New Free Book (download): SUSTAINABLE FOOD SYSTEMS: THE ROLE OF THE CITY (British viewpoint)

72 views
Skip to first unread message

Debbie Hillman

unread,
Dec 8, 2016, 10:50:16 AM12/8/16
to Advocates for Urban Agriculture
Just wanted to make sure that Chicago-area folks know about this new book, free as a PDF download.   See attached announcement (posted on COMFOOD) or go directly to website at UCL Press  (UCL stands for University College London).


Details:
Sustainable Food Systems: The Role of the City
by Robert Biel - teaches at University College London
Available in hardback, paperback, on-line, or free open access download

The author’s bio is quite interesting:
Robert Biel teaches Political Ecology at the Bartlett Development Planning Unit, UCL, and also runs a Master’s module on Food and the City. His books include The Entropy of Capitalism (Brill/Haymarket Press, 2013). He is an allotment holder, with 15 years’ experience in low-input, intensive food-growing, and is involved in several research projects exploring a specifically urban agroecology. 


I have not looked at the book yet, but my experience in reading non-American research and opinions has usually been eye-opening.   I always learn some new facts and often my perspective is broadened to become more historical, more multi-cultural, etc.   And frankly, since many American legal institutions and traditions derive from the U.K. as well as our language, I sometimes see some major disconnect that has caused major American confusion (e.g., that capitalism is equivalent to democracy, that we live in a free market).    

If anyone on AUA reads this book in the near future, I’d be interested in thoughts about how it relates to  sustainable food systems in U.S. cities, especially Chicago (which is a little more removed from British roots than say, Canadian or East coast cities).   (Likewise I’ll share any thoughts when I get a chance to look at it.)

— Debbie




Begin forwarded message:

Subject: [COMFOOD: ] New Free Book: Sustainable Food Systems: The Role of the City
Date: December 8, 2016 at 5:25:35 AM CST


UCL Press is delighted to announce the publication of a brand new open access
book that may be of interest to list subscribers: Sustainable Food Systems:
The Role of the City. Download it free from http://bit.ly/2hnwYY3 

************************************************
Sustainable Food Systems: The Role of the City
Robert Biel
Download free: http://bit.ly/2hnwYY3 

************************************************

Faced with a global threat to food security, it is perfectly possible that
society will respond, not by a dystopian disintegration, but rather by
reasserting co-operative traditions. This book, by a leading expert in urban
agriculture, offers a genuine solution to today’s global food crisis. By
contributing more to feeding themselves, cities can allow breathing space for
the rural sector to convert to more organic sustainable approaches.

Biel’s approach connects with current debates about agroecology and food
sovereignty, asks key questions, and proposes lines of future research. He
suggests that today’s food insecurity – manifested in a regime of wildly
fluctuating prices – reflects not just temporary stresses in the existing mode
of production, but more profoundly the troubled process of generating a new
one. He argues that the solution cannot be implemented at a merely technical
or political level: the force of change can only be driven by the kind of
social movements which are now daring to challenge the existing unsustainable
order.

Drawing on both his academic research and teaching, and 15 years’ experience
as a practicing urban farmer, Biel brings a unique interdisciplinary approach
to this key global issue.

Download free: http://bit.ly/2hnwYY3

************************************************
www.ucl.ac.uk/ucl-press | Follow us on Twitter & Instagram @uclpress











Reply all
Reply to author
Forward
0 new messages