What's Afoot at Worldwatch.

• Author: Ayres, Ed

We are entering a new era here, and I'd like to introduce you to some of the changes we have made. Lester Brown, who is now 66 and who had been the president of Worldwatch since he founded the Institute in 1974, has been named Chairman of the board of directors. Christopher Flavin, previously senior vice president, has been elected Acting President. The Worldwatch Board plans to name the Institute's second President later this year.

I'd also like to introduce you to some of the authors who will be a part of the "second generation" action plan, which is aimed at strengthening our global research, publishing, and education efforts. This is a group well known for its collective analytical prowess, but you might well wonder what kind of people we are. No doubt, some of us could be described as being rather deeply absorbed in our analytical or research pursuits, but we are also quite a lively and diverse group. While you won't often find us raising a ruckus at events like the World Trade Organization debates in Seattle or the Greenpeace confrontations with whaling ships, I can assure you it's not because we don't have strong opinions or feelings.

It's just that expressions of feeling aren't what distinguishes our work. We're not among the many authors nowadays who are better known for their charisma or style than for their knowledge or ability to write clearly. An awful lot of people seem to be authors these days for no reason other than that their names will sell books. Ronald Reagan, for example, received a very large advance for his autobiography, though he had never been known to be a writer. When interviewed shortly before his book was published, he cheerfully remarked that he was really looking forward to reading it.

Most Worldwatch authors are full-time analysts, known for their knowledge of biodiversity, sustainable agriculture, urban ecology, or the connections between energy consumption and climate change, not for the marketability of their names or the outrageousness of their views. They do a lot of computing and cogitating, and qualify as true geeks, though not quite as highly rewarded as the Silicon Valley variety. But while the dot-com folks are infatuated with the new communications technology, our people are more interested in what messages these technologies are being used to communicate.

What fascinates me most about our people is that while their messages are often grim, their personal attitudes couldn't be more positive. And I think that's significant. There are right-wing think tanks a few blocks from us whose ideologues look at what we write and brand us as "prophets of gloom and doom." But like superstitious people everywhere, they confuse forecasting with prophecy. Forecasting is always contingent; our researchers are saying that if current trends are allowed to continue, the phenomena of crashing biodiversity and climate change that are now well underway (these are facts, not attitudes) will become calamitous. But if we have the courage to make certain fundamental changes, the life ahead of us can be bright indeed.

As we move forward into the next century, you will see some shifts in our emphasis. In its first quarter-century, Worldwatch played a leading role in calling attention to the problems of population explosion and environmental decline. By now, we know what the basic solutions to those problems must be. As we move into our second quarter-century, the emphasis will be on implementing those solutions, and on targeting the information needed for implementation to those who have the power to make it happen.

Time is short, there's much to do, and here are a few of the people who will help do it. In this issue I'll have you meet the authors of articles in this issue of the magazine, plus the key figures in our new change of leadership--founder Les...