In Palermo, Italy, the farmers’ market is the premiere social institution and exists as the intersection of the between political, economic, and environmental participation of its residents. The history of the market is carefully woven into the rich narrative of the community. Often the market has been a microcosm of events happening throughout the region. Changes in economic and social principles that occurred in the 20th century were girded by the fundamental principles of the market. Grassroots activism is central to Palermo’s culture. Civic participation is relatively high, as is the need to preserve the sustainable market that has existed in the city for centuries. Palermo benefits from being on a island (Sicily) and having access to a rich ecology leading to a diverse native diet. As Palermo’s residents discovered, the mobilization of consumers, while often intentionally degraded, represents a powerful force. These grassroots activists were able to preserve its integrity and very existence after it was threatened by an anti-institutional municipal government. For Palermo, the world may change, but the market will always exist as the beating heart of the community.

Martha Honey’s critical analysis of the ecotourism industry identifies a rift in the two forms of ecotourism. As she refers to them, there exists: sound ecotourism and ecotourism lite. This is another form of greenwashing, as is common across many industries. The goal of ecotourism, according to trade definitions, is transform tourist experiences beyond the traditionally wasteful leisure behaviors and use high-impact experiences to increasing conservation awareness. To do so, sound ecotourism experiences should take into account all of the aspects of tourism and not limit them to minor decisions that lack a concentrated effort. The discussion about ecotourism remains an unresolved dispute whose relevance remains poignant. Some countries are becoming mono-industrial, developing economies around a single industry, in this case eco-tourism, which can have dangerous effects economically. Environmentally however, these countries are more motivated to participate in conservation efforts because they have a bigger stake in the game. The degradation of their natural environment would result in declines in their ecotourism industries, limiting their growth and prosperity to that of the environment.

Libby Robin’s Australian perspective on the discipline of ecology reminds readers that the role of ecologists around the world varies. The perception of the discipline of ecology as a whole is seen as a “subset” of other natural sciences. Most ecologists are employed by the government, rather than research institutions or private corporations, like in the US. However like the US, the culture has come to rely on ecology only in times of despair, when it is easy, but has faced challenges accepting the findings of ecology when they go against other goals such as national development. When it came to Australia’s environmental movement, the common people generally supported bringing conservation scientists into the discussion to speak on their behalf against large development schemes or organizations. These scientists began to organize and voice uniform opinions based on homogenous consensus. The general population, after the successes of conservation scientists, accepted the role of scientists to speak on behalf of nature. This set up the modern discipline of applied ecology in Australia. However, the identity of ecologist, since it is created by the culture at-large, is subject to at-large interpretation. When the new green movement that sought to move away from hard science was lumped together with ecology, conservation scientists were forced to distinguish themselves. While both groups had the same goals, they differed in their intentions and if ecology was to remain the prominent voice in conservation, it had to stand by its scientific roots.

The debate of the control over natural resources is one that has caused a millenia of disputes. Bottled water creates an enigma for Wilk. Some have concern over the unsustainable nature of bottled water as a concept. Others have a concern over the safety of tap water, which incidentally enough, is often the source of bottled water. Communities that have made attempts to reject bottled water, such as the negative reaction to Dasani in the UK, end up stronger because of the dispute. While bottled water is still available in the UK, these communities are strengthened by their ability to organize and reject the corporate intrusion. The concept of “bottled air” was a concept that went viral several years ago. In countries like China where air pollution more days than not creates an uninhabitable atmosphere, bottled clean air is a popular product. While this may sound ridiculous to us, it is no more ridiculous than bottled water. Wilk’s poignant examination of the oddity that is bottled water represents a much larger issue. We have yet to settle who can lay proper claim to natural resources, especially water. Is it ethical for communities upstream to consume water at the cost of communities downstream? Is it ethical for landowners to allow the harvesting and exportation of natural resources if these activities result in environmental degradation in areas beyond the landowner’s holdings? These are the questions that Hardin predicted we would have to resolve. Bottled water is yet again another commons at risk.

The role your front lawn plays in the economy, society, and global environment is far underrated. This is the argument of authors Paul Robbins and Julie Sharp who argue that this monoculture undermines the dualisms of demand and supply, culture and economy, and regional and global. Counterinstitutionalization of the lawn by environmental groups attempts to disconnect the cultural value associated with a well-kept, green lawn as the economic and environmental resources required are now too great to justify. Culturally, this counterinstituionalization is working as people begin to understand that this type of monoculture is outdated and admittedly mundane. Municipal laws are seeing change across the continent as weeds are no longer seen as the enemy they once were. In Canada, the regression from lawn monoculture has been more dramatic than in the US. The movement began in a suburb of Montreal and reached its climax when it was brought before the Canadian Supreme Court. The court ruled that municipalities have the right to ban certain chemicals from its environment which it believes negatively harm their communities. People understand that having a manicured green lawn is not worth environmental degradation or the money, time, and resources required to invest in it. At the same time however, there are neighborhood groups that wish to enforce laws that establish lawn maintenance standards. These are in place to prevent properties from being the eyesore on the street. These laws however, when too strictly enforced, created this problem. There is a middle ground however, where a monoculture of a green, manicured lawn can be replaced with a diversity of native lawn types that can still be aesthetically pleasing, resource non-intensive, and environmentally friendly.

As urbanism evolves in the 21^st century, the role of economic growth in sustainable development is being rebalanced. As Theodore Panayotou, author of Economic Growth and Empowerment, argues, in the past, efforts for economic growth were seen as the common sense catalyst for social development. As evident by the development patterns since the Era of Imperialism, economic growth often fails to take into account the unique factors of each society. This negligence often leads to the opposite of the intended impact. New thinking shows that for more effective development, the fundamentals of sustainability must be taken into account. Economic growth is still a manipulator of the development, but should be balanced with environmental conservation and social equitability. Panayotou highlights specific research that correlates economic growth with and unequal distribution of air pollution among certain income levels. This type of economic-focused development leads to an unhealthy income-environment relationship. Environmental degradation often correlates with efforts to increase economic growth. Recovery efforts to deal with pollution are costly and resource-intensive. However, they are still necessary. A better understanding of the impact of economic and social growth on the environment is, however slowly, leading to more sustainable development patterns. Cities in developing countries have opportunities that developed cities lack. Many see the modern development of urban areas in Southeast Asia and South America as opportunities. These urban areas are fortunate to learn from the mistakes of the past. These urban areas are likely to enjoy a future in which development allows for improvements in the resiliency of environments while seeing quality of life and economic opportunities grow steadily. This advantage will inevitably lead to a restructuring of urban areas around the globe as the sustainable city powerful city.