NEWS
ENCYCLOPEDIA OF LIFE SUPPORT SYSTEMS (EOLSS)

1. “Our Fragile World: Challenges and Opportunities for Sustainable Development” a publication in two hardback volumes about 2300 pages, with an accompanying CD-ROM has been officially released as forerunner to the Encyclopedia of Life support Systems, by Koïchiro Matsuura, Director-General of UNESCO, on 30 May 2001 during the 161st Session of the UNESCO Executive Board Meeting in Paris. It includes complimentary single-user access to the web-based Encyclopedia for two years.

This publication presents integrated knowledge and worldviews related to the state of: Earth’s natural resources, human and cultural resources, institutional resources, and economic, financial and technological resources. It presents the vision and thinking of over 200 authors in support of efforts to solve the complex problems connected with peace, equity, justice, world stability and global sustainable development, and to secure perennial life support on ‘The Blue Planet’. The presentations are holistic, informative, and forward-looking, and will be of interest to a broad readership. It also features a “Series of Interviews with Outstanding Personalities”, conducted by Patricia Morales. Interviews with Maurice Strong, Mikhail Gorbachev, Steven Rockefeller, Maritta Koch-Weser, Shridath Ramphal, Ingvar Carlsson, Ruud Lubbers, Richard Goldstone, and Gro Harlem Bruntland are included. . The authors include P. Obasi from WMO, K. Toepfer from UNEP, K. Matsuura from UNESCO, V. Petrovsky from UN, N. Sadik from UNFPA, G. Speth from UNDP; Presidents of National Academies of Sciences: Yu. Osipov from Russia, Teng Teng from China, O. Wandiga from Kenya; Member of Parliament: E. von Weizsacker from Germany; eminent scientists: F. El Baz from Egypt, M. S. Swaminathan from India, Sir M. Holdgate from UK, K. Fukuoka from Japan, N. Goodwin from USA and many other Distinguished personalities According to M.K.Tolba, Editor of “Our Fragile World: Challenges and Opportunities for Sustainable Development”, “this publication . . . is meant to stand alone as an authoritative resource and Forerunner to the Encyclopedia. It is related to the Encyclopedia, which is many times larger than this publication, and presents perspectives of several important subjects that are covered in greater detail in the Encyclopedia.”

2. The Encyclopedia of Life Support Systems, or simply the EOLSS, as it is called within the vast global team of prominent writers and editors that has been deeply engaged in developing it during the last few years, is seen as a colossus in the world of publications. It presents current knowledge of global relevance for decision support towards sustainable development and global security. It is the culmination of an unprecedented global effort organized under the auspices of the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) and brings together the work of many of the world’s foremost scholars, experts, and policy-makers in all major fields, representing a broad spectrum of well-known leading academic and research institutions, professional organizations, government agencies, private enterprises, and policy planning bodies spread throughout the world, contributing to ‘state-of-the art information and expert opinion on virtually every aspect of the life support systems on which we depend’.

The Encyclopedia will not merely be a source of current information and expert opinion on virtually every aspect of the life support systems on our planet, but will also forge pathways between disciplines in order to help foster integration of knowledge as it is essential for guidance
towards sustainable development. Its Body of Knowledge, of about 30 subject domains spanned by about 200 subject themes, has been developed under the expert direction of subject editors with contributions from more than 6000 authors in over 100 countries.

Placing the EOLSS in a larger scientific and global perspective, it also carries messages from Richard R. Ernst, Nobel Laureate—Chemistry, Leon M. Lederman, Nobel Laureate—Physics, M. S. Swaminathan, Ramon First World Food Prize, Jean-Marie Lehn, Nobel Laureate—Chemistry, J. L. Lions, Japan Prize , and S. P. Kapitza, UNESCO Kalinga Laureate. In the words of Lederman, the EOLSS is “the theme of humanity, embedded in nature and constrained to find ways of maintaining a relationship with nature based on understanding and respect”.

The Inaugural Edition of the Encyclopedia will be available by the end of this year. It will start with a size of about 8 million words and will mature to its full size of about 70 million words through further regular uploads. The Web based Encyclopedia features the so called EOLSS Forum for interactive dialogue between readers and authors to render the EOLSS as a Living Encyclopedia.

Further Information is available at: http://www.eolss.net or http://www.eolss.com