Everything that follows is based on recent, real-life experience that has been proven to work - Tapa blanda

During my career as a military peace-keeper and foreign aid worker I've faced many life-threatening situations. In this book I've drawn on my experiences to create a unique compilation of 'survival solutions' for people who work abroad, for adventure travellers, for those contemplating going to remoter parts of the world, or for anyone who wants to know what to do when the going gets tough.

There is advice here on everything from being attacked by angry animals to surviving earthquakes, escaping a burning building to flying without a pilot, and much more. In the course of my work I have built an airstrip in Burundi, helped deliver a baby to a Rwandan refugee on a Congolese roadside, navigated to safety when lost in the deserts of Chad and negotiated with a rebel warlord in Darfur.

I hope you don't have to do the same. But if things get dangerous, this guide will help you survive. Have a safe trip.

James Shepherd-Barron has been a military peace-keeper and international humanitarian aid worker for over 25 years. A helicopter pilot for the British army, he has since served as a peacekeeper for the United Nations, as an advisor to the UK's Foreign and Commonwealth Office, the Government of Albania and the European Commission. He has worked in over 26 countries, including the conflict zones of Kosovo, Croatia, Central Bosnia, Burundi and Rwanda.

James nows runs a successful humanitarian affairs consultancy, working with clients like DFID, the Red Cross, World Health Organization, and UNICEF. When not 'on mission', he advises and trains senior UN operational staff.