Encyclopedia - the guide to alternatives in cycling
Published by Open Road, The Danesmead Wing, 33 Fulford Cross, York. YO10 4PB. UK. ISBN 1898457-04-2. Price £12. 145 pages. Paperback.

Encyclopedia allows inventors, designers, and engineers who are trying to change the world for the better, to offer real practical transport alternatives. Brought together in this buyers guide, complete with manufacturer profiles and contact information, these bicycles offer the very latest in cutting edge, human-powered transportation, and Encyclopedia tells you how to find them. Illustrated in the guide are portables machines that can be folded up and put in a bag; family bicycles, including child-seats, tandems, trailer bikes, adult tricycles; trailers come in many shapes and sizes, including two-wheeled trailers that can carry up to 100kg or so. For the heavier loads, though, there are rickshaws and transport bikes that will take a quarter of a tonne. If you want a speed machine on a banked racing track, a heavy black roadster on the streets of Calcutta, or a recumbent cruising along to enjoy the view, the right machine can be found in the Encyclopedia.

Rainwater catchment systems for domestic supply
by John Gould and Erik Nissen-Petersen
Published by Intermediate Technology Publications Ltd., 103/105 Southampton Row, London WCIB 4HH. ISBN: 1 85339 456 4. Price £ 14.95. 334pages. Paperback.

Over the last two decades there have been intensive efforts to provide more and more people with supplies of clean water for domestic uses. Despite these programmes there are still around one billion people who do not have easy access to clean water.Most of the efforts to provide a clean water supply have concentrated on providing wells or a piped supply, while the collection and storage of rainwater runoff from roofs, and yards has been generally neglected, yet it is far cheaper and simpler to do. This book shows how it can be done. The focus is on implementation of roof and ground catchment systems for meeting either total or supplementary household water requirements. All aspects of design and construction are covered, including simple methods of sizing systems, erection of gutters, choice of materials, construction techniques, training, operation and maintenance. In addition, non-technical factors such as water quality, health, social, financial, cultural, political, institutional and gender issues are discussed. The text is fully supported with drawings and photographs and a detailed iilustrated step-by-step account is provided of how to build several different types of household rainwater tanks with volumes from 2 to 90 cubic metres. There are also useful contact addresses, internet resources, details of construction manuals, construction procedures and repairs of existing tanks. The authors have spent over 20 years constructing and researching rainwater systems in Africa and Asia, and they draw on these experiences with a number of case studies.

A Water Harvesting Manual for urban areas: Case studies from Delhi
Published by Centre for Science and Environment, 41 Tughlakabad Institutional Area, New Delhi- 110 062. Price Rs.90/-. .

A technical easy-to-use manual that can be used by anyone.
Contains basic concepts and techniques of water harvesting at residential, institutional or industrial levels, accompanied with simple illustrations. Also contains case studies of water harvesting systems designed by CSE. Water is everybody's business. Make it yours.

The Appropriate Technology Sourcebook
by Ken Darrow and Mike Saxenian (1993)
Intermediate Technology Publications Ltd., 103-105 Southampton Row, London WC1B 4HH, UK. ISBN 0 91770 417 7, (VIA), Price £19.95. 800pp.

Detailing over 1150 books on appropriate technology, this standard text covers agricultural tools, water supply systems, small enterprise development, renewable energy systems and non-formal education. Now fully updated.

MICROFINANCE AND POVERTY REDUCTION
by Susan Johnson and Ben Rogaly (1997)
Women, Ink., 777 United Nations Plaza, New York, NY 19917, USA. ISBN 0-85598-369-8 WE323Z US$14.95. 134 pages. (Also available in Spanish).

Giving an overview of the current debates on microfinance, this book explores the rich variety of informal financial services used by the poor; emphasizes the importance of the local context; discusses the design of a microfinance scheme; examines ways to sustain the provision of financial services in the long term; and reviews difficulties in and ways of assessing impact. Case-studies.


Living with drought: drought mitigation for sustainable livelihoods
by Astrid von Kotze and Ailsa Holloway
Published by Intermediate Technology Publications Ltd., 103-105 Southampton Row, London, WCIB 41111, UK. ISBN 0-86486-388-8. Price £ 19. 95. Paperback and video.

This is a two part pack - a book and a video containing three training films lasting just over one hour.The aim of this double package is to remind people that they must relearn to live with the reality of drought. Droughts are not new, many communities across the world have been living with these disasters for centuries. The droughts that have occurred recently have been the worst in living memory, and the affected communities have needed emergency assistance. The dependence on that assistance, however, can be lessened. The films show that these recent droughts, severe as they were, have been the catalyst that was needed to get affected communities in Namibia, Zambia and Lesotho to do things that will mitigate the effects of the drought.
The films show how communities in each country have taken action by introducing rotational grazing, de-stocking, water conservation, grain storage, seed banks, adding-value to farm produce and producing articles for sale. All these activities are making their lives far more sustainable, and giving them greater confidence to withstand the onslaught of another drought.
The book of learning materials is divided up to show how other communities can initiate similar activities so that they, too, can mitigate the effects of drought.
The pack is well thought out, and simple to follow. Although it is produced from experiences in southern Africa, the principles will apply anywhere in the world.

Integrated Rural Development for Sustainable Livelihood
Authored by BAIF Collective, 1998, Rs. 100/-. 181pp.

Development without concern for the environment can only be short-term, as the environment directly affects our survival Environmental pollution can affect our health in urban areas while affecting the economy in rural areas. New technologies have often widened the gap between the rich and the poor.
This book, with several black and white photographs, covers various topics dealing with the promotion of sustainable rural development in India, particularly BAIF's experience over the past 30 years. It should be useful for donors, the general public and field practitioners involved in poverty alleviation programmes in India and other developing countries.