This book is a must read for environmentalist minded folk, in that it provides clear reference to historical examples of environmentally triggered collapses of societies. We can utilize this information in not only strengthening the call of warning that is building momentum and movement towards sustainable business practices and governmental policy, but furthermore towards achieving a vision for the future.

Jared Diamond's text can be boring at times, once you've gotten the gist of his purpose, but I found it enriching as a whole, and exciting from time to time. He dabbles in providing solutions and in critiquing modern society at the conclusion of the book, but I think perhaps he is better suited at providing clarity on the past as to how it relates to the present, rather than in looking at means of addressing the future.

For further reading on how to address these critical issues, I suggest [book: Common Wealth] by [author:Jeffrey Sachs], as well as literature on permaculture, such as [author: Bill Mollison], and restorative economies, such [author: Paul Hawken] or [author: Amory Lovins].