Best of
Ecology

2017

Drawdown: The Most Comprehensive Plan Ever Proposed to Reverse Global Warming


Paul Hawken - 2017
    One hundred techniques and practices are described here—some are well known; some you may have never heard of. They range from clean energy to educating girls in lower-income countries to land use practices that pull carbon out of the air. The solutions exist, are economically viable, and communities throughout the world are currently enacting them with skill and determination. If deployed collectively on a global scale over the next thirty years, they represent a credible path forward, not just to slow the earth’s warming but to reach drawdown, that point in time when greenhouse gases in the atmosphere peak and begin to decline. These measures promise cascading benefits to human health, security, prosperity, and well-being—giving us every reason to see this planetary crisis as an opportunity to create a just and livable world.

The Death and Life of the Great Lakes


Dan Egan - 2017
    But they are under threat as never before, and their problems are spreading across the continent. The Death and Life of the Great Lakes is prize-winning reporter Dan Egan’s compulsively readable portrait of an ecological catastrophe happening right before our eyes, blending the epic story of the lakes with an examination of the perils they face and the ways we can restore and preserve them for generations to come.

The Seabird's Cry: The Lives and Loves of the Planet's Great Ocean Voyagers


Adam Nicolson - 2017
    Their numbers are in freefall, dropping by nearly 70 percent in the last sixty years, a billion fewer now than in 1950. Extinction stalks the ocean, and there is a danger that the hundred-million-year-old cries of a seabird colony, rolling around in the bays and headlands of high latitudes, will this century become but a memory.

Kiss the Ground: How the Food You Eat Can Reverse Climate Change, Heal Your Body & Ultimately Save Our World


Josh Tickell - 2017
    Now, in Kiss the Ground, he explains an incredible truth: by changing our diets to a soil-nourishing, regenerative agriculture diet, we can reverse global warming, harvest healthy, abundant food, and eliminate the poisonous substances that are harming our children, pets, bodies, and ultimately our planet. Through fascinating and accessible interviews with celebrity chefs, ranchers, farmers, and top scientists, this remarkable book, soon to be a full-length documentary film narrated by Woody Harrelson, will teach you how to become an agent in humanity’s single most important and time sensitive mission. Reverse climate change and effectively save the world—all through the choices you make in how and what to eat.

Arts of Living on a Damaged Planet: Ghosts and Monsters of the Anthropocene


Anna Lowenhaupt Tsing - 2017
    This timely anthology calls on twenty eminent humanists and scientists to revitalize curiosity, observation, and transdisciplinary conversation about life on earth.As human-induced environmental change threatens multispecies livability, Arts of Living on a Damaged Planet puts forward a bold proposal: entangled histories, situated narratives, and thick descriptions offer urgent “arts of living.” Included are essays by scholars in anthropology, ecology, science studies, art, literature, and bioinformatics who posit critical and creative tools for collaborative survival in a more-than-human Anthropocene. The essays are organized around two key figures that also serve as the publication’s two openings: Ghosts, or landscapes haunted by the violences of modernity; and Monsters, or interspecies and intraspecies sociality. Ghosts and Monsters are tentacular, windy, and arboreal arts that invite readers to encounter ants, lichen, rocks, electrons, flying foxes, salmon, chestnut trees, mud volcanoes, border zones, graves, radioactive waste—in short, the wonders and terrors of an unintended epoch.Contributors: Karen Barad, U of California, Santa Cruz; Kate Brown, U of Maryland, Baltimore; Carla Freccero, U of California, Santa Cruz; Peter Funch, Aarhus U; Scott F. Gilbert, Swarthmore College; Deborah M. Gordon, Stanford U; Donna J. Haraway, U of California, Santa Cruz; Andreas Hejnol, U of Bergen, Norway; Ursula K. Le Guin; Marianne Elisabeth Lien, U of Oslo; Andrew Mathews, U of California, Santa Cruz; Margaret McFall-Ngai, U of Hawaii, Manoa; Ingrid M. Parker, U of California, Santa Cruz; Mary Louise Pratt, NYU; Anne Pringle, U of Wisconsin, Madison; Deborah Bird Rose, U of New South Wales, Sydney; Dorion Sagan; Lesley Stern, U of California, San Diego; Jens-Christian Svenning, Aarhus U.

Confessions of a Recovering Environmentalist and Other Essays


Paul Kingsnorth - 2017
    He fought against rampant development and the depredations of a corporate world that seemed hell-bent on ignoring a looming climate crisis in its relentless pursuit of profit. But as the environmental movement began to focus on 'sustainability' rather than the defence of wild places for their own sake and as global conditions worsened, he grew disenchanted with the movement that he once embraced. He gave up what he saw as the false hope that residents of the First World would ever make the kind of sacrifices that might avert the severe consequences of climate change.Full of grief and fury as well as passionate, lyrical evocations of nature and the wild, Confessions of a Recovering Environmentalist gathers the wave-making essays that have charted the change in Kingsnorth's thinking. In them he articulates a new vision that he calls 'dark ecology,' which stands firmly in opposition to the belief that technology can save us, and he argues for a renewed balance between the human and nonhuman worlds.Provocative and urgent, iconoclastic and fearless, this ultimately hopeful book poses hard questions about how we have lived and should live.

The Humane Gardener: Nurturing a Backyard Habitat for Wildlife


Nancy Lawson - 2017
    Through engaging anecdotes and inspired advice, profiles of home gardeners throughout the country, and interviews with scientists and horticulturalists, Lawson applies the broader lessons of ecology to our own outdoor spaces. Detailed chapters address planting for wildlife by choosing native species; providing habitats that shelter baby animals, as well as birds, bees, and butterflies; creating safe zones in the garden; cohabiting with creatures often regarded as pests; letting nature be your garden designer; and encouraging natural processes and evolution in the garden. The Humane Gardener fills a unique niche in describing simple principles for both attracting wildlife and peacefully resolving conflicts with all the creatures that share our world.

Call of the Reed Warbler: A New Agriculture – A New Earth


Charles Massy - 2017
    Author and radical farmer Charles Massy explores transformative and regenerative agriculture and the vital connection between our soil and our health. It is a story of how a grassroots revolution – a true underground insurgency – can save the planet, help turn climate change around, and build healthy people and healthy communities, pivoting significantly on our relationship with growing and consuming food.   Using his personal experience as a touchstone – from an unknowing, chemical-using farmer with dead soils to a radical ecologist farmer carefully regenerating a 2000-hectare property to a state of natural health – Massy tells the real story behind industrial agriculture and the global profit-obsessed corporations driving it. He shows – through evocative stories – how innovative farmers are finding a new way and interweaves his own local landscape, its seasons and biological richness.  At stake is not only a revolution in human health and our communities but the very survival of the planet. For farmer, backyard gardener, food buyer, health worker, policy maker and public leader alike, Call of the Reed Warbler offers a tangible path forward for the future of our food supply, our Australian landscape and our earth. It comprises a powerful and moving paean of hope.

Bee Quest


Dave Goulson - 2017
    Whether he is tracking great yellow bumblebees in the Hebrides or chasing orchid bees through the Ecuadorian jungle, Dave Goulson’s wit, humour and deep love of nature make him the ideal travelling companion.This utterly charming book will also inspire you to think about the ways in which we are all responsible for the future of our world. Through his scientific expertise and passion for conservation, Goulson shows us nature’s resilience against the odds, and that beauty hides in the most surprising places.

Wise Trees


Diane Cook - 2017
    Supported by grants from the Expedition Council of the National Geographic Society, Cook and Jenshel spent two years traveling to fifty-nine sites across five continents to photograph some of the world’s most historic and inspirational trees. Trees, they tell us, can live without us, but we cannot live without them. Not only do trees provide us with the oxygen we breathe, food gathered from their branches, and wood for both fuel and shelter, but they have been essential to the spiritual and cultural life of civilizations around the world. From Luna, the Coastal Redwood in California that became an international symbol when activist Julia Butterfly Hill sat for 738 days on a platform nestled in its branches to save it from logging, to the Bodhi Tree, the sacred fig in India that is a direct descendent of the tree under which Buddha attained enlightenment, Cook and Jenshel reveal trees that have impacted and shaped our lives, our traditions, and our feelings about nature. There are also survivor trees, including a camphor tree in Nagasaki that endured the atomic bomb, an American elm in Oklahoma City, and the 9/11 Survivor Tree, a Callery pear at the 9/11 Memorial. All of the trees were carefully selected for their role in human dramas. This project both reflects and inspires awareness of the enduring role of trees in nurturing and sheltering humanity. Photographers, environmentalists, history buffs, and nature-lovers alike will appreciate the extraordinary stories found within the pages of Wise Trees! Also Available: Wise Trees 2020 Wall Calendar

The Power of a Plant: A Teacher's Odyssey to Grow Healthy Minds and Schools


Stephen Ritz - 2017
    After what can only be defined as a cosmic experience when a flower broke up a fight in his classroom, he saw a way to start tackling his school’s problems: plants. He flipped his curriculum to integrate gardening as an entry point for all learning and inadvertently created an international phenomenon. As Ritz likes to say, “Fifty thousand pounds of vegetables later, my favorite crop is organically grown citizens who are growing and eating themselves into good health and amazing opportunities.”The Power of a Plant tells the story of a green teacher from the Bronx who let one idea germinate into a movement and changed his students’ lives by learning alongside them. Since greening his curriculum, Ritz has seen near-perfect attendance and graduation rates, dramatically increased passing rates on state exams, and behavioral incidents slashed in half. In the poorest congressional district in America, he has helped create 2,200 local jobs and built farms and gardens while changing landscapes and mindsets for residents, students, and colleagues. Along the way, Ritz lost more than 100 pounds by eating the food that he and his students grow in school. The Power of a Plant is his story of hope, resilience, regeneration, and optimism.

The Art of Loading Brush: New Agrarian Writings


Wendell Berry - 2017
    Mr. Berry believes that American cultural problems are nearly always aligned with their agricultural problems, and recent events have shone a terrible spotlight on the divides between our urban and rural citizens. Our communities are as endangered as our landscapes. There is, as Berry outlines, still much work to do, and our daily lives—in hope and affection—must triumph over despair.Mr. Berry moves deftly between the real and the imagined. The Art of Loading Brush is an energetic mix of essays and stories, including "The Thought of Limits in a Prodigal Age," which explores Agrarian ideals as they present themselves historically and as they might apply to our work today. "The Presence of Nature in the Natural World" is added here as the bookend of this developing New Agrarianism. Four stories from an as-yet-unfinished novel, better described as "an essay in imagination," extend the Port William story as it follows Andy Catlett throughout his life to this present moment. Andy works alongside his grandson in "The Art of Loading Brush," one of the most moving and tender stories of the entire Port William cycle. Filled with insights and new revelations from a mind thorough in its considerations and careful in its presentations, The Art of Loading Brush is a necessary and timely collection.

Birds of the Pacific Northwest


John Shewey - 2017
    This comprehensive, full-color guide is organized to follow the order in which groups and species are presented by the American Union. Range maps for each species provide valuable information for identification. Detailed accounts of nearly 400 bird species, including common favorites and rare curiosities More than 870 spectacular photographs of relevant plumages and birds in flight Precise descriptions of voices, behaviors, and habitats Top birding sites in the Pacific Northwest Individual range maps, showing seasonal and migratory patterns Easy to use for beginners and experts alike

Natural History of the Pacific Northwest Mountains


Daniel Mathews - 2017
    It includes details about and identification tips for the flora, fauna, and geology of the region. If you are looking for a simple way to discover the great outdoors, this is the perfect overview of the Pacific Northwest.Covers the Coastal and Cascade Mountain Ranges, as well as the Olympic Mountains and Coast Mountains of southern British ColumbiaDescribes more than 950 species of plants, animals, and mushrooms with helpful keys for easy identificationUser-friendly, color coded layout Compelling stories of the region’s plants, animals, and people bring the mountains aliveThe essential trailside reference for naturalists, hikers, and campers

Dead Zone: Where the Wild Things Were


Philip Lymbery - 2017
    While this is typically attributed to climate change and habitat destruction, few people realize that there is a direct link to consumer demand for cheap meat.Some may see intensive farming as a necessary evil. After all, we need to produce more food for a growing global population and are led to believe that squeezing animals into factory farms and growing crops in vast, chemical-soaked prairies is efficient and leaves land free for wildlife--but this is far from the truth. With the limits of the planet's resources now seemingly within touching distance, awareness is growing about how the wellbeing of society depends on a thriving natural world. Through the lens of a dozen iconic and endangered species, Dead Zone examines the role of industrial farming in their plight and meets the people doing something about it.By the author of the internationally successful Farmageddon, Dead Zone takes the reader on a global safari involving some of the world's most iconic and endangered species. The focus shifts from the plight of farm animals to the impact of industrial farming on specific endangered species, as the book lays bare the myths that prop up factory farming and shows what we can do to save the planet with healthy food.

Letter to a Young Farmer: How to Live Richly Without Wealth on the New Garden Farm


Gene Logsdon - 2017
    In Letter to a Young Farmer, his final book of essays, Logsdon addresses the next generation--young people who are moving back to the land to enjoy a better way of life as small-scale "garden farmers." It's a lifestyle that isn't defined by accumulating wealth or by the "get big or get out" agribusiness mindset. Instead, it's one that recognizes the beauty of nature, cherishes the land, respects our fellow creatures, and values rural traditions. It's one that also looks forward and embraces "right technologies," including new and innovative ways of working smarter, not harder, and avoiding premature burnout.Completed only a few weeks before the author's death, Letter to a Young Farmer is a remarkable testament to the life and wisdom of one of the greatest rural philosophers and writers of our time. Gene's earthy wit and sometimes irreverent humor combines with his valuable perspectives on many wide-ranging subjects--everything from how to show a ram who's boss to enjoying the almost churchlike calmness of a well-built livestock barn.Reading this book is like sitting down on the porch with a neighbor who has learned the ways of farming through years of long observation and practice. Someone, in short, who has "seen it all" and has much to say, and much to teach us, if we only take the time to listen and learn. And Gene Logsdon was the best kind of teacher: equal parts storyteller, idealist, and rabble-rouser. His vision of a nation filled with garden farmers, based in cities, towns, and countrysides, will resonate with many people, both young and old, who long to create a more sustainable, meaningful life for themselves and a better world for all of us.

Bees: An Identification and Native Plant Forage Guide


Heather N. Holm - 2017
    Superbly designed and organized, this is an indispensable source of information with extensive profiles for twenty-seven bee genera, plus twelve summary profiles for uncommon genera, and approximately one hundred native trees, shrubs, and perennials for the Midwest, Great Lakes, and Northeast regions. With over 1500 stunning photographs, detailed descriptions, and accessible science, environmental educator and research assistant Heather Holm brings to light captivating information about bees' life cycles, habitats, diet, foraging behaviors, crops pollinated, nesting lifestyles, seasonality, and preferred native forage plants.Bees are a singularly fascinating group of insects and this book makes it possible to observe, attract, and support them in their natural setting or in one's own garden. Not only does this guide assist the reader with bee identification in the field or by photo, it also notes microscopic features for the advanced user. The factors impacting bee populations, and the management of farms and public and residential landscapes for bees are also covered. Included in the bee forage (plant) chapters are plant profiles with range maps, habitat information, floral features and attractants, common bees attracted to the particular plant, and details about the ecological connections between the native plant and other flower-visiting insects. Noted also are birds dependent upon the product of the pollinated flowers (fruits and seeds).This is an excellent reference for amateur and professional naturalists, educators, gardeners, farmers, students, nature photographers, insect enthusiasts, biologists, and anyone interested in learning more about the diversity and biology of bees and their connection to native plants and the natural world.

Wildlife Photographer of the Year: Portfolio 27


Rosamund Kidman-Cox - 2017
    This powerful collection of pictures features all the winning photographs from the 2016 competition. The collection represents the work of many international photographers, both professionals and amateurs. The photographs are chosen by an international jury for their artistic merit and originality, from categories that together represent a diversity of natural subjects. The range of styles is also diverse, as is the genre of photography, including action, macro, underwater, landscape, or environmental reportage. Together this outstanding collection is a reminder of the splendor, drama, and variety of life on Earth. Each stunning photograph is accompanied by an extended caption and there is an introduction by one of the world's most respected nature photographers.

Being Salmon, Being Human: Encountering the Wild in Us and Us in the Wild


Martin Lee Mueller - 2017
    Being fully human, he argues, means experiencing the intersection of our horizon of understanding with that of other animals. Salmon are the test case for this. Mueller experiments, in evocative narrative passages, with imagining the world as a salmon might see it, and considering how this enriches our understanding of humanity in the process.Being Salmon, Being Human is both a philosophical and a narrative work, rewarding readers with insightful interpretations of major philosophers--Descartes, Heidegger, Abram, and many more--and reflections on the human-Earth relationship. It stands alongside Abram's Spell of the Sensuous and Becoming Animal, as well as Andreas Weber's The Biology of Wonder and Matter and Desire--heralding a new "Copernican revolution" in the fields of biology, ecology, and philosophy.

The Quarry Fox: And Other Critters of the Wild Catskills


Leslie T. Sharpe - 2017
    A mother black bear and her cubs hibernate beneath a felled tree. A barred owl snags a hapless cottontail from a meadow with its precise talons. In The Quarry Fox and Other Tales of the Wild Catskills, Leslie T. Sharpe trains her keen eye and narrative gifts on these and other New York wildlife through her tales of close observations as a naturalist living in the Great Western Catskills. The Quarry Fox is the first in-depth study of Catskill wildlife since John Burroughs invented the genre of nature-writing, in which Sharpe weaves her experiences with the seasons, plants, and creatures with the natural history of each organism, revealing their sensitivity to and resilience against the splendor and cruelty of Nature.Sharpe's frank, scientific observations join with her deeply felt connection to these creatures to instill in readers an appreciation of the undaunted and variegated beauty of the Catskills and camaraderie with its animals. From contemplating the importance of milkweed for monarchs to lay their eggs to reveling in the first steps of a wobbly fawn, The Quarry Fox is a celebration of the natural world and our place in it.

The Blue Ocean Strategy Reader: The iconic articles by bestselling authors W. Chan Kim and Renée Mauborgne


W. Chan Kim - 2017
    But much of W. Chan Kim and Renée Mauborgne’s work on creating new market spaces was originally published in the pages of Harvard Business Review. This book brings the best of those articles together all in one place.Piece by piece, these articles explain the process of focusing on noncustomers and creating “blue oceans”: uncontested market spaces, untainted by competition. They also introduce tools for exploring and exploiting these markets, such as the Strategy Canvas, the Six Paths Framework, the Four Actions Framework, the Pioneer-Migrator-Settler Map, the Buyer Utility Map, the Price Corridor of the Mass, and the Business Model Guide—the tools that have come to make up the Blue Ocean Strategy framework. This collection also features Kim and Mauborgne’s latest Harvard Business Review article, “Red Ocean Traps.”Whether or not you’re familiar with Blue Ocean Strategy, this book will give you another perspective onto this widely accepted framework—and help you implement it in your organization.

Conflicts of Interest: My Journey through India’s Green Movement


Sunita Narain - 2017
    While outlining the enormous environmental challenges that India faces today, Narain talks about how corporate lobbies and political interests often scuttle their effective resolution. She recounts some widely reported controversies triggered by research undertaken by her along with her team at the Centre for Science and Environment, such as a report on pesticides in colas, and a study on air pollution in Delhi, and includes a ringside view of global climate change negotiations.Confl icts of Interest also includes an "environmental manifesto", a blueprint for the direction India must take if it is to deal with the exigencies of climate change and environmental degradation.

Out of the Wreckage: A New Politics in the Age of Crisis


George Monbiot - 2017
    It misrepresents human nature, destroying hope and common purpose. Only a positive vision can replace it, a new story that re-engages people in politics and lights a path to a better world.George Monbiot shows how new findings in psychology, neuroscience and evolutionary biology cast human nature in a radically different light: as the supreme altruists and cooperators. He shows how we can build on these findings to create a new politics: a “politics of belonging.” Both democracy and economic life can be radically reorganized from the bottom up, enabling us to take back control and overthrow the forces that have thwarted our ambitions for a better society.Urgent, and passionate, Out of the Wreckage provides the hope and clarity required to change the world.

Monarchs and Milkweed: A Migrating Butterfly, a Poisonous Plant, and Their Remarkable Story of Coevolution


Anurag Agrawal - 2017
    Yet there is much more to the monarch than its distinctive presence and mythic journeying. In Monarchs and Milkweed, Anurag Agrawal presents a vivid investigation into how the monarch butterfly has evolved closely alongside the milkweed--a toxic plant named for the sticky white substance emitted when its leaves are damaged--and how this inextricable and intimate relationship has been like an arms race over the millennia, a battle of exploitation and defense between two fascinating species.The monarch life cycle begins each spring when it deposits eggs on milkweed leaves. But this dependency of monarchs on milkweeds as food is not reciprocated, and milkweeds do all they can to poison or thwart the young monarchs. Agrawal delves into major scientific discoveries, including his own pioneering research, and traces how plant poisons have not only shaped monarch-milkweed interactions but have also been culturally important for centuries. Agrawal presents current ideas regarding the recent decline in monarch populations, including habitat destruction, increased winter storms, and lack of milkweed--the last one a theory that the author rejects. He evaluates the current sustainability of monarchs and reveals a novel explanation for their plummeting numbers.Lavishly illustrated with more than eighty color photos and images, Monarchs and Milkweed takes readers on an unforgettable exploration of one of nature's most important and sophisticated evolutionary relationships.

My Chernobyl: The Human Story of a Scientist and the nuclear power Plant Catastrophe


Alexander Borovoi - 2017
    On April 29, Alexander A. Borovoi, an atomic physicist with the Kurchatov Institute in Moscow, was ordered to Chernobyl to help measure and control the release of lethal radioactive materials. He stayed for twenty-three years. In "My Chernobyl", first published in 1996—at which time, the Russian magazine "New World" called it the best work of journalism for that year—Borovoi writes of his first two years at Chernobyl, when the initial response to the catastrophe was, as a rule, heroic, but unfortunately not always effective. Although "My Chernobyl" touches on technical aspects of dealing with the uncontrolled release of radioactivity from the damaged nuclear reactor, Borovoi tells stories—sometimes humorous, sometimes chilling—of people charged with different aspects of the cleanup, as well as some who were directly affected by the tragedy. Told in an engaging style, "My Chernobyl" is a personal and unforgettable story of an international crisis. Borovoi’s calm, levelheaded, and human responses to both the original meltdown and the problems created by ill-founded attempts to manage the disaster contain lessons for our world today, as new crises continually loom on the horizon.

Edge of Morning: Native Voices Speak for the Bears Ears


Jacqueline Keeler - 2017
    Through poem and essay, these often-ignored voices explore the ways many native people derive tradition, sustenance, and cultural history from the Bears Ears."To us, these places represent more than grass, hills, mountains, and trees...they hold the links to our past and our future." —Martie Simmons, Ho-ChunkThe fifteen contributors are multi-generational writers, poets, activists, teachers, students, and public officials, each with a strong tie to landscape and a particular story to tell. Willie Grayeyes, Chairman of Utah Diné Bikéyah, shares his ancestral ties to the Bears Ears. Klee Benally, Diné activsit, musician, and filmmaker, asks, “What part of sacred don’t you understand?” Morning Star Gali, Tribal Historic Preservation Officer at Pit River Tribe, speaks to the fight for cultural preservation. The fifteen contributors speak for the Bears Ears and elevate the conversation around tribal sovereignty and sacred places across the U.S.Jacqueline Keeler, editor of Edge of Morning, is a Navajo/Dakota writer who lives in Portland, Oregon. She is co-founder of Eradicating Offensive Native Mascotry, which seeks to end the use of racial groups as mascots, as well as the use of other stereotypical representations in popular culture. Her work has appeared in The Nation, Indian Country Today, Earth Island Journal, Salon.com, and elsewhere.

Mycorrhizal Planet: How Symbiotic Fungi Work with Roots to Support Plant Health and Build Soil Fertility


Michael Phillips - 2017
    These microscopic organisms partner with the root systems of approximately 95 percent of the plants on Earth, and they sequester carbon in much more meaningful ways than human "carbon offsets" will ever achieve. Pick up a handful of old-growth forest soil and you are holding 26 miles of threadlike fungal mycelia, if it could be stretched it out in a straight line. Most of these soil fungi are mycorrhizal, supporting plant health in elegant and sophisticated ways. The boost to green immune function in plants and community-wide networking turns out to be the true basis of ecosystem resiliency. A profound intelligence exists in the underground nutrient exchange between fungi and plant roots, which in turn determines the nutrient density of the foods we grow and eat.Exploring the science of symbiotic fungi in layman's terms, holistic farmer Michael Phillips (author of The Holistic Orchard and The Apple Grower) sets the stage for practical applications across the landscape. The real impetus behind no-till farming, gardening with mulches, cover cropping, digging with broadforks, shallow cultivation, forest-edge orcharding, and everything related to permaculture is to help the plants and fungi to prosper . . . which means we prosper as well.Building soil structure and fertility that lasts for ages results only once we comprehend the nondisturbance principle. As the author says, "What a grower understands, a grower will do." Mycorrhizal Planet abounds with insights into "fungal consciousness" and offers practical, regenerative techniques that are pertinent to gardeners, landscapers, orchardists, foresters, and farmers. Michael's fungal acumen will resonate with everyone who is fascinated with the unseen workings of nature and concerned about maintaining and restoring the health of our soils, our climate, and the quality of life on Earth for generations to come.

Dawn Again: Tracking the Wisdom of the Wild


Doniga Markegard - 2017
    Dawn Again takes readers along on Doniga’s journey: as a troubled teen attending a wilderness immersion school where wildlife trackers and Indigenous elders were among her teaches, hitchhiking across the pacific northwest, the moment she first connected with a deer using owl eyes and fox walking techniques, and to Alaska where she fell in love with tracking white wolves and the rigor of wilderness survival. With chapters on food, permaculture, and more, Dawn Again dives into Doniga’s real-life experiences while arming readers with practical knowledge. When Doniga tracks mountain lions with Erik, a rancher, she finds herself falling in love with more than just nature. She settles down on a cattle ranch on the California coast to start a family, and has to learn how to apply the deep, unshakeable lessons of the wild to her everyday life.

Urban Ecology: A Natural Way to Transform Kids, Parks, Cities and the World


Ken Leinbach - 2017
    It starts from the simplicity of getting a city kid exploring their neighborhood park. How is it that so much life, community, and opportunity can grow from this unlikely soil? It's been called a miracle. It's contagious. It's spreading. It's exciting. And it works! This is a story of a group of ordinary people in a neighborhood who created something extraordinary. You will discover… The power of getting a city kid outside in nature. That kindness works. How to say no while following the yes. The value of clarity and focus. How to find abundance within your own diverse community by simply and humbly asking for help. Ten tried and tested rules for raising money (a lot of it!) while having a ton of fun doing it. A positive, believable, and very real vision for the future of our environment. We've got this! And... How to join our movement.

Backyard Chickens: Beyond the Basics


Pam Freeman - 2017
    It's a resource to turn to time and again for expert advice to make sure your birds are happy, healthy, and productive.Author Pam Freeman, an editor and "Ask the Expert" columnist at Backyard Poultry magazine, draws on her years of experience fielding reader questions to identify and clearly explain many common - and some not-so-common - issues in chicken keeping. How do you add new chickens to your flock? What is the pecking order and how can you change or control it? Is it better to raise chicks by hand or with a broody hen? What do you do when you collect eggs and discover: lash eggs, calcium deposits, soft eggs, eggs within eggs, or wrinkled eggs? In Backyard Chickens 2.0, readers will find not just answers, but a book full of "coop truth" that helps them continue on their journey. Because as every chicken owner knows: Chickens are individuals and real-life chicken keeping often takes you far from the beaten path.Chapters include Expanding Your Flock, Flock Behavior, Life with a Rooster, All About Eggs, Chicken (and Egg) Health, Predators, Feeding Your Chickens, Chicken Keeping Through the Seasons, and Coop Truth.

Fireflies, Glow-Worms, and Lightning Bugs: Identification and Natural History of the Fireflies of the Eastern and Central United States and Canada


Lynn Frierson Faust - 2017
    It is written for all those who want to know more about the amazing world of lightning bugs and learn the secrets hidden in the flash patterns of the 75+ species found in the eastern and central United States and Canada. As an independent researcher working with numerous university teams, naturalist Lynn Frierson Faust, "The Lightning Bug Lady," has spent decades tracking the behavior and researching the habitats of these fascinating creatures.Based on her twenty-five years of fieldwork, this book is intended to increase understanding and appreciation of bioluminescent insects while igniting enthusiasm in a fun and informative way. Species accounts are coupled with historical backgrounds and literary epigraphs to engage and draw readers young and old into the world of these tiny sparklers. A chart documenting the flash patterns of the various species will aid in identification.Clear photos illustrate the insects' distinguishing physical characteristics, while habitats, seasonality, and common names are provided in easy-to-understand yet scientifically accurate language. The guide will be welcomed by everyone who wants to learn more about fireflies' and glow-worms' unique traits and fragile niche in the ecosystem.Features: Over 600 color photographsDetailed accounts and anatomical diagrams of 75+ species, as well as aids in distinguishing between similar speciesA first-of-its-kind flash-pattern chart that folds out on heavy-weight paperExtensive scientific details written in an understandable and engaging wayColorful common names--Twilight Bush Baby, Shadow Ghosts, Snappy Syncs, and more--for easy species identification based on flash patternsTips on ideal sites and times of year for firefly watchingConservation-oriented approach

What is Critical Environmental Justice?


David Naguib Pellow - 2017
    These harms mirror those experienced by marginalized groups across the planet. In this novel book, David Naguib Pellow introduces a new framework for critically analyzing Environmental Justice scholarship and activism. In doing so he extends the field's focus to topics not usually associated with environmental justice, including the Israel/Palestine conflict and the Black Lives Matter movement in the United States. In doing so he reveals that ecological violence is first and foremost a form of social violence, driven by and legitimated by social structures and discourses. Those already familiar with the discipline will find themselves invited to think about the subject in a new way.This book will be a vital resource for students, scholars, and policy makers interested in transformative approaches to one of the greatest challenges facing humanity and the planet.

Where Honeybees Thrive: Stories from the Field


Heather Swan - 2017
    In this artfully illustrated book, Heather Swan embarks on a narrative voyage to discover solutions to--and understand the sources of--the plight of honeybees.Through a lyrical combination of creative nonfiction and visual imagery, Where Honeybees Thrive tells the stories of the beekeepers, farmers, artists, entomologists, ecologists, and other advocates working to stem the damage and reverse course for this critical pollinator. Using her own quest for understanding as a starting point, Swan highlights the innovative projects and strategies these groups employ. Her mosaic approach to engaging with the environment not only reveals the incredibly complex political ecology in which bees live--which includes human and nonhuman actors alike--but also suggests ways of comprehending and tackling a host of other conflicts between postindustrial society and the natural world. Each chapter closes with an illustrative full-color gallery of bee-related artwork.A luminous journey from the worlds of honey producers, urban farmers, and mead makers of the United States to those of beekeepers of Sichuan, China, and researchers in southern Africa, Where Honeybees Thrive traces the global web of efforts to secure a sustainable future for honeybees--and ourselves.

Runaway: Gregory Bateson, the Double Bind, and the Rise of Ecological Consciousness


Anthony Chaney - 2017
    In the years following World War II, Bateson was among the group of mathematicians, engineers, and social scientists who laid the theoretical foundations of the information age. In Palo Alto in 1956, he introduced the double-bind theory of schizophrenia. By the sixties, he was in Hawaii studying dolphin communication. Bateson's discipline hopping made established experts wary, but he found an audience open to his ideas in a generation of rebellious youth. To a gathering of counterculturalists and revolutionaries in 1967 London, Bateson was the first to warn of a greenhouse effect that could lead to runaway climate change.Blending intellectual biography with an ambitious reappraisal of the 1960s, Anthony Chaney uses Bateson's life and work to explore the idea that a postmodern ecological consciousness is the true legacy of the decade. Surrounded by voices calling for liberation of all kinds, Bateson spoke of limitation and dependence. But he also offered an affirming new picture of human beings and their place in the world--as ecologies knit together in a fabric of meaning that, said Bateson, we might as well call Mind.

Creekfinding: A True Story


Jacqueline Briggs Martin - 2017
    It was filled with insects and brook trout that ate them, frogs that chirruped and birds watching for bugs and fish. This is a true story about a man named Mike who went looking for that creek long after it was buried under fields of corn. It is the story of how a creek can be brought back to life, and with it a whole world of nature. In the words of award-winning author Jacqueline Briggs Martin and the enchanting illustrations by Claudia McGehee, this heartening tale of an ecosystem restored in the Driftless Area of northeast Iowa unfolds in a way that will charm and inform young readers who are drawn to a good mystery, the wonders of nature—and, of course, big earth-moving machines.

Agroecology: Science and Politics


Peter M Rosset - 2017
    Agroecology is a solution to these increasingly urgent problems.After decades of being dismissed by mainstream institutions and defended in obscurity by grassroots movements and farmers, agroecology is suddenly in fashion. The UN Food and Agriculture Organization, government ministries and even corporations are jumping on the bandwagon. But, are they pushing the same agroecology as developed by pioneering farmers and scientists and pushed for by peasant social movements, or are they seeking to co-opt the concept and give it different content?Rosset and Altieri, two of the world's leading agroecologists, outline the principles, history and currents of agroecological thought, the scientific evidence for agroecology, the social aspects of bringing agroecology to scale and the contemporary politics of agroecology.

The Songs of Trees: Stories from Nature's Great Connectors


David George Haskell - 2017
    Now, Haskell brings his powers of observation to the biological networks that surround all species, including humans. Haskell repeatedly visits a dozen trees around the world, exploring the trees connections with webs of fungi, bacterial communities, cooperative and destructive animals, and other plants. An Amazonian ceibo tree reveals the rich ecological turmoil of the tropical forest, along with threats from expanding oil fields. Thousands of miles away, the roots of a balsam fir in Canada survive in poor soil only with the help of fungal partners. These links are nearly two billion years old: the fir s roots cling to rocks containing fossils of the first networked cells. By unearthing charcoal left by Ice Age humans and petrified redwoods in the Rocky Mountains, Haskell shows how the Earth s climate has emerged from exchanges among trees, soil communities, and the atmosphere. Now humans have transformed these networks, powering our societies with wood, tending some forests, but destroying others. Haskell also attends to trees in places where humans seem to have subdued nature a pear tree on a Manhattan sidewalk, an olive tree in Jerusalem, a Japanese bonsai demonstrating that wildness permeates every location. Every living being is not only sustained by biological connections, but is made from these relationships. Haskell shows that this networked view of life enriches our understanding of biology, human nature, and ethics. When we listen to trees, nature s great connectors, we learn how to inhabit the relationships that give life its source, substance, and beauty."

New Carbon Architecture: Building to Cool the Planet


Bruce King - 2017
    The New Carbon Architecture explores how biomimicry-inspired innovations in architecture and construction – from cities made of wood to insulation grown from straw and mycelium – will pull carbon from the atmosphere, heal the climate, and produce safer, healthier, and more beautiful buildings.

Karl Marx's Ecosocialism: Capital, Nature, and the Unfinished Critique of Political Economy


Kohei Saito - 2017
    Understandably, this perspective has come under sharp attack, not only from mainstream environmentalists but also from ecosocialists, many of whom reject Marx outright.Kohei Saito's Karl Marx's Ecosocialism lays waste to accusations of Marx's ecological shortcomings. Delving into Karl Marx's central works, as well as his natural scientific notebooks--published only recently and still being translated--Saito also builds on the works of scholars such as John Bellamy Foster and Paul Burkett, to argue that Karl Marx actually saw the environmental crisis embedded in capitalism. "It is not possible to comprehend the full scope of [Marx's] critique of political economy," Saito writes, "if one ignores its ecological dimension."Saito's book is crucial today, as we face unprecedented ecological catastrophes--crises that cannot be adequately addressed without a sound theoretical framework. Karl Marx's Ecosocialism shows us that Marx has given us more than we once thought, that we can now come closer to finishing Marx's critique, and to building a sustainable ecosocialist world.

The Word for World is Still Forest (Intercalations)


Anna-Sophie SpringerYanni A. Loukissas - 2017
    in response to their violent destruction, which characterizes the Anthropocene, these pages traverse various woodlands by way of their semiotic, socio-political, historical, and epistemic incitements in order to reveal how practices of care, concern, and attention also enable humans to inhabit and flourish in this world as forest.Taking its title from Ursula K. Le Guin’s 1972 novella, The Word for World is Still Forest curates an homage to the forest as a turbulent, interconnected, multinature. Moving from concepts of the forest as a thinking organism to the linear monocultural plantations that now threaten the life of global forests, the volume includes interviews, a photo essay, case studies, reflections, drawings, essays and more. Contributors: Sandra Bartoli, Kevin Beiler, Shannon Castleman, Dan Handel, Katie Holten, Elise Hunchuck, Silvan Linden, Yanni A. Loukissas, Eduardo Kohn, Pedro Neves Marques, Abel Rodríguez, Carlos Rodríguez, Suzanne Simard, Anna-Sophie Springer, Paulo Tavares Etienne Turpin, Catalina Vargas Tovar

Green Tyranny: Exposing the Totalitarian Roots of the Climate Industrial Complex


Rupert Darwall - 2017
    In the 1970s, the Swedish Social Democrats used global warming to get political support for building a string of nuclear power stations. It was the second phase of their war on coal, which began with the acid rain scare and the first big UN environment conference in Stockholm in 1969.Acid rain swept all before it. America held out for as long as Ronald Reagan was in the White House, but capitulated under his successor. Like global warming, acid rain had the vocal support of the scientific establishment, but the consensus science collapsed just as Congress was passing acid rain cap-and-trade legislation. Rather than tell legislators and the nation the truth, the EPA attacked a lead scientist and suppressed the federal report showing that the scientific case for action on curbing power station emissions was baseless.Ostensibly neutral in the Cold War, Sweden had a secret military alliance with Washington. A hero of the international Left, Sweden's Olof Palme used environmentalism to maintain a precarious balance between East and West. Thus Stockholm was the conduit for the KGB-inspired nuclear winter scare. The bait was taken by Carl Sagan and leading scientists, who tried to undermine Ronald Reagan's nuclear strategy and acted as propaganda tools to end the Cold War on Moscow's terms.Nuclear energy was to have been the solution to global warming. It didn't turn out that way, most of all thanks to Germany. Instead America and the world are following Germany's lead in embracing wind and solar. German obsession with renewable energy originates deep within its culture. Few know today that the Nazis were the first political party to champion wind power, Hitler calling wind the energy of the future.Post-1945 West Germany appeared normal, but anti-nuclear protests in the 1970s led to the fusion of extreme Left and Right and the birth of the Greens in 1980. Their rise changed Germany, then Europe and now the world. Radical environmentalism became mainstream. It demands more than the rejection of the abundant hydrocarbon energy that fuels American greatness. It requires the suppression of dissent.

Thoreau and the Language of Trees


Richard Higgins - 2017
    His portraits of them were so perfect, it was as if he could see the sap flowing beneath their bark. When Thoreau wrote that the poet loves the pine tree as his own shadow in the air, he was speaking about himself. In short, he spoke their language. In this original book, Richard Higgins explores Thoreau’s deep connections to trees: his keen perception of them, the joy they gave him, the poetry he saw in them, his philosophical view of them, and how they fed his soul. His lively essays show that trees were a thread connecting all parts of Thoreau’s being—heart, mind, and spirit. Included are one hundred excerpts from Thoreau’s writings about trees, paired with over sixty of the author’s photographs. Thoreau’s words are as vivid now as they were in 1890, when an English naturalist wrote that he was unusually able to “to preserve the flashing forest colors in unfading light.” Thoreau and the Language of Trees shows that Thoreau, with uncanny foresight, believed trees were essential to the preservation of the world.

Change Here Now: Permaculture Solutions for Personal and Community Transformation


Adam Brock - 2017
    Using the "pattern language" framework developed by architect Christopher Alexander and his colleagues in the 1970s, Brock outlines strategies for redesigning our social and economic systems to mimic nature's resilience and abundance.  Practical, innovative, and visually compelling, this book presents actionable and easy-to-understand tools for a compassionate and methodical approach to building better communities. Sidebars and diagrams supplement the text, while case studies illustrate endeavors such as starting a business, launching a social change project, or setting personal goals. Brock suggests ways to engage disempowered communities in a meaningful and authentic way, and draws on eight years of in-depth research and investigation to demonstrate what makes communities work at the most fundamental level. Anyone looking for concrete solutions to many of the social and economic ills that plague our current society will discover a rich resource for growth and change.

Living In The Anthropocene: Earth in the Age of Humans


W. John Kress - 2017
    Even now, the basic requirements for human life--air, water, shelter, food, nature, and culture--are rapidly transforming the planet as billions of people compete for resources. These changes have become so noticeable on a global scale that scientists believe we are living in a new chapter in Earth's story: the Anthropocene, or Age of Humans. Living in the Anthropocene: Earth in the Age of Humans is a vital look at this era. The book contextualizes the Anthropocene by presenting paleontological, historical, and contemporary views of various human effects on Earth. It discusses environmental and biological systems that have been changed and affected; the causes of the Anthropocene, such as agricultural spread, pollution, and urbanization; how societies are responding and adapting to these changes; how these changes have been represented in art, film, television, and literature; and finally, offers a look toward the future of our environment and our own lives.

Come On!: Capitalism, Short-termism, Population and the Destruction of the Planet


Ernst Ulrich von Weizsäcker - 2017
    The Club of Rome’s warnings published in the book Limits to Growth are still valid. Remedies that are acceptable for the great majority tend to make things worse. We seem to be in a philosophical crisis.  Pope Francis says it clearly: our common home is in deadly danger. Analyzing the philosophical crisis, the book comes to the conclusion that the world may need a “new enlightenment”; one that is not based solely on doctrine, but instead addresses a balance between humans and nature, as well as a balance between markets and the state, and the short versus long term. To do this we need to leave behind working in ”silos” in favor of a more systemic approach that will require us to rethink the organization of science and education. However, we have to act now; the world cannot wait until 7.6 billion people have struggled to reach a new enlightenment.  This book is full of optimistic case studies and policy proposals that will lead us back to a trajectory of sustainability. But it is also necessary to address the taboo topic of population increase. Countries with a stable population fare immensely better than those with continued increase.   Finally, we are presenting an optimistic book from the Club of Rome.

Lavil: Life, Love & Death in Port-au-Prince


Peter Orner - 2017
    This immersive and engrossing book, based on five years of research and scores of interviews translated from Haitian Kreyol, gives voice to the continuing struggle of Haitian people to reconstruct their nation from the devastation of the earthquake, and from many decades of political and economic disaster. The earthquake killed more than 200,000, rendered more than a million and a half homeless, and wiped out what little infrastructure existed in the country. But prior to the quake, half the country was illiterate and two-thirds of Haitians lived in poverty. This book makes clear the long genesis of the ongoing crisis and illuminates the depths of the continuing problems, and does so through some of the most marginal and least-heard people in the world. An interview with a restavek--a child sent by poor parents to work as an unpaid servant in a wealthier household--is an example. A recent study determined a figure of 173,000 restaveks--about 8 percent of the population of children.From the Trade Paperback edition.

Oak and Ash and Thorn: The Ancient Woods and New Forests of Britain


Peter Fiennes - 2017
    Even today, the British people continue to have a deep love for their woods, which have inspired countless myths, stories and poems throughout time. Peter Fiennes celebrates the beauty and mystery of Britain's woods, while also closely examining present issues of ownership, access, power and property. Fiennes visits Norwegian spruces in the Scottish Highlands, wild boars in Sussex, the small collection of trees in his childhood home's garden and everything in between in his exhilarating journey to understand our relationship to the forests and our duty to protect them. Of Oak and Ash and Thorn presents a powerful message for readers everywhere: our woods are important; they are under threat; and they must be saved.

Wendell Berry and the Given Life


Ragan Sutterfield - 2017
    Our daily bread seems to generate miraculously from store shelves. And our communities can be connected with a billion ones and zeros over fiber optic cables. For us, the idea of being a creature can seem passé. Yet in this lonely world of mastery, in a time so dominated by human desire and design that it has been dubbed the “anthropocene,” the human age, many of us feel that we are missing some essential truth about who we are.    The glimpses of this truth come when we lose cell reception on a long hike in the forest and our eyes are lifted to the simple marvel of trees. We feel this truth when we take up a shovel and sense the satisfying heave of dirt as we plant a modest garden. We hear this truth when we tune out the traffic and listen to the song sparrow’s melody, eavesdropping on a beauty that serves no human economy. In all this we hear a whisper of the truth that we are creatures—and we long to live in this reality. But how can we, when we have moved so far from our life source in the soil?  For the past 50 years, Wendell Berry has been helping seekers chart a return to the practice of being creatures. Through his essays, poetry and fiction, Berry has repeatedly drawn our attention to the ways in which our lives are gifts in a whole economy of gifts. Berry presents us with the sort of coherent vision for the lived moral and spiritual life that we need now.  His work helps us remember our givenness and embrace our life as creatures. His insights flow from a life and practices, and so it is a vision that can be practiced and lived—it is a vision that is grounded in the art of being a creature. Wendell Berry and the Given Life  articulates his vision for the creaturely life and the Christian understandings of humility and creation that underpin it.   The audio edition of this book can be downloaded via Audible.

River of Life, River of Death: The Ganges and India's Future


Victor Mallet - 2017
    The waterway that has nourished more people than any on earth for three millennia is now so polluted with sewage and toxic waste that it has become a menace to human and animal health.Victor Mallet traces the holy river from source to mouth, and from ancient times to the present day, to find that the battle to rescue what is arguably the world's most important river is far from lost. As one Hindu sage told the author in Rishikesh on the banks of the upper Ganges (known to Hindusas the goddess Ganga): If Ganga dies, India dies. If Ganga thrives, India thrives. The lives of 500 million people is no small thing.Drawing on four years of first-hand reporting and detailed historical and scientific research, Mallet delves into the religious, historical, and biological mysteries of the Ganges, and explains how Hindus can simultaneously revere and abuse their national river.Starting at the Himalayan glacier where the Ganges emerges pure and cold from an icy cave known as the Cow's Mouth and ending in the tiger-infested mangrove swamps of the Bay of Bengal, Mallet encounters everyone from the naked holy men who worship the river, to the engineers who divert its watersfor irrigation, the scientists who study its bacteria, and Narendra Modi, the Hindu nationalist prime minister, who says he wants to save India's mother-river for posterity.Can they succeed in saving the river from catastrophe - or is it too late?

Bodies of Water: Posthuman Feminist Phenomenology


Astrida Neimanis - 2017
    Exploring the cultural and philosophical implications of this fact, Bodies of Water develops an innovative new mode of posthuman feminist phenomenology that understands our bodies as being fundamentally part of the natural world and not separate from or privileged to it.Building on the works by Luce Irigaray, Maurice Merleau-Ponty and Gilles Deleuze, Astrida Neimanis's book is a landmark study that brings a new feminist perspective to bear on ideas of embodiment and ecological ethics in the posthuman critical moment.

The Seneca Effect: Why Growth is Slow but Collapse is Rapid (The Frontiers Collection)


Ugo Bardi - 2017
    This sentence summarizes the features of the phenomenon that we call "collapse," which is typically sudden and often unexpected, like the proverbial "house of cards." But why are such collapses so common, and what generates them? Several books have been published on the subject, including the well known "Collapse" by Jared Diamond (2005), "The collapse of complex societies" by Joseph Tainter (1998) and "The Tipping Point," by Malcom Gladwell (2000). Why The Seneca Effect? This book is an ambitious attempt to pull these various strands together by describing collapse from a multi-disciplinary viewpoint. The reader will discover how collapse is a collective phenomenon that occurs in what we call today "complex systems," with a special emphasis on system dynamics and the concept of "feedback." From this foundation, Bardi applies the theory to real-world systems, from the mechanics of fracture and the collapse of large structures to financial collapses, famines and population collapses, the fall of entire civilzations, and the most dreadful collapse we can imagine: that of the planetary ecosystem generated by overexploitation and climate change. The final objective of the book is to describe a conclusion that the ancient stoic philosophers had already discovered long ago, but that modern system science has rediscovered today. If you want to avoid collapse you need to embrace change, not fight it. Neither a book about doom and gloom nor a cornucopianist's dream, The Seneca Effect goes to the heart of the challenges that we are facing today, helping us to manage our future rather than be managed by it.

The Blue Economy 3.0: The Marriage of Science, Innovation and Entrepreneurship Creates a New Business Model That Transforms Society


Gunter Pauli - 2017
    It details how thistles, considered a weed, is turned into a plastic, a lubricant and a herbicide converting an old petrochemical plant into a biorefinery.

The Driftless Reader


Curt MeineHamlin Garland - 2017
    Across time, this rugged topography has been home to an astonishing variety of people: Sauk, Dakota, and Ho-Chunk villagers, Norwegian farmers and Mexican mercado owners, Dominican nuns and Buddhist monks, river raftsmen and Shakespearean actors, Cornish miners and African American barn builders, organic entrepreneurs and Hmong truck gardeners.The Driftless Reader gathers writings that highlight the unique natural and cultural history, landscape, and literature of this region that encompasses southwestern Wisconsin and adjacent Minnesota, Iowa, and Illinois. The more than eighty selected texts include writings by Black Hawk, Mark Twain, Laura Ingalls Wilder, Frank Lloyd Wright, Aldo Leopold, David Rhodes, and many other Native people, explorers, scientists, historians, farmers, songwriters, journalists, and poets. Paintings, photographs, maps, and other images complement the texts, providing a deeper appreciation of this region's layered natural and human history.

Sonic Intimacy: Voice, Species, Technics (or, How To Listen to the World)


Dominic Pettman - 2017
    Arguing that our ears are far too narrowly attuned to our own species, the book explores four different types of voices: the cybernetic, the gendered, the creaturely, and the ecological. Through both a conceptual framework and a series of case studies, Dominic Pettman tracks some of the ways in which these voices intersect and interact. He demonstrates how intimacy is forged through the ear, perhaps even more than through any other sense, mode, or medium. The voice, then, is what creates intimacy, both fleeting and lasting, not only between people, but also between animals, machines, and even natural elements: those presumed not to have a voice in the first place. Taken together, the manifold, material, actual voices of the world, whether primarily natural or technological, are a complex cacophony that is desperately trying to tell us something about the rapidly failing health of the planet and its inhabitants. As Pettman cautions, we would do well to listen.

The Appalachian Trail: Hiking the People's Path


Bart Smith - 2017
    Now, eighty years after its completion, the A.T. remains America's premier hiking trail and is known as "the People's Path."This beautifully illustrated book officially published with the Appalachian Trail Conservancy highlights this legendary footpath with more than 170 spectacular contemporary images taken by the foremost hiking photographer in America. The photographs allow readers to experience the trail as if their boots were on the path--passing by the iconic white trail blazes, taking in the surrounding wilderness at scenic overlooks, meeting other hikers at lean-tos or shelters, and freezing at the sight of a black bear, moose, or other majestic wildlife. This book is perfect for anyone interested in conservation, outdoor recreation, or American history, or for those who dream of one day becoming thru-hikers themselves.

The Wolves Return: A New Beginning for Yellowstone National Park


Celia Godkin - 2017
    This reintroduction project was an overwhelming success. Over twenty years later we can still see the changes the grey wolves brought to Yellowstone National Park. Now that the elk graze higher ground, seedlings are growing tall, rivers are getting deeper as beavers return, and a lively pond ecosystem is developing. This true story offers an important lesson about the difference one creature can make in creating a healthy, thriving world. Acclaimed environmental author and illustrator Celia Godkin delivers an inspiring, feel-good environmental story that is the perfect follow up to her most recent nonfiction picture book, Skydiver: Saving the Fastest Bird in the World, a Bank Street Best Book that was also shortlisted for several awards. The Wolves Return features Godkin's evocative, full-spread pencil crayon and watercolour illustrations and is further enhanced by extensive information on the Yellowstone Wolf Project, including maps and statistics that will fascinate young animal lovers and inquisitive minds.

Jinnealogy: Time, Islam, and Ecological Thought in the Medieval Ruins of Delhi


Anand Vivek Taneja - 2017
    The spirits they entreat are Islamic jinns, and they write out requests as if petitioning the state. At a time when a Hindu right wing government in India is committed to normalizing a view of the past that paints Muslims as oppressors, Anand Vivek Taneja's Jinnealogy provides a fresh vision of religion, identity, and sacrality that runs counter to state-sanctioned history.The ruin, Firoz Shah Kotla, is an unusually democratic religious space, characterized by freewheeling theological conversations, DIY rituals, and the sanctification of animals. Taneja observes the visitors, who come mainly from the Muslim and Dalit neighborhoods of Delhi, and uses their conversations and letters to the jinns as an archive of voices so often silenced. He finds that their veneration of the jinns recalls pre-modern religious traditions in which spiritual experience was inextricably tied to ecological surroundings. In this enchanted space, Taneja encounters a form of popular Islam that is not a relic of bygone days, but a vibrant form of resistance to state repression and post-colonial visions of India.

Beyond Unwanted Sound: Noise, Affect and Aesthetic Moralism


Marie Thompson - 2017
    But there is much more to noise than what greets the ear as unwanted sound. Weaving together affect theory with technical descriptions, philosophical accounts, acoustic ecology and a range of noises - from disruptive neighbours to the music of Maria Chavez -Beyond Unwanted Sound critiques both the conservative politics of silence and transgressive poetics of noise, each of which position noise as a negative phenomenon. Instead, through the development of an 'ethico-affective' approach, this book aims to account for a broader spectrum of noise, ranging from the exceptional to the banal; the overwhelming to the inaudible; and the destructive to the generative. What connects these various and variable manifestations of noise is not negativity but affectivity - the capacity to modulate, transform and perturb. Building on the Spinozist assertion that to exist is to be affected, Beyond Unwanted Sound asserts that to exist is to be affected by noise.

The Responsible Object: A History of Design Ideology for the Future


Marjanne Van Helvert - 2017
    Adjectives like -sustainable, - -green- and -eco- describe this new wave of socially committed design. But though today's conditions are urgent and particular, the ideologies behind these new products are often not totally new, but rather a part of design history. Contemporary sustainable design is just the newest chapter of a story that stretches back throughout the previous centuries. The Responsible Object presents a selected history of socially committed design strategies within the Western design tradition of roughly the last 150 years, from William Morris to Victor Papanek, and from VKhUTEMAS to FabLab. It includes about 20 interstitial mini-posters with slogans from the text, printed on different colored papers.

The Contamination of the Earth: A History of Pollutions in the Industrial Age


François JARRIGE - 2017
    As our capacities for production and our aptitude for consumption have increased, so have their byproducts--chemical contamination from fertilizers and pesticides, diesel emissions, oil spills, a vast "plastic continent" found floating in the ocean. The Contamination of the Earth offers a social and political history of industrial pollution, mapping its trajectories over three centuries, from the toxic wastes of early tanneries to the fossil fuel energy regime of the twentieth century.The authors describe how, from 1750 onward, in contrast to the early modern period, polluted water and air came to be seen as inevitable side effects of industrialization, which was universally regarded as beneficial. By the nineteenth century, pollutants became constituent elements of modernity. The authors trace the evolution of these various pollutions, and describe the ways in which they were simultaneously denounced and permitted. The twentieth century saw new and massive scales of pollution: chemicals that resisted biodegradation, including napalm and other defoliants used as weapons of war; the ascendancy of oil; and a lifestyle defined by consumption. In the 1970s, pollution became a political issue, but efforts--local, national, and global--to regulate it often fell short. Viewing the history of pollution though a political lens, the authors also offer lessons for the future of the industrial world.

Spiritual Ecology: 10 Practices to Reawaken the Sacred in Everyday Life


Llewellyn Vaughan-Lee - 2017
    Describing the power of simple, daily practices such as Walking, Gardening, Cooking with Love, and Prayer, this small book supports profound changes in how we think about and respond to the ecological crisis of our times.Spiritual Ecology: 10 Practices to Reawaken the Sacred in Everyday Life follows our groundbreaking Spiritual Ecology: The Cry of the Earth, now in its second edition, which included spiritual perspectives on climate change, species loss, deforestation, and other aspects of our present environmental crises from renowned spiritual teachers, scientists, and indigenous leaders. That book drew an overwhelmingly positive reaction from readers, many of whom are asking: “What can I do?”Spiritual Ecology: 10 Practices to Reawaken the Sacred in Everyday Life answers that question with inspiring, personal anecdotes from the author – Sufi teacher Llewellyn Vaughan-Lee – and simple practices we all can do. Rooted in the mystical foundation of the world’s great spiritual traditions, with a particular connection to Sufism, these timeless practices remind readers of our deep connections to life, each other, and the Earth, and invite a return of meaning to our desecrated world.As Rumi says, “there are a thousand ways to kneel and kiss the ground,” and it is this sacred ground that is calling to us, that needs our living presence, our attentiveness. This small book offers simple ways to reconnect so that we can once again feel the music, the song of our living connection with the Earth.

Marine Science for Kids: Exploring and Protecting Our Watery World, Includes Cool Careers and 21 Activities


Josh Hestermann - 2017
    Kids discover how and why the ocean moves, learning the answers to questions such as “Why is the ocean blue?” They learn about cool creatures including sharks and rays, penguins and other seabirds, whales and dolphins, squids and octopuses and many more. They discover some of the most pressing challenges facing marine environments, but they’re left feeling hopeful that they can use their talents to make a difference. Real-life marine scientists share what inspires them every day so kids can learn more about these exciting careers. Hands-on, cross-curricular activities in each chapter—including science experiments, arts and crafts, edible projects and group games—make learning fun.

Curated Decay: Heritage Beyond Saving


Caitlin DeSilvey - 2017
    Caitlin DeSilvey proposes rethinking the care of certain vulnerable sites in terms of ecology and entropy, and explains how we must adopt an ethical stance that allows us to collaborate with—rather than defend against—natural processes. Curated Decay chronicles DeSilvey’s travels to places where experiments in curated ruination and creative collapse are under way, or under consideration. It uses case studies from the United States, Europe, and elsewhere to explore how objects and structures produce meaning not only in their preservation and persistence, but also in their decay and disintegration. Through accessible and engaging discussion of specific places and their stories, it traces how cultural memory is generated in encounters with ephemeral artifacts and architectures. An interdisciplinary reframing of the concept of the ruin that combines historical and philosophical depth with attentive storytelling, Curated Decay represents the first attempt to apply new theories of materiality and ecology to the concerns of critical heritage studies.

Great Plains Bison


Dan O'Brien - 2017
    Drawing on both extensive research and decades of personal experience, he details not only the natural history of the bison but also its prominent symbolism in Native American culture and its rise as an icon of the Great Plains. Great Plains Bison is a tribute to the bison’s essential place at the heart of the North American prairie and its ability to inspire naturalists and wildlife advocates in the fight to preserve American biodiversity.

Farming and Birds (Collins New Naturalist Library, Book 135)


Ian Newton - 2017
    Over the centuries, landscapes have been continually modified as human needs and desires have changed.Each major change in land use has brought changes to the native plants and animals, continually altering the distribution and abundance of species. This is apparent from the changes in vegetation and animal populations that were documented in historical times, but even more so in those that have occurred since the Second World War.More than seventy per cent of Britain’s land surface is currently used for crop or livestock production, and in recent decades farming has experienced a major revolution. Not only has it become more thoroughly mechanised, it has also become heavily dependent on synthetic fertilisers and pesticides, and increasingly large-scale in its operation. These changes have brought crop yields and livestock production to levels previously considered unattainable. However, such high yields have been achieved only at huge financial and environmental costs. One of the most conspicuous, and best documented, consequences of modern agriculture has been a massive loss of wildlife, including birds.In this timely addition to the New Naturalist Library, Ian Newton discusses the changes that have occurred in British agriculture over the past seventy years, and the effects they have had on bird populations. He explains how different farming procedures have affected birds and other wildlife, and how an understanding of the processes involved could help in future conservation.

The Violent American Century: War and Terror Since World War II


John Dower - 2017
    Hostilities engulfed the globe. Mobilization extended to virtually every sector of every nation. Air war, including the terror bombing of civilians, emerged as a central strategy of the victorious Anglo-American powers. The devastation was catastrophic almost everywhere, with the notable exception of the United States, which exited the strife unscathed and unmatched in power and influence. The death toll of fighting forces plus civilians worldwide was staggering.The Violent “American Century” addresses the U.S.-led transformations in war conduct and strategizing that followed 1945—beginning with brutal localized hostilities, proxy wars, and the nuclear terror of the Cold War, and ending with the asymmetrical conflicts of the present day. The military playbook now meshes brute force with a focus on non-state terrorism, counterinsurgency, clandestine operations, a vast web of overseas American military bases, and—most touted of all—a revolutionary new era of computerized “precision” warfare. By contrast to World War II, postwar death and destruction has been comparatively small. By any other measure, it has been appalling—and shows no sign of abating.The winner of numerous national prizes for his historical writings, including the Pulitzer and the National Book Award, Dower draws heavily on hard data and internal U.S. planning and pronouncements in this concise analysis of war and terror in our time. In doing so, he places U.S. policy and practice firmly within the broader context of global mayhem, havoc, and slaughter since World War II—always with bottom-line attentiveness to the human costs of this legacy of unceasing violence.

Enviromedics: The Impact of Climate Change on Human Health


Jay Lemery - 2017
    This book addresses that oversight and enlightens readers about the most important aspect of one of the greatest challenges of our time. The global environment is under massive stress from centuries of human industrialization. The projections regarding climate change for the next century and beyond are grim. The impact this will have on human health is tremendous, and we are only just now discovering what the long-term outcomes may be. By weighing in from a physician's perspective, Jay Lemery and Paul Auerbach clarify the science, dispel the myths, and help readers understand the threats of climate change to human health. No better argument exists for persuading people to care about climate change than a close look at its impacts on our physical and emotional well-being. The need has never been greater for a grounded, informative, and accessible discussion about this topic. In this groundbreaking book, the authors not only sound the alarm but address the health issues likely to arise in the coming years.--Laurie Garrett, Pulitzer Prize-winning writer; author of I Heard the Sirens Scream "Publishers Weekly, Starred Review"

Creating an Ecological Society: Toward a Revolutionary Transformation


Fred Magdoff - 2017
    It is now clearer than ever that capitalism is also degrading the Earth's ability to support other forms of life. Capitalism's imperative--to make a profit at all costs and expand without end--is destabilizing Earth's climate while increasing human misery and inequality on a planetary scale. Already, hundreds of millions of people are facing poverty in the midst of untold wealth, perpetual war, growing racism, and gender oppression. The need to organize for social and environmental reforms has never been greater. But crucial as reforms are, they cannot solve our intertwined ecological and social crises. Creating an Ecological Society reveals an overwhelmingly simple truth: Fighting for reforms is vital, but revolution is essential.Because it aims squarely at replacing capitalism with an ecologically sound and socially just society, Creating an Ecological Society is filled with revolutionary hope. Fred Magdoff and Chris Williams, who have devoted their lives to activism, Marxist analysis, and ecological science, provide informed, fascinating accounts of how a new world can be created from the ashes of the old. Their book shows that it is possible to envision and create a society that is genuinely democratic, equitable, and ecologically sustainable. And possible--not one moment too soon--for society to change fundamentally and be brought into harmony with nature.

Will the Flower Slip Through the Asphalt: Writers Respond to Capitalist Climate Change


Vijay PrashadShalini Singh - 2017
    It informs and inspires the actions that we all need to take to protect ourselves and our homes. Read it, and after you’ve wept, act.” — Emma Thompson, Actor Naomi Klein, delivering the Edward Said lecture, links the question of climate with the question of occupation (with Palestine as the focus). Klein points out that those who are ‘othered’ will be the first victims of the climate catastrophe. This volume collects Naomi Klein’s superb essay, along with reactions from important writers who live across the globe. John Bellamy Foster and Ghassan Hage offer direct reflections on Klein’s lecture, while other writers are spurred by Klein’s insights. Rafia Zakaria takes us to the shoreline of Karachi, Masturah Alatas wonders about hijab and air-conditioning in Malaysia, Shalini Singh meanders through the climate wars in India, and susan abulhawa writes from the ‘fossil fuel sacrifice zone’ at Standing Rock (North Dakota, USA). The book closes with Amitav Ghosh’s meditation on nutmeg and cloves, leading to important insights into globalization, interconnectedness and transformation.

Wild Lives: Leading Conservationists on the Animals and the Planet They Love


Lori Robinson - 2017
    This statistic is so staggering that scientists have begun to refer to the twenty-first century as the “sixth extinction.” But while this is alarming, all hope is not lost; conservation experts across the globe are working tirelessly to preserve our planet for future generations.In Wild Lives, twenty of these pioneers share their stories via exclusive interviews. Coming from different countries, diverse cultures, and a variety of socioeconomic backgrounds and specializing in different species, all of these conservationists have an important characteristic in common: they have committed their lives to saving our planet and the majestic species that call it home. These esteemed contributors include:•Beverly and Dereck Joubert, National Geographic filmmakers and big cat experts•Ric O’Barry, dolphin advocate and trainer of Flipper•George Schaller, famed field biologist and author•Yossi Leshem, Israeli ornithologist•Dominique Bikaba, gorilla activist•Paul Hilton, award-winning wildlife photographerPassionate and inspiring, Wild Lives is an important and timely reminder of the beauty and fragility of our world and the obligation that every person has towards preserving it.

Kent Monkman: Shame and Prejudice, A Story of Resiliance


Kent Monkman - 2017
    With its entry points in the harsh urban environment of Winnipeg’s north end, and contemporary life on the reserve, Kent Monkman: Shame and Prejudice, A Story of Resilience takes us all the way back to the period of New France and the fur trade. The Rococo masterpiece The Swing by Jean-Honore´ Fragonard has been reinterpreted as an installation with Monkman’s alter ego, Miss Chief Eagle Testickle, in a beaver trimmed baroque dress, swinging back and forth between the Generals Wolfe and Montcalm.The book includes Monkman’s own paintings, drawings and sculptural works, in dialogue with historical artefacts and art works borrowed from museum and privatecollections from across Canada.