This book is intended as a working guide for the citizen interested in understanding global environmental issues and taking action to confront them. Fourteen "issue" chapters document major changes resulting from the rapid growth of human numbers and their impacts on Earth's resources. Each chapter concludes with a resource section that contains books, articles, pamphlets, brochures, periodicals, films, other audiovisual materials, and teaching aids. An introduction summarizes each of the problem areas and identifies problem impacts and problem causes (62 citations). Chapter topics include: (1) foresight capability (20 resources); (2) population growth (31 resources); (3) development and environment (52 resources); (4) food and agriculture (63 resources); (5) biological diversity (34 resources); (6) tropical forests (33 resources); (7) ocean and coastal resources (46 resources); (8) fresh water (41 resources); (9) nonfuel minerals (30 resources); (10) energy (45 resources); (11) air, atmosphere, and climate (37 resources); (12) hazardous substances (39 resources); (13) solid waste management (45 resources); (14) global security (44 resources); (15) moving towards a sustainable future (47 resources); and (16) suggestions for environmental action (50 resources). An appendix contains a list of related national and international organizations. (LZ)