of extinction looming the readers mind’s Wood explains how biodiversity is an essential biological condition for life.  The evidence provides substantial basis for the “priority-of-diversity” principles, where “in public land-use decisions, the conservation of biological diversity must take priority over the public interest.”  As the main argument defended the author examines the possibility of implementing such a principle in a democratic society. Written in 2000, this book supplies relevant information for current public debate over climate-change and global warming.  Wood is able to integrate the variety of issues at hand, suggesting a reevaluation of society’s impact on the natural environment.

Drawing from current and historical evidence Wood instills a full understanding of our society’s land-use problem.  Specifically, the alteration, fragmentation, and destruction of the natural environment with the means of obtaining valuable resources (or commodities) have been the primary driver in loss of biodiversity.  Wood is careful to distinguish that biodiversity is not a resource in itself, rather a necessary condition for perpetuation of life on Earth.  Framing the issue from economic and political perspectives Wood argues biodiversity loss carries implications for constitutional limitations on legislative and executive powers within government.  Illustrating his idea with examples from public forest land-use Wood suggests a tyranny of the majority is created, as current decision making models do not account for societal interests.  The point is well argued, developed through an organized analysis of the practical reasoning society uses towards nature, and how this impacts land-use decisions.  The first section is dedicated to delineating the scope and nature of his argument. View Full Article »