Of Limits and Growth: The Rise of Global Sustainable Development in the Twentieth Century

Abstract

Stephen J. Macekura's Of Limits and Growth provides a dispassionate and thorough yet concise account of the emergence of “sustainable development” as a unifying mantra for environmentalists and those interested in economic development. The book “chronicles how two generations of reformers identified, defined, and sought to redress the environmental challenges of the twentieth century” (p. 12). It adeptly brings to life the key personalities involved and illuminates their interactions in the rapidly changing post–World War II era. It draws heavily on the papers of the British scientist Julian Huxley and the U.S. tax court judge Russell E. Train. Both men were shocked to learn what the decolonization of Africa during the late 1950s and early 1960s could mean for Africa's wildlife. Their activism resulted in the birth of nongovernmental organizations (ngos) such as the International Union for the Conservation of Nature, the World Wildlife Fund, and the African Wildlife Leadership Foundation.