The world of well-informed books and reports on current affairs is far larger than anyone imagines—at least one thousand titles per year! Many of these books and reports are addressed to a general audience, but access has heretofore been limited.
In the early 2009-early 2011 period alone, some 80 English-language books have been (or will soon be) published on the economic crisis—our most significant short-term concern–and another 90 on the world economy. In the same period, some 100 books were identified on climate change and another 70 books on the related concern of sustainability—the most important long-term challenge that we face. Also consider 150 books on world futures (including questions of globalization, global governance, human rights, and population growth), 110 books on development/anti-poverty, 130 books on security (including terrorism, peacemaking, and concerns about nuclear and biological weapons), 80 books on energy, 30 books on the looming water crisis, 60 books on food and agriculture, 60 books on planning cities, 50 books on crime, 80 books on transformative changes in communication (including impacts of the Internet and the decline of newspapers), 110 books on education (many on school reform), 110 books on health, 100 books on methods to shape the future (including book on foresight, leadership, and change processes), and much more. Numbers in all categories are rising, as new items are continually posted.
All of these books—and many others—are at www.GlobalForesightBooks.org, a new experimental website developed by Dr. Michael Marien, founder and editor of Future Survey, published by the World Future Society (1979-2008). Each new and forthcoming title includes full bibliographic and author information and a brief abstract, easily accessed by Search Books or by browsing 25 generic categories, specific A-Z subjects, authors, and more than 100 publishers. In all, nearly 2000 titles are now posted.
Too much to grasp? A list of some 10-20 Recommended Books is provided for each of the 25 generic categories. This is supplemented by a list of some 60 Paradigm-Breaking Books that purport to view matters in a different light, a list of 100 books and articles on “Appropriate Economics for the 21st Century,” and a Book of the Month feature providing a long review of an especially important title.
GFB is the first attempt to catalog all new and forthcoming books on current affairs thinking. Not only does it seek to help researchers and interested citizens find important individual books, but it enables a broad cross-disciplinary overview of current thinking in complex problem areas. For further information, visit the Home Page at www.GlobalForesightBooks.org and click FAQ or Michael Marien.
GFB is a step toward a richer and more relevant discourse, encouraging well-informed views on a wide range of issues, in the service of building secure, sensible, and sustainable democracies that work for all. # # #
