Managing Wholes
Creating a future that works

This grassroots site is about management for simultaneous social, financial, and ecological benefit. Our goal is to promote change toward a future that works. More…

Today's featured photo:

gully
Erosion often happens when plant roots are too shallow to hold soil. This brittle (seasonally dry) grassland in northeastern Oregon was damaged by prolonged rest from grazing. Erosion slide show...

Today's featured book:

book
Beyond the Rangeland Conflict. Dan Dagget explores how ranchers and environmentalists can work together to solve the environmental problems of the American West. Buy at Amazon, Booksense, or Half.com


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Recent additions

Soil Carbon Coalition founded. Enterprise, Oregon, January 2008--The Soil Carbon Coalition, with pending 501c3 nonprofit status, plans to advance the practice of turning atmospheric carbon into soil organic matter, and to advance public awareness of the soil carbon opportunity to enhance biosphere processes and reverse global heating.

Priority One cover

Australian author reveals comprehensive solutions to the climate crisis. Enterprise, Oregon, July 2007--Biosphere Media has published a US/UK edition of Allan Yeomans's controversial book Priority One: Together We Can Beat Global Warming.

Allan Yeomans has a background in physics, chemistry, meteorology, and agriculture. He realized that the rapid development of soil organic matter could solve the global warming problem, in combination with a switch to nonfossil energy sources. But most scientists, experts, organizations, and governments are unfamiliar with soil-enhancing farming and grazing methods, or the large and rapid increases in soil organic matter that they were achieving. "The undue influence of the coal, oil, and gas industries on every aspect of American politics has blinded Americans to the opportunities we have to stop global warming," he said. Continue article...

Forestry that Works. 30-minute film about excellent forest stewardship, highlighting the opportunities for public land management, and some observations on fire. Forestry that Works page, with a trailer and ordering info.

Discover the most common cause of droughts and floods worldwide. Viewable as a Flash movie with quiz, HTML slide show, or downloadable Flash and PowerPoint versions for classroom use, presentations, and offline viewing. In 6 languages:

Water cycle basics
水循环常识
Водный цикл
Los principios fundamentales del ciclo del agua
Les principes de base du cycle de l'eau
المبادئ الأساسية لدورة الماء في الطبيعة

Other recent posts…

Today's featured story

Brittleness: an introduction

Most of us have at least a working understanding of the terms arid, tropical, desert, etc. when used to describe landscapes or ecosystems. Brittleness, on the other hand, is a relatively little known measure of earth's environments.

The concept of brittleness developed from an observation by Allan Savory that environments are on a continuum of two types. Some have regular distribution of moisture (whether rain, snow, or humidity) throughout the seasons -- termed "non-brittle." At the other extreme of the continuum, "brittle" environments have very different characteristics with irregular uneven distribution of moisture during the year. Read article…

Sample articles

Merve Wilkinson's sustainably managed Wildwood Tree Farm: Since 1945, Merve Wilkinson has managed 140 acres on Vancouver Island to produce biodiversity, environmental benefit, and profit. Thousands of people visit each year, including foresters from all over the world.

More sustainable forestry articles

Ecosystem basics — solar energy flow: Explores the energy that drives ecosystem processes. By Peter Donovan

More ecosystem articles

Generating social capital in an urban neighborhood: An asset-based approach to urban neighborhood development in the West Central neighborhood of Spokane, Washington (USA).

More stories about building communities

Managed grazing helps river basin resist drought: Changing grazing management in a Zimbabwe river's catchment area healed environmental damage, returned a river to year-round flow, and brought back wildlife.

More environmental restoration articles

More sample articles