By Arlene Cortez

Beyond Sun and Sand: Caribbean Environmentalisms

By Sherrie L. Baver and Barbara Deutsch Lynch

Countless images of the Caribbean involve white sand beaches with pristine waters of opalescent blues and greens. Tourists are promised an unforgettable "island adventure." For visitors from developed nations, the Caribbean islands provide a tropical sanctuary from their native urban jungles that boast steel-and-concrete mountains instead of coconut and banana trees. As an alternative perspective, Beyond Sun and Sand brings to light the economic and environmental challenges that face the inhabitants of the Caribbean. An issue with which locals persistently struggle is how to deal with a tourism industry that provides thousands of employment opportunities on the one hand, but denies residents ownership of the land on the other hand. Vacation resorts mainly benefit their owners who are commonly foreign investors, not local residents. Baver and Lynch address the tourism industry, the hazardous consequences of industrial activities and more in a collection of essays. The collection outlines the struggles and subsequent environmental movements of Jamaica, Puerto Rico, Martinique, Cuba and the Dominican Republic. The diversity of experiences and ambitions of the people presented throughout the book reflects the contradictions that make it difficult to realize "sustainable development" on a global scale. Bayer and Lynch are well aware of the fragmentation that prevents Caribbean islands from facing issues collectively. While each essay gives voice to distinct issues, an underlying search for economic independency, social justice and environmental justice weaves the individual realities together. Beyond Sun and Sand does not attempt to provide absolute solutions. If nothing else, the book illustrates how change can begin to take shape in even the most underprivileged communities through education and collaboration with academics and other advocates of environmental justice.

Women as Sacred Custodians of the Earth? Women, Spirituality and the Environment

By Alaine Low and Soraya Tremayne

Women as Sacred Custodians of the Earth asks the question whether women are better suited than men to fulfill the duties needed to nurse our damaged Earth back to health. Moreover, the book explores the sacrality, or sacredness, of women throughout the written history of humankind as depicted in ancient mythologies and ethnographic studies of indigenous cultures. From the goddesses of Ancient Greece to the priestesses of Zimbabwe, Low and Tremayne explore the variety of roles women take on in patriarchal societies. While the book also touches upon how women are treated within religious hierarchies, the portraits of human communities in remote parts of the world give the most vivid description of the relationship women have with the nonhuman, natural world. It becomes easy to connect women to the role of sacred custodian within the depth of examples given. At the same time, Low and Tremayne are careful to show examples of male custodianship of the earth that complement the roles of women. While it is a bleak illustration of life in North Asia, the chapter "Siberian Reindeer Herders" gives an alternative portrayal in which the male herders are isolated from their villages during hunting season, and as a result, become closer to their natural surroundings. The book ultimately advocates for gender equality as a preliminary step to solving the environmental problems that are present in all human communities. Low and Tremayne see men and women as equally responsible for ensuring the prosperity or "sacred custodianship" of the Earth. Readers would do well not to skip over the excellent essay, Aboriginal Women and Sacred Landscapes in Northern Australia, as that chapter alone shows modernization need not be sacrificed to be more "green." As long as people maintain a strong set of beliefs and values that take into account the needs of both humans and the environment of which they are a part, custodianship of the Earth is not an impossible feat in a world that aims to move forward.

Teachings of the Earth: Zen and the Environment

By John Daido Loori

At just over 100 pages, John Daido Loori's Teachings of the Earth offers a brisk read. Apart from length, Loori's simplistic writing style makes the book an adequate introduction to the principles of Zen Buddhism.He refers to a variety of sutras to demonstrate how humankind can come to realize greater intimacy with the natural world. The excerpts of poetry and prose from Whitman to Master Dogen give beautiful descriptions of Nature and inject clarity to Loori's message. If by the end of the final chapter Loori's teachings are still unclear, the author has included an appendix that summarizes the Zen precepts most essential to establishing harmony with the universe. The book is by no means a comprehensive guide on Zen Buddhism, but may serve as a starting point for readers who wish to discover religious teachings on the environment beyond the bounds of Western culture.