The Closing Circle: Nature, Man & Technology (association copy)

NY: Random House, 1971. First edition. Hardcover. Near fine/Very good. An association copy, inscribed on the front free endpaper: "To Alice Bronsdon -- a valued colleague, with the best wishes of, Barry Commoner." Uncommon signed. Bronsdon and Commoner were co-authors on at least several papers on environmental mutagens (see this paper, for example). In addition to being a cellular biologist, Commoner was arguably the best recognized environmentalist of his day. He was called the "Paul Revere of ecology" by Time magazine in 1970  and was one of the first to bring the idea of sustainability to the American public. He was known for his debate with Paul Ehrlich about the source of environmental woe; his stance was that environmental degradation could be solved by technological and social solutions and wasn't simply a matter of population. The Closing Circle is his bestselling book that introduces ecology and how the American economy could be refashioned according to its laws for the benefit of human and environmental health health. A near fine book, but the jacket is taped to the pastedowns; Bronsdon has left underlining and a few marginal notes in chapter two, "The Ecosphere." The jacket itself is very bright a clean but with a one-inch tear to lower front edge near spine and another shorter tear on rear panel beside spine; very good.