Biodiversity is critical to maintaining the integrity of ecosystems and the ecological processes that support species and human well-being. The world is facing an unprecedented rate of species extinction: one in eight bird species, one in four mammals, and one in three amphibians are threatened....

Foreword / by Waldemar W. Wirsig -- Introduction -- Mixed performance -- Differentiated and complex systems -- A typology for distinguishing myth from reality -- Key policy issues -- Between status quo and neoliberal extremes