"The mission of environmentalism is to mobilize society at all levels to confront the danger and disorder into which human activity has propelled us and guide us to a safer, saner way of living on the planet.... Environmentalism has never been about catastrophe. It is about alternatives, about changing course, about transforming the future."
— Philip Shabecoff, from Earth Rising
A Fierce Green Fire:
The American Environmental Movement
A Fierce Green Fire presents the definitive history of American environmentalism from the earliest days of the Republic to the present. Originally published in 1993, this new edition brings the story up to date with an analysis of how the administration of George W. Bush sought to dismantle a half-century of progress protecting the land and its people. It also considers the growing national effort to protect the Earth's life-support systems and the obstacles that the United States government is placing before that effort. In a forward looking last chapter, Shabecoff casts a cold eye on the challenges facing the environmental movement.
Earth Rising:
American Environmentalism in the 21st Century
Earth Rising offers a pointed and thought-provoking critique of the American environmental movement. Based on extensive interviews with a wide range of individuals both within and outside of the movement, Shabecoff elucidates the movement's strengths and weaknesses. Viewing environmental threats as symptoms of flaws in our society and its systems, he considers the urgent need for a broader, more inclusive environmentalism. Earth Rising draws a detailed road map that can guide environmentalists toward a new and reenergized place in society.
A New Name For Peace:
International Environmentalism, Sustainable Development, and Democracy
A New Name For Peace is a detailed history of international environmentalism from the beginning of a global environmental ethic to an inside view of the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro. It examines the economic and political roots of our degrading planetary environment and calls for new values and laws and international cooperation to preserve our shared air, water and resources while promoting economic development and democratic governance.
A Guide to Careers in Community Development
A Guide to Careers in Community Development describes the many different jobs in the field of community development - the economic, physical, and social revitalization of a community, led by the people who live in that community. This unique "road map," spiced with stories of community developers, offers advice for professionals, volunteers, students or any wishing to break into the field, along with guidance for career advancement and lateral movement. Co-authored with Paul C. Brophy.