Fred Pearce has been environment and development consultant at New Scientist magazine since 1992, reporting from 85 countries. He has written fourteen previous books, including When the Rivers Run Dry and The Land Grabbers, which have been translated into 23 languages. He also writes for the Guardian and is a regular broadcaster on radio and TV. He won a lifetime achievement award for his journalism from the Association of British Science Writers in 2011, and was voted UK Environment Journalist of the Year in 2001.