Introduction: Sustainable development and geographic information systems / Allan Falconer -- The earth charter -- Themes: Respect and care for the community of life ; Ecological integrity ; Social and economic justice ; Democracy, nonviolence, and peace / Allan Falconer ; Environmental pollution / Munyaradzi Chenje ; Biodiversity / Jinhua Zhang ; Climate change / Volodymyr Demkine ; Deforestation / Christian Lambrechts ; Food production / Timo Maukonen ; Fresh water supply / Salif Diop ; Health and disease / Munyaradzi Chenje ; Urbanization / Jay Moor ; Mountain development / Jinhua Zhang ; Rural development ; Poverty reduction / Joyce Foresman -- Methods and tools / Tim Foresman -- GIS for beginners / Basanta Shrestha, Birendra Bajracharya, Sushil Pradhan -- Glossary