In the early 1970s, the environmental movement was underway. Over population was recognised as a threat to human well-being, and scientists like Michael Soule believed there was a connection between anthropogenic pressures on natural resources and the loss of the planet's biodiversity. Soule recognised the importance of a healthy natural world and with other leaders of the day pushed for a new interdisciplinary approach to preserving biological diversity. Thirty years later, he is hailed by many as the single most important force in the development of the modern science of conservation biology. This book is a select collection of seminal writings by Michael Soule over a thirty-year time-span from 1980 through the present day. Intended for a new generation of students, it offers a fresh presentation of goals of conservation biology, and inspiration and guidance for the global biodiversity crises facing us today. Readers will come away with an understanding of the science, passion, idealism, and sense of urgency that drove early founders of conservation biology like Michael Soule.

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