Part 1 Environmental management: water resource management in the West Midlands, M.F. Tanner; inter-basin water transfers - their role in regional water management, G.E. Petts; land use regimes and soil erosion in the West Midlands, A.J. Gerrard and M.A. Oliver; unstable slopes and planning, A.J. Gerrard; climatological perspectives in a regional context, B.D. Giles and J. Kings; air quality in the West Midlands, J.E. Thornes and G.R. McGregor; environmental information in planning the Birmingham Airport Link pipeline, D.M. Lawler; planning for a green environment in Birmingham, P.J. Jarvis. Part 2 People, economy and society: demographic attributes of Birmingham's population 1841-1991, D.R. Ingram; from widgets to where? a region in economic transition, P.W. Daniels et al; technological change and the motor vehicle industry in the West Midlands, R.N. Gwynne; retail change in the West Midlands, P.J. Larkham and T. Westlake; flagship urban regeneration projects - socio-economic impacts, P. Loftman. Part 3 Managing a built environment: Birmingham's townscapes - understanding the physical form of the city, J.W.R. Whitehand; regional planning in the West Midlands, G.E. Cherry; urban policy as a beauty context - competition and the city challenge initiative, M. Beazley; conserving historical townscapes; P.J. Larkham and T.R. Slater; the factory in a garden - a hundred years of social housing; J.R. Bryson and P.A. Lowe; managing recreational space, M.F. Tanner.