ABSTRACT
There is general agreement that important linkages exist between population and environment. Much of the debate about this relationship, however, has been based on the macro level of analysis, using worldwide historical statistics and aggregate simulations. This approach has neglected the findings and perspectives of micro level research on specific communities and regions. These findings, if analyzed systematically and comprehensively, could greatly contribute to our understanding of the population-environment relationship and of the many intermediary factors that condition it. The goal of this volume is to assist in a rethinking of the population and environment debate by helping to place population processes in their social, political and economic settings, whether they be local, regional or global, and by linking them to environmental outcomes.
