Description: In this book, 20 religionists and environmentalists examine Buddhism's understanding of life's web. In noting the cultural diversity of Buddhism, they highlight aspects of the tradition that may help formulate an effective environmental ethics, citing examples from Asia and the U.S. of socially engaged Buddhist projects to protect the environment.
Brief description: An ordained Buddhist priest in the Soto Zen tradition, Duncan Ryūken Williams has spent years piecing together the story of the Japanese American community during World War II. A renowned scholar of Buddhism, he has taught at the University of California, Berkeley, University of California, Irvine, and Trinity College, and is now the Director of the Shinso Ito Center for Japanese Religions and Culture at the University of Southern California. He has published five other books, including The Other Side of Zen.
Review Quotes: What a significant advance these articles represent for the study of religion and ecology. The potential contribution to the new field of religious ecology is immense. These papers will help to create a coherent field for the study of Buddhism and ecology. What is even more important, though this is not the precise task of scholarship: these papers will help define the modern Buddhist response to ecological ethics.--John Berthrong, Associate Dean for Academic and Administrative Affairs, Boston University School of Theology, and Director, Institute for Dialogue among Religions