#forewordFriday

Bugs and germs are big problems—and they’re evolving. Each year, 2,300 people in the U.S. die from drug-resistant bacterial infections and farmers lose billions of dollars of crops to insects that evade pesticides. But there is reason for hope. In the fight to protect our food and health, bugs and germs may also be part of the solution. Natural Defense by veteran science writer Emily Monosson is the first book to bring readers into this exciting new world.

"Biting the snorkel mouthpiece, I submerged my head through a layer of crisp-edged leaves and into another world.” So begins Abbie Gascho Landis’ discovery of an Alabama creek—and the freshwater mussels who call it home. Ranging in size from thumbnail to dinner plate, freshwater mussels have been filtering our rivers, streams, and creek beds for millions of years, and, as Landis learns, have much to teach us about ecology, freshwater systems, and our relationship to the natural world.

International Day of Forests was on Tuesday, March 21. While reflecting on the day, we asked Joe Landsberg and Richard Waring, authors of Forests in Our Changing World, if days like these have any meaning. Here's what they had to say: "Most specially designated days, beyond religious and memorialm days, have little meaning for the vast majority of people.We have arbor day in this country that involves the supervised action of planting trees.

What if, even in the heart of a densely developed city, people could have meaningful encounters with nature? The idea of a green city, a sustainable city, and even a resilient city are well-understood. Now, the emerging ideal of a biophilic city—which goes beyond green infrastructure to connect urban dwellers with nature on a deeper level—is a useful and necessary addition to the way we think about city planning and design.