The rescue effect The key to saving life on earth

In the face of climate change that is as demoralizing as it is alarming, Webster, a visiting professor at Cornell University's department of natural resources and the environment, offers an almost sanguine view of the future in considering a combination of six types of environmental rescue: demographic (new individuals emigrating to a struggling population), reproductive (a "baby boom" resulting from low competition), genetic (immigrants bringing new genetic diversity), phenotype (organisms adjusting themselves to changing conditions), geographic (relocation of a species), and evolutionary ("survival of the fittest" to persist under stressful conditions). Then he adds a seventh: "resurrectional rescue." He details case studies--Ascension Island, tiger reserves in India, Caribbean coral reefs, American chestnut trees--in which all of these rescues play out, some of them successful and others more challenging, like resurrecting the extinct cave bear and woolly mammoth. Webster pushes against the notion of "nature as museum," arguing that nature itself has, over millennia, radically changed habitats, to which flora and fauna have often successfully adapted. Given the complexity of these processes, and the authoritativeness of the text, this is still well aimed at the general reader, the result being a near oxymoron: a realistic action plan built on hope.

Many species on Earth today are facing dire situations, but hope is not lost. Giving examples of how other species have survived or adapted throughout time, marine biologist Webster (natural resources and environment, Cornell Univ.) provides an optimistic view. Eight of the book's nine chapters focus on a particular creature or environment, such as tigers in India or Ascension Island. Both history and current events are included in explaining what happened to create the problems and what the future--both good and bad--could hold with or without human interference. After all, even if something is saved, something else is lost. Research, personal interviews, and up-to-date statistics support the text. Webster strikes a nice balance in his writing, including personal anecdotes, but not so many or so detailed that they distract from the subject. The chapters end with thoughts or questions for readers to consider. The author himself struggles with some of the ethical issues of conservationism, so he encourages readers to determine matters for themselves. VERDICT Socially conscious readers wanting to avoid doomsday environmental messaging will likely appreciate this one.--Elissa Cooper