If you used the book, Where there is no Doctor, you may want to have a look at this new Hesperian manual

Review by Roland Bunch, author of "Two Ears of Corn."

Some writers would have us believe that poor communities and poor nations inevitably must pollute the environment and destroy forests if they are to achieve economic development efficiently. This myth tends to pit those who are worried about the environment against those who are worried about development. A new book from Hesperian Foundation, A Community Guide to Environmental Health, by Jeff Conant and Pam Fadem, dispels this myth.

This 600 page Guide, from the publisher best known for community health manuals such as Where There Is No Doctor, offers concrete information to support community development that promotes health while also protecting the environment.

As just one example, poor, subsistence farmers can plant what are now called “green manure/cover crops.” These are plants that can fertilize the soil and control weeds, or do both things, and much more. Farmers who plant corn can plant jackbeans (Canavalia ensiformis) right in among their corn plants. The jackbean plants can control most of the weeds while fixing over 200 kg/ha of nitrogen, more than the farmers would ever apply in chemical fertilizer. When the large, foot-long pods are still tender, they can be eaten. And after the harvest, the jackbean pods and stems can serve as firewood. Furthermore, the jackbean usually increases per-hectare yields of corn. Farmers can, therefore, with one simple change in their practices, reduce chemical fertilizer use by about 70%, eliminate the use of herbicides, add more protein and calories to their diets, reduce the cutting of forests for firewood and increase the organic matter of their soils, which in turn increases the their yields. And at what cost? That of an initial handful of seeds. Thus, with the right knowledge and training, the poorest of farmers can increase their incomes in ways that improve the environment. Development and environmentalism, far from antithetical, can be mutually supportive.

A Community Guide to Environmental Health provides us with dozens, if not hundreds, of ways that the poor can improve their environment and their economic well-being. It’s all here—ways that resource-poor farm families can organize themselves, educate themselves, pressure for political change, grow more food more sustainably and improve the environment in which they live, all at the same time. For those of us who want to end poverty and improve the environment, this book contains a treasure trove of information.

You can order this valuable handbook at www.hesperian.org