Green Land, Brown Land, Black Land: An Environmental History of Africa, 1800-1990

I read this book for an undergraduate course in comparative environmental history. McCann dispells common myths about Africa (static, has been in environmental decline throughout its history). Instead, he argues that Africa's environmental history can't be judged in a linear perspective - it is neither "declensionist" (continued decline) nor progressive (environment always being improved by people). His book places African agriculturalists within a larger framework of history. Several chapters discuss the role of politics in impacting local environmental change. This a valuable perspective and shows that environmental history has many applications in public policy (implied connections that are mentioned but not developed within the book).