Three profound transformations are under way on Earth: climate change, urbanization and biotechnology. Climate change is finally pushing us towards recognizing the need to manage the planet as a whole. With half the world's population now living in cities - a figure that is rising fast - urbanization is altering profoundly humanity's land impact and wealth. And biotechnology is becoming the world's leading engineering tool. In response to these seismic changes - and the challenges they create - Brand argues that the environmental movement must reverse some of its long-held opinions, and embrace tools and disciplines that it has traditionally distrusted - such as science and engineering - in order to forestall the cataclysmic deterioration of the earth's resources. Whole Earth Discipline shatters a number of environmental myths, and presents some radical, counterintuitive observations - cities are actually greener than the countryside, nuclear power is the future of energy, and genetic engineering is the key to crop and land management. With a combination of scientific rigor and blazing advocacy, Brand reveals us exactly where the sources of our dilemmas lie and offers a bold and creative set of policies and solutions for producing a more sustainable society.