This book is Vandana Shiva's most extensive treatment of the struggles, she has helped bring to international attention in genetic food engineering, cultural theft, and natural resource privatisation. She uncovers their links to the rising tide of fundamentalisms, violence against women, and the environmental death of the planet. Starting in the 16th century with the enclosure of the British commons, she illustrates how the commons continue to shrink, as more natural resources are patented and privatised. As our ecological sustainability and cultural diversity erode, human life is rendered disposable and economic and social exclusion ignite violence. Yet these are not the only trend shaping human history. Popular struggles have yielded a set of principles and ideals, which Shiva calls 'earth democracy', and which lay the basis for a peaceful, just and sustainable future.