BOOK REVIEW
Ishwar C. Dhingra
Routledge, 2021, ISBN: 9781032073996 (hbk)/ 9781003206729 (ebk)
The question no longer arises as to why Green Economics (GE) emerged as an independent branch of economics. The unplanned and indiscriminate use of resources can lead to irreversible damage. Economists and policymakers have been actively engaged in identifying the strategies that may contribute to the setting up of what is known as a Green Economy.
Ishwar C. Dhingra, author of “Green Economy: Opportunities and Challenges-An International Perspective” offers a number of insights into the green economy and explains why green growth is so important, especially for developing countries. Key global environmental issues are mentioned throughout the book, and chapters 5-15 provide guidelines for greening various sectors of the economy.
The book is written in English, is 434 pages long and is divided into nineteen chapters. A brief table of contents, a detailed table of contents and a preface are included at the beginning of the book and appendices and index at the end.
The first chapter of the book, Green Economics: An Introduction, consists of four subchapters that introduce the topic and the aim of the book. It summarizes how most economic development and growth strategies have promoted the rapid accumulation of physical, financial, and human capital at the expense of excessive depletion and degradation of natural capital, and how a green economy can meet this challenge by providing a development path that reduces carbon dependence, promotes resource and energy efficiency, and reduces environmental degradation.
The second chapter, Global Environmental Issues, consists of eight subchapters that introduce the concept of the environment and its connection to man. Man’s desire for greater pleasure and comfort has led him to exploit nature’s free goods to the point of limiting their natural capacity for self-stabilization. This chapter also mentions that climate change is not just a distant threat, but is the main cause of the increasing need for humanitarian aid and we are already seeing its effects.
The third chapter, Global Response to Green Economy Initiatives, consists of nine subchapters. In it, the concept of green growth is explained in more detail and how developing countries can best use it. This chapter lists the principles of green growth and a set of general green growth goals that developing countries are increasingly striving to achieve.
Green Economy Strategies is the fourth chapter of this book and it consists of five subchapters that focus on the typology associated with the green economy, new policy instruments for a green economy, and strategies for a green economy and green growth. It also notes that cost planning is extremely important if countries want to achieve the best possible results of implementing green economy principles.
The fifth chapter, Guidelines to Green Agriculture, consists of eleven subchapters and it provides evidence to inspire policymakers to support more green investments. It also provides guidance on how to enable this transformation, which aims to increase food security, reduce poverty, improve nutrition and health, create rural jobs, and reduce pressure on the environment, including reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
Guidelines to Green Fisheries is a sixth chapter of the book with five subchapters. This chapter focuses on the challenges facing global fisheries (overfishing, climate change, and carbon dioxide emissions) and opportunities in global fisheries (jobs, recreation, tourism, consumer awareness).
Guidelines for Green Water Sector is the seventh chapter of the book with six subchapters. It states that water makes an irreplaceable contribution to ecosystem services derived from the Earth’s natural capital, and vice versa. This chapter explains water accounting and the relationship between water and energy. Emphasis was also placed on challenges and opportunities related to water management as well as enabling conditions for overcoming barriers and driving change.
The eighth chapter, Guidelines for Green Forest is comprised of seven subchapters. The forest industry is extremely important for some developing countries and besides wood products and paper, the world’s forests also produce a large amount of the energy used in developing countries, particularly among low-income households. It is important to emphasize that forests also provide a significant number of jobs, especially through the production and trade of fuelwood.
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Guidelines for Green Renewable Energy is the ninth chapter of the book and it consists of four subchapters. This chapter discusses how the global community and national governments are faced with four major challenges related to the energy sector: concerns about energy security, combating climate change, reducing pollution and public health threats, and addressing energy poverty.
Guidelines for Green Manufacturing is the tenth chapter that consist of four subchapters. Resource scarcity is an increasing threat to future economic growth and a real challenge for the manufacturing industry, particularly the scarcity of fresh water, oil and gas, and some metals. This chapter demonstrates that greening manufacturing is critical to decoupling environmental pressures from economic growth, and that green manufacturing differs from conventional manufacturing.
The eleventh chapter, Guidelines for Green Waste Management, consists of five subchapters and it examines the environmental and social benefits of greening the waste sector. Greening the waste sector refers to a shift from less preferred waste treatment and disposal methods, such as incineration and various forms of landfilling, towards the three Rs (Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle). The long-term vision for the waste sector is to create a global circular economy that minimizes the use of materials and the generation of waste.
Guidelines for Greening Building is the twelfth chapter of this book and it consist of three subchapters. According to the International Energy Agency, green buildings are characterized by higher energy efficiency, lower water and material consumption, and better health and environment. In this chapter, the author notes that much experimentation and significant progress has been made with low-energy building strategies and technologies over the past 40 years, but green buildings are still in the early stages of development in most countries.
Guidelines for Green Transport is the thirteenth chapter and it is comprised of three chapters as well. Although transportation is central to the lives of citizens around the world, current transportation patterns, driven primarily by fossil fuel-powered motor vehicles, impose a number of environmental, social, and economic costs. Transport-related pollution, noise, and vibration can pose a serious threat to human health and well-being. For this reason, more sustainable design of transportation activities must be considered to reduce negative impacts.
The fourteenth chapter, Guidelines for Green Tourism, consists of six subchapters whose main objective is to prove how the greening of tourism can lead to comprehensive economic, social and environmental benefits. This chapter highlights the main problems associated with greening tourism as well as the main opportunities, and at the very end of the chapter, solutions to potential problems in greening tourism are discussed.
The fifteenth chapter, Guidelines for Green Cities, is divided into seven subchapters and it offers reflections on green cities and their definition. This chapter lists various indicators for measuring the environmental performance of cities and notes that the environmental performance of cities depends on a combination of effective green strategies and physical structure - urban form, size, density, and configuration.
The sixteenth chapter is Success Stories in Green Economy. It consists of two subchapters and, as the title of the chapter itself suggests, the focus is on examples of countries that have succeeded in applying green economy principles in different sectors of the economy.
The seventeenth chapter of a book, International Initiatives for Green Economy, consists of thirteen subchapters that list all the major conferences that have taken place since the 1970s, as well as the decisions, laws, and policies adopted at these conferences that relate to the implementation of sustainability in all areas of life.
The last two chapters of this book, Profile of Natural Resources and Issues thereof in India and Green Economy Issues in India, consist of eighteen and seven subchapters and they are mainly focused on the natural resources and problems of applying green economy in India
While the concept of ‘sustainable development’ imposes on developed countries to reduce their consumption of natural resources for future generations, the green economy would entail no such constraint and on the contrary, would open a huge market for products and technologies that the developed world could sell to developing countries. In this book, the author has sufficiently elaborated the different green economy issues being faced by the global economy. In many chapters, the author also provides concrete examples that more clearly show ways and toolkits for simpler application of the green economy. Because of its clear and systematic approach, this book is a valuable resource for policymakers, researchers, students, educators and anyone interested in learning more about green economics and sustainability.
Tatjana Špoljarić, PhD Student University of Rijeka,
Faculty of Tourism and Hospitality Management E-mail: tatjanas@fthm.hr
Špoljarić, T. (2023). [Review of the book Green Economy: Opportunities and Challenges An International Perspective, by Ishwar C. Dhingra]. Tourism and Hospitality Management, 29(2), 313-314, https://doi.org/10.20867/thm.29.2.14
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