APPLY THE BRAKES

POPULATION GROWTH AND ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILTY

There is a growing recognition that global warming poses a grave threat
to the humans as well as the Earth's biological systems. While much
attention has been paid to creating alternative energy sources, and even
energy conservation, there is, however, little acknowledgment that
without a reduction in population, all these "solutions" will be
negated Estimates suggest that the US population will reach 400
million by 2039. That's 100 million more people than today. All of these
people will want electric lights, transportation, and heat in winter,
and so on, putting ever greater demands upon energy production. Unless
we invest a way to produce huge amounts of energy without attendant
global warming gases, an unlikely assumption, population growth will
invariably lead to greater global warming.

Population growth will likely increase global strife over all resources
which are finite whether we are talking about energy, food, water and/or
any other resource.

The bottom line: population stabilization, and ultimately decline must
be part any discussion about environmental sustainability.

George grew up in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. He had an early love for the outdoors and quickly became a naturalist interested in all aspects of nature.

As an undergraduate student, George studied a wide variety of courses, and eventually obtained degrees in liberal arts, botany and wildlife biology. He went on to graduate school at three different universities. First, he attended Montana State University in Bozeman Montana studying Range Science, then he moved to California where he entered the University of California, Santa Cruz and  obtained a graduate degree in Science Communication, and last he attended the University of Oregon where he was enrolled in a graduate program in Geography.

During his undergraduate and graduate school days, George worked as a wilderness guide and instructor for the University of Montana Outdoor Program, river ranger/biologist on the Fortymile River in Alaska, a backcountry ranger in the Gates of the Arctic National Park, a surveyor for the BLM in Alaska, a botanist/biologist for the BLM in Idaho, and a junior high school teacher in California. He also regularly guided wilderness trips in the Rockies and Alaska.

George has published 34 books, mostly on environmental and natural history topics. His most recent books are Wildfire: A Century of Failed Forest Policy and Thrillcraft: The Environmental Impacts of Motorized Recreation. 

In the research and writing of a number of books on mountain ranges, wilderness areas and parks, George has visited more mountain ranges in the West than most--having explored hundreds of ranges from New Mexico to Alaska. He has also visited more than 350 wilderness areas, and hundreds of national parks.

In particular, he is very knowledgeable about Alaska and has visited all the national parks, preserves, and major wildlife refuges in that state. As a former resident of Montana by Yellowstone National Park, George is intimately acquainted with the park and has nearly 10,000 images from the park alone, plus is extremely knowledgeable about the park's natural history.

In addition to his photography and writing, George occasionally teaches field ecology classes, photo workshops, and guides natural history wilderness tours through his company Raventrails.