Genetic Resources in Agroecosystems - Agroecology: The Ecology of Sustainable Food Systems - page 203

Union of Concerned Scientists, genetic engineering
section
www.ucusa.org/food_and_environment/genetic
_engineering
A wealth of information and research on the
risks of genetic engineering.

Bootstrap Press: New York. A critical view of many
of the problems and dangers inherent in modern
breeding and biotechnology programs in today's
agriculture.
National Academy of Sciences. 1972. Genetic Vulnerability of
Major Crops. National Academy Press: Washington,
D.C. An early call for concern about the potential risks
of narrowing the gene pool for our major crop varieties.
National Academy of Sciences. 1975. Underexploited Tropical
Plants with Promising Economic Value. National Acad-
emy of Sciences: Washington, D.C. An examination of
the potential value and roles of minor crop species, espe-
cially those used by small or resource-limited farmers.
Plucknett, D.L., N. Smith, J. Williams, and N. Anisletty. 1987.
Gene Banks and the World's Food . Princeton University
Press: Princeton, New Jersey. A very thorough look at
the strengths and weaknesses of gene banks as means
for preserving agricultural genetic resources.
Qualset, C. and H. Shands. 2005. Safeguarding the Future of
U.S. Agriculture: The Need to Conserve Threatened
Collections of Crop Diversity Worldwide. University
of California, Division of Agriculture and Natural
Resources, Genetic Resources Conservation Program.
Davis, CA, USA. Makes a good case for putting more
resources into genebanks and emphasizes the value of
crop plant diversity for fighting emerging diseases.
Reiss, M.J. and R. Straughan. 2000. Improving Nature? The
Science and Ethics of Genetic Engineering . Cambridge
University Press: Cambridge, UK. An evaluation of the
scientific and ethical concerns surrounding genetic engi-
neering, from the integrated visions of a biologist and a
philosopher.
Ridley, M. 2004. Evolution. 3rd ed. Blackwell Science: Malden,
MA. A text that covers the history of evolutionary theory
from its origins until present times.
Rissler, J. and M. Mellon. 1996. Perils Amidst the Promise:
Ecological Risks of Transgenic Crops in a Global Market .
MIT Press: Cambridge, Massachusetts. A strong
ecological critique of the risks involved in the use of
genetically engineered crops for agriculture.
Schurman, R.A., and D.D.T. Kelso (eds.), 2003. Engineering
Trouble: Biotechnology and Its Discontents . University
of California Press: Berkeley. With examples from agri-
culture, food, forestry, and pharmaceuticals, this topic
critically examines some of the most contested issues of
genetically engineered organisms, including its social
and political consequences.
Silvertown, J. and D. Charlesworth. 2001. Introduction to Plant
Population Ecology . 4th ed. Blackwell Science: Oxford,
London, Vermont. The fundamentals of plant genetics
presented from a population ecology perspective.
Simmonds, N.W. and J. Smartt. 1999. Principles of Crop
Improvement . 2nd ed. Blackwell Science: London. A
complete review of genetics and crop improvement.
Simpson, B.B. and M.C. Ogorzaly. 2001. Economic Botany:
Plants in Our World. 3rd ed. McGraw-Hill, Inc.: New
York. A very complete and well-illustrated coverage of
the useful plants of the world, including aspects of history,
morphology, taxonomy, chemistry, and modern use.

RECOMMENDED READING

Bains, W. 1998. Biotechnology from A to Z . 2nd ed. Oxford
University Press: New York. An introduction to the field
of biotechnology in all of its forms and approaches.
Bellwood, P. 2004. First Farmers: the Origins of Agricultural
Societies. Blackwell Science: London. An archaeologi-
cal perspective on the origins and history of agriculture
and crop domestication.
Brookfield, H. 2001. Exploring Agrodiversity . Columbia
University Press: New York. An integrated overview of
the concept of diversity in agriculture, focusing as much
on the choice of crops as on the management of land,
water, and biota as a whole.
Brush, 2004. Farmer's Bounty: Locating Diversity in the Con-
temporary World. Yale University Press: New Haven,
CT. A thorough assessment of the present state of crop
diversity worldwide, written from the standpoint of an
anthropologist but with a wide scope that includes the
work of ecologists, geneticists, and ethnobotanists.
Chrispeels, M.J. and D.E. Sadava (eds.), 2003. Plants, Genes
and Crop Biotechnology . Jones and Bartlett: Sudbury,
MA. An interdisciplinary overview of the pressing
issues surrounding agricultural biotechnology and farm
management.
Doyle, J. 1985. Altered Harvest: Agriculture, Genetics, and the
Fate of the World's Food Supply . Viking Penguin: New
York. A review of the social and economic factors that
have switched the emphasis from genetic diversity to
chemical inputs for increased production, while limiting
access to seed for farmers of the world.
Fox, C.W., D.A. Roff, and D.J. Fairbairn. (eds.), 2001. Evolu-
tionary Ecology: Concepts and Case Studies . Oxford
University Press: New York. A synthetic view of the
field of evolutionary ecology, viewed as an integration
of ecology and evolutionary biology.
Gaston, K.J. and J.I. Spicer. 2004. Biodiversity: an Introduction .
2nd ed. Blackwell Science: Malden, MA. An overview
of what biodiversity is, its relevance to humanity and
issues related to its conservation.
Gliessman, S.R. 1993. “Managing diversity in traditional agro-
ecosystems of tropical Mexico.” In: Potter, C.S., J.I.
Cohen, and D. Janczewski (eds.) Perspectives on Bio-
diversity: Cases Studies of Genetic Resource Conservation
and Development . American Association for the
Advancement of Science Press: Washington, D.C.
pp. 65-74. An example of how diversity is managed in
agricultural settings that range from a specific farm field
to the natural-agricultural landscape.
Gussow, J.D. 1991. Chicken Little, Tomato Sauce and Agri-
culture: Who Will Produce Tomorrow's Food? The