Conservation of the environment Books
Michael O'Mara Books Ltd Fragile World: Colour Nature's Wonders
Book SynopsisA new colouring book from New York Times bestselling illustrator, Kerby Rosanes.Fragile World features over 55 endangered and vulnerable creatures to colour. Showcasing some of the most threatened animals from around the globe in their natural habitats, from the Tapanuli Orangutan to the Hawksbill Turtle, and many more. With a section of facts and information at the back explaining the inspiration and rationale behind each illustration, this book will raise awareness of our fragile world and inspire conservation.Kerby’s incredible artwork will provide a remarkable way to learn about our planet’s rich diversity and fragile ecosystems — all of which can be brought to life with colour.A royalty from the sale of this book will go to the David Shepherd Wildlife Foundation, who work to save endangered animals in the wild.
£10.44
Oxford University Press Applied Ecology
Book SynopsisWe live in a complex and dynamic world. Understanding how to monitor, manage and conserve species and habitats - the goal of applied ecology - is of ever-increasing importance. Applied Ecology shows students how an understanding of ecological theory can be used to address the most important issues facing ecologists today. Its explicitly problem-solving approach reflects the reality of using ecological tools and approaches in applied contexts, while also highlighting the key ecological theories that underpin those applications to make the link between theory and practice clear. With an emphasis throughout on the realities of applying ecological theory, the book features interviews with a range of leading applied ecologists, and over 30 case studies to give students a clear sense of contemporary applied ecology in action. In addition, over 20 Hot Topic panels capture issues and approaches at the forefront of current practice.Online Resources:The online resources to accompany Applied Ecology feature:For students:- Twelve bonus case studies to augment those featured in the book- Extended versions of the Interviews with Applied Ecologists that appear in the bookFor lecturers:- Problem-solving activities for use in a workshop, seminar, or tutorial setting- Figures from the book in digital format, for use in lecture presentationsTrade ReviewThis book provides essential information on key concepts in ecology and how they can be applied to address human-induced environmental impacts. With a focus on applying ecological principles to ensure successful outcomes, it is a cornerstone publication for all undergraduate students studying ecology. * Dr Duncan B. Westbury, The University of Worcester *A clear and comprehensive review of applied ecology and its applications to conservation and land management * Professor John Warren, Aberystwyth University *A gold mine of case studies and examples * Dr Nicholas Worsfold, University of Bedfordshire *Table of ContentsPART 1 OVERVIEW; PART 2 MONITORING; PART 3 MANAGING; PART 4 CONSERVING
£52.99
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC Sixty Harvests Left: How to Reach a
Book Synopsis‘Powerful, purposeful and persuasive … This book is transformative. We must read, mark and learn, fast’ Michael Morpurgo ‘A call to action – to change our world from the ground up. A vitally necessary book’ Isabella Tree ‘Philip Lymbery pulls no punches in cataloguing the calamitous mistakes we’ve made in our food system, but he has bold and inspiring solutions to offer, too.’ Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall _______________ Taking its title from a chilling warning made by the United Nations that the world’s soils could be lost within a lifetime, Sixty Harvests Left uncovers how the food industry is threatening the planet. Put simply, without soils there will be no food: game over. And time is running out. From the United Kingdom to Italy, from Brazil to the Gambia to the USA, Philip Lymbery, the internationally acclaimed author of Farmageddon, goes behind the scenes of industrial farming and confronts ‘Big Agriculture’, where mega-farms, chemicals and animal cages are sweeping the countryside and jeopardising the air we breathe, the water we drink, the food we eat and the nature that we treasure. In his investigations, however, he also finds hope in the pioneers who are battling to bring landscapes back to life, who are rethinking farming methods, rediscovering traditional techniques and developing technologies to feed an ever-expanding global population. Impassioned, balanced and persuasive, Sixty Harvests Left not only demonstrates why future harvests matter more than ever, but reveals how we can restore our planet for a nature-friendly future.Trade ReviewPRAISE FOR SIXTY HARVESTS LEFT: Philip Lymbery pulls no punches in cataloguing the calamitous mistakes we’ve made in our food system, but he has bold and inspiring solutions to offer, too. It’s time for Big Food, and governments everywhere, to act on them. -- Hugh Fearnley-WhittingstallBeautifully crafted. A compelling, excoriating account of industrial farming – how it is driving the climate and biodiversity emergencies, while also undermining our health. Full of insights and encounters with pioneers of new ways of farming, Sixty Harvests Left is a call to action – to change our world from the ground up. A vitally necessary book. -- Isabella TreeIn this beautifully written book, Philip Lymbery describes how intensive agriculture harms the environment and inflicts suffering on sentient animals. But after visiting and talking to those on the front line – scientists, farmers and food providers – he is able to show that there are sustainable alternatives. And that they are working. There is indeed hope for the future of our planet, and each one of us can play a part. I urge you to read Sixty Harvests Left. -- Dr Jane Goodall, DBE, Founder of the Jane Goodall Institute & UN Messenger of PeaceThe chilling title is the red flag; the contents, however, lay out all the remedies to save the planet and its species, including ours, and make for absorbing and sometimes terrifying reading. Minutely researched, and written for laymen as well as experts, Sixty Harvests Left deserves to be read world-wide and acted upon immediately. I cannot recommend it highly enough. -- Joanna LumleyPowerful, purposeful and persuasive, read Philip Lymbery’s book and we know what has to be done. It’s simple really, look after the land, farm it sensitively, tread softly on this earth and all can still be well. We need to transform ourselves rapidly. This book is transformative. We must read, mark and learn, fast. -- Michael MorpurgoThe true horror story of our current dependence on factory farming and intensive agriculture gets clearer by the day. Philip Lymbery pulls no punches in painting that grim picture. This dependence will bring down our civilisation as surely as our dependence on fossil fuels. But that is not our destiny, and you need to read Sixty Harvests Left more for its utterly convincing alternative vision of farming and food production available to us in the near future – all based on the three Rs: regenerative farming, reduction of animal protein, and rewilding the soil. I’d be very surprised if you don’t end up appreciating this book as much as I did. -- Jonathon PorrittPhilip Lymbery’s great service, through beautiful prose and deep research, is to amplify the siren call from our planet and the web of life. Through him, change becomes not only necessary and desirable, but irresistible. -- Raj PatelThought-provoking. Told through the seasons and finishing with a new start in Spring, Sixty Harvests Left gives us reason to look forward to a brighter farming future and the possibilities that can be achieved through care of our greatest natural asset, soil. Home to a quarter of the world's biodiversity, soil is life and our life depends on it. Lymbery speaks to practitioners with their feet firmly on the ground and gives hope that new ways in farming will provide for a better future. A fascinating and positive read! -- Jake FiennesThis profoundly important book should be read by all who would like humanity to survive beyond one more human lifetime, and the solutions it proposes should implemented as if our futures depend on it – which they do -- Andrew Knight, Professor of Animal Welfare and Ethics, University of WinchesterAn urgent, evidence-based, visionary approach to the most challenging decisions facing humanity. This is a brave, fascinating, game-changing book. -- Sophia PavelleSixty Harvests Left is not only beautifully written, it is jam-packed with the evidence we need to change our lives in order to save our planet. Philip Lymbery draws us in, in a lyrical and seductive manner, whilst imparting vital, life-changing information. Only we can save our planet and Sixty Harvests Left shows us how. Make sure you read it before it’s too late. You won’t regret it. -- Peter EganSixty Harvests Left is excellent – personal and engaging. Lymbery’s life experiences make it very readable, allowing him to speak with authority and honesty … An important challenge to the vested interests that make our life on earth unsustainable. -- Rebecca Nesbit, author of Tickets for the ArkPhilip Lymbery is one of the few who really understand the connections between farming and nature ... He is the most important thinker writing about these crucial issues – and the way forward -- Carl Safina, author of Becoming Wild and Beyond WordsThis is a clever, insightful and well informed work that’s easy to read. While those who know Philip might expect nothing more, it lays out quite clearly for those who do not know the shocking poverty and decrepitude of our chemically farmed landscapes, the great cruelties in our systems of livestock production, the destruction of biodiversity and the pollution of the Earth's soils and water. Philip's book is an eloquent appeal against this being so. Do buy it and enjoy -- Derek GowPraise for Farmageddon: Lymbery brings to this essential subject the perspective of a seasoned campaigner – he is informed enough to be appalled, and moderate enough to persuade us to take responsibility for the system that feeds us * Guardian, Book of the Week *An engaging read ... Anyone after a realistic account of our global food chain, and the changes necessary for a sustainable future, will find much to get their teeth into here * New Statesman *
£11.69
Canongate Books My First Summer In The Sierra
Book SynopsisIn the summer of 1869, John Muir set out from California's Central Valley with a flock of sheep and trekked into the foothills of the Sierra Nevada. His journals describe the summer he spent in what would become Yosemite National Park. Celebrating the Sierra's lizards and mountain lions, tall trees and waterfalls, fierce thunderstorms and bears, Muir raises an awareness of nature to a spiritual dimension.John Muir is internationally acknowledged as one of the founding fathers of modern conservation and his vision, passion and integrity continue to inspire readers today - particularly in this, his best-loved book.Trade ReviewMuir's prose is a miracle of immediacy. His books are illuminated by sunshine and starlight. The cold mineral air of the mountains and the resiny reek of coniferous forests lift bracingly off his pages. No other writer is so ceaselessly astonished by the natural world as Muir, or communicates that astonishment more urgently. Muir lived "in an infinite storm of beauty", and his readers live in it with him -- Robert MacfarlaneAn inspirational figure for modern environmentalism . . . his enthusiasm and heart-felt love of nature is immensely impressive. Thankfully the wilderness blooms again in Muir's evocative prose * * Guardian * *Brilliant description is the currency of My First Summer in the Sierra . . . Religious awe and powerful terrestrial awareness mark [Muir's] prose in what is essentially a song to nature's marvels and to our humanness of being * * Scotsman * *The richness of Muir's writing roots deeper into the terrain than any other wilderness writer known to me * * Los Angeles Times * *Muir was a geologist, an explorer, philosopher, artist, author, and editor, and to each of his avocations he devoted that deep insight and conscientious devotion which made him its master * * New York Times * *The great mountain man . . . [John Muir] remains a towering presence in American cultural life, and is internationally acknowledged as one of the founding fathers of modern conservation -- Mark Cocker, author of Crow CountryAs more and more of us grow aghast at what we have done to the world we started with, Muir's reverence and devotion will seem keenly germane, and our regret may be transmuted into a fight for the future -- Edward Hoagland
£9.49
Icon Books Rewilding: The Radical New Science of Ecological
Book Synopsis'A hugely useful and fascinating resume of rewilding - what it means, where it came from, why it's important and where it's going. Jepson and Blythe have done a masterly job, explaining the science behind rewilding in an accessible, honest and compelling way. It deserves to be widely read and become a book of great influence.' Isabella Tree, author of Wilding 'Compelling ... [a] succinct and objective account' Financial TimesRewilding is the first popular book on the ground-breaking science behind the restoration of wild nature.As ecologists Paul Jepson and Cain Blythe show, rewilding is a new and progressive approach to conservation, blending radical scientific insights with practical innovations to revive ecological processes, benefiting people as well as nature. Its goal is to restore lost interactions between animals, plants and natural disturbance that are the essence of thriving ecosystems.With its sense of hope and purpose, rewilding is breathing new life into the conservation movement, and enabling a growing number of people - even urban-dwellers - to enjoy thrilling wildlife experiences previously accessible only in remote wilderness reserves. 'De-domesticated' horses galloping across a Dutch 'Serengeti'; beavers creating wetlands in the British countryside; giant tortoises restoring the wildlife of the Mauritian islands; perhaps one day even rhinos roaming the Australian outback - rewilding is full of exciting and inspirational possibilities.Trade ReviewStraightforward and useful ... In offering hope rather than pessimism for humanity's care of the environment, Jepson and Blythe's well-explained primer will strike a chord with conservation-minded readers -- Publishers WeeklyCompelling ... [a] succinct and objective account * Financial Times *A hugely useful and fascinating resume of rewilding - what it means, where it came from, why it's important and where it's going. Jepson and Blythe have done a masterly job, explaining the science behind rewilding in an accessible, honest and compelling way. It deserves to be widely read and become a book of great influence. * Isabella Tree, author of Wilding *Rewilding ... makes a compelling case for the need to re-evaluate how we treat the planet and its natural resources. -- Stephen Moss
£8.99
New Society Publishers Coming Back to Life
Book SynopsisPersonal empowerment in the face of planetary despairTable of Contents Permissions Message from Dalai Lama Foreword by Matthew Fox Preface by Joanna Macy Preface by Molly Young Brown Chapter 1: To Choose Life We Can Still Opt for a Life-Sustaining World Choosing Our Story 1. Business As Usual 2. The Great Unraveling 3. The Great Turning The Great Turning 1. Holding Actions in Defense of Life 2. Transforming the Foundations of Our Common Life 3. Shift in Perception and Values Chapter 2: The Greatest Danger - The Deadening of Heart and Mind What is Pain for the World? What Deadens Heart and Mind? Fear of Pain Fear of Despair Other Spiritual Traps Fear of Not Fitting In Distrust of Our Own Intelligence Fear of Guilt Fear of Distressing Loved Ones View of Self as Separate Hijacked Attention Fear of Powerlessness Fear of Knowing - and Speaking Mass Media Job and Time Pressures Social Violence The Cost of Blocking Our Pain for the World Impeded Cognitive Functioning Impeded Access to the Unconscious Impeded Instinct for Self-Preservation Impeded Eros Impeded Empathy Impeded Imagination Impeded Feedback Coming Back to Life Chapter 3: The Basic Miracle - Our True Nature and Power Living Systems Theory How Life Self-Organizes Water, Fire and Web Gaia Theory Deep Ecology Beyond Anthropocentrism The Ecological Self Asking Deeper Questions Ancient Spiritual Teachings Abrahamic Religions Asian Traditions Indigenous Spirituality The Miracle of Mind Self as Choice Maker Positive Disintegration We Are the World The Nature of Our Power Power Over Power With Power Over Blocks Feedback The Power of Disclosure Synergy and Grace Chapter 4: What Is The Work That Reconnects? History of the Work Aims of the Work Basic Assumptions of the Work The Spiral of the Work The Shambhala Prophecy The Work That Reconnects in Corporate Settings Chapter 5: Guiding The Work That Reconnects The Value of Working in Groups Tasks of the Facilitator Foundations of Good Facilitation Capacities of an Excellent Guide Engaging Full Participation Working With Strong Emotions Guidelines for Conducting Rituals Workshop Setting and Arrangements Money Opening The Workshop Closing The Workshop Evaluation Follow-Up Ongoing Support for the Guide Chapter 6: Coming From Gratitude Gratitude: Teaching Points Practices Becoming Present through Breath, Movement,Sound and Silence Introductions with Gratitude Open Sentences Open Sentences on Gratitude Gratitude Rounds Mirror Walk Open Sentences on the Great Turning The Wheel of the Great Turning The Elm Dance The Presence of Gratitude Throughout the Work Chapter 7: Honoring Our Pain For The World Our Inner Responses to Suffering and Destruction Practices Small Groups on the Great Unraveling Open Sentences on Honoring Our Pain Breathing Through The Milling Reporting to Chief Seattle The Bestiary We Have Forgotten Who We Are "I Don't Care" Cairn of Mourning Truth Mandala Despair Ritual Bowl of Tears Spontaneous Writing Imaging with Colors and Clay Chapter 8: Seeing With New Eyes Brain Food Key Teaching Points Advice for Conveying These Concepts Practices The Systems Game Riddle of the Commons Game When I Made a Difference Widening Circles The Cradling Who Are You? Dance to Dismember the Ego Bodhisattva Check-In Council of All Beings Chapter 9: Deep Time - Reconnecting with Past and Future Generations To Reinhabit Time Practices Invoking the Beings of the Three Times Open Sentences on Time The Evolutionary Gifts of the Animals Harvesting the Gifts of the Ancestors Audio Recording to the Future Letter from the Future The Seventh Generation Field Work on the Great Turning The Storytellers Convention Chapter 10: Going Forth Discoveries Made So Far in the Spiral Practices Networking Communicating Our Concerns and Hopes Life Map Imaging Our Power The Sword in the Stone Callings and Resources Consultation Groups Corbett The Clearness Committee Dialoging with Mara to Strengthen Our Resolve Bowing to Our Adversaries Creating Study/Action Groups The Four Abodes Five Vows Circle of Blessings Two Poems for the Road Ahead Chapter 11: The Work That Reconnects with Children and Teens What Do Children Know and Feel? The Effects of Silence Suggestions for Overcoming the Fear and the Silence Using the Work That Reconnects Generation Waking Up Practices for Children and Teens Mothers and Daughters Follow the Spiral Talking Circle Gratitude The Human Camera Honoring Our Pain for the World Open Sentences Milling with Open Sentences Two Stories of the Truth Mandala with Children Boom Chicka Boom with Feelings Seeing with New Eyes The Web of Life Our Life As Gaia The Robot Game The Council of All Beings in a School Setting Going Forth Open Sentences for Going Forth Starfish Story and Ritual The Galactic Council Planning Actions Chapter 12: Learning with Communities of Color Part One by Joanna Macy Getting Started Honoring Our Ancestors The Immensity of the Pain How the Pain of People of Color is Pathologized Seeing the Industrial Growth Society with New Eyes Time for Deep Cultural Awakening Part Two by Patricia St. Onge Walking Toward the Work That Reconnects Deep Culture as a Lens Weaving the Threads Together Part Three by Adelaja Simon, Adrián Villaseñor Galarza and Andrés Thomas Conteris. Part Four: Sharing the Work That Reconnects with First Nationsby Andrea Avila Chapter 13: Meditations for the Great Turning The Web of Life Gaia Meditation Death Meditation Loving-Kindness Breathing Through The Great Ball of Merit The Four Abodes Two Litanies Appendix A: Chief Seattle's Message Appendix B: The Bestiary by Joanna Macy Appendix C: Ethics and Declarations of Rights Appendix D: Bodywork and Movement and Using the Spiral in Writing Workshops Endnotes Resources Index Acknowledgments About the Authors
£17.09
C Hurst & Co Publishers Ltd Ivory: Power and Poaching in Africa
Book SynopsisDespite the 1989 global ivory trade ban, poaching and ivory smuggling have not abated. More than half of Tanzania's elephants have been killed for their ivory since 2007. A similarly alarming story can be told of the herds in northern Mozambique and across swathes of central Africa. But why the new upsurge? The popular narrative blames a meeting of two evils - criminal poaching and terrorism. But the answer is not that simple.Since ancient times, large-scale killing of elephants for their tusks has been driven by demand beyond Africa's range states from the Egyptian pharaohs through the industrialising West to the new wealthy business class of China. Elephant hunting in Africa is also governed by human-elephant conflict, traditional hunting practices and the impact of colonial exploitation and criminalisation.Ivory follows this complex history of the tusk trade in Africa, and explains why it is corruption, crime and politics, rather than insurgency, that we should worry about. In this ground-breaking work, Somerville argues that regulation - not prohibition - of the ivory trade is the best way to stop uncontrolled poaching.Trade Review'Part historical overview, part polemic and call for policy change, [Keith's] book is dedicated not only to those who gave or risk their lives to conserve elephants but also to "those who have the courage to question the ruling orthodoxy" that burnings and bans save elephants. The author's own appetite for questioning - from the "flexible meanings" of the word "poaching" to the high ideals and more nuanced realities of NGOs' work - makes for informative reading.' * Times Higher Education *'[A] meticulously documented record of an economic activity that has spanned millennia . . . Somerville has made a valuable contribution towards documenting the history of the ivory trade.' -- The Times Literary Supplement'Combating elephant poaching in Africa has become an international priority, attracting Hilary Clinton, Jackie Chan and Prince Harry to its cause. Drawing on decades of experience as a seasoned journalist, Keith Somerville eloquently writes about the politics of ivory poaching in Africa and shows why we should care.' * Dr Alex Vines OBE, Head of the Africa Programme at Chatham House and Senior Lecturer at Coventry University *'Keith Somerville has written a pioneering study in the field of wildlife conservation. Based on a formidable list of sources, the argument is well constructed and superbly expressed. The text will prove an invaluable guide to both scholars and those engaged in the struggle to preserve an asset of incomparable value.' * Professor Jack Spence OBE, Kings College London *'This is an urgently-needed book that strips away the myths around the fast-changing scene of ivory poaching. For this task there is nobody better than Keith Somerville, who has kept a beady eye on Africa for many years.' * Jasper Humphreys, Director of External Relations, The Marjan Centre for the Study of Conflict and the Non Human Sphere, Department of War Studies, King's College, London *'Somerville's analysis of the booming ivory trade under colonial rule is masterly: more firearms, more organized trading, and greater demand for ivory in the West meant escalated killing. He shows the more pernicious, lasting effect to be the alienation of indigenous people from control over wildlife, which happened when British game officials banned Africans from hunting while encouraging white trophy pursuers.' * Robert Eagan, Library Journal *'[A] devastating and majestic history of the supply chain from Africa. […] Somerville has produced the best academic account to date of the history of the supply side of this catastrophic trade.' * Joanna Lewis, Africa at LSE blog *'This excellent book clearly captures the reasons for killing elephants in Africa, and the perils we face in trying to save them. The historical and political dimensions of the phenomenon are often under-stated, but here corruption is shown to be at the heart of the ivory trade, and human conflicts have provided the arena in which large-scale corruption takes place.' * Lucy Vigne, ivory and rhino horn researcher *'This thoroughly researched volume delves into intricate detail regarding the historical and current status of elephants and ivory trading. An excellent addition to an advanced course or seminar on conservation biology, sustainable use, or wildlife policy.' -- CHOICE
£15.19
Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh The Hidden World of Mosses
Book SynopsisMosses have a spectacular diversity of beautiful and surprising forms. They are nearly always, what we as humans would consider, small; but they play a critical role in climate change prevention and have an ability to hold and control water in forests, uplands and valleys. Hidden World of Mosses explores the tiny, intriguing environments of these plants that have their own miniature forests filled with grazers and predators, and their own ecological norms and mechanics.
£21.25
Triarchy Press Designing Regenerative Cultures
Book SynopsisThis is a 'Whole Earth Catalog' for the 21st century: an impressive and wide-ranging analysis of what's wrong with our societies, organizations, ideologies, worldviews and cultures - and how to put them right. The book covers the finance system, agriculture, design, ecology, economy, sustainability, organizations and society at large. In it, Daniel Wahl explores ways in which we can reframe and understand the crises that we currently face and explores how we can live our way into the future. Moving from patterns of thinking and believing to our practice of education, design and community living, he systematically shows how we can stop chasing the mirage of certainty and control in a complex and unpredictable world. The book asks how can we collaborate in the creation of diverse regenerative cultures adapted to the unique biocultural conditions of place? How can we create conditions conducive to life? "This book is a valuable contribution to the important discussion of the worldview and value system we need to redesign our businesses, economies, and technologies - in fact, our entire culture - so as to make them regenerative rather than destructive." Fritjof Capra, author of The Web of Life, coauthor of The Systems View of Life: A Unifying Vision. "This is an excellent addition to the literature on ecological design and it will certainly form a keystone in the foundations of the new MA in Ecological Design Thinking at Schumacher College, Devon. It not only contains a wealth of ideas on what Dr Wahl has termed 'Designing Regenerative Cultures' but what is probably more important, it provides some stimulating new ways of looking at persistent problems in our contemporary culture and hence opens up new ways of thinking and acting in the future." Seaton Baxter OBE, Professor in Ecological Design Thinking, Schumacher College, UKTrade Review"Daniel's book Designing Regenerative Cultures is a wonderful and well-referenced primer for a new paradigm." Satish Kumar "Clearly our ways of thinking have gotten us in some trouble--here are concrete suggestions for some new habits of mind that could help us climb out of our hole!";Bill McKibben, author: Eaarth - Making a Life on a Tough New Planet; co-founder 350.org, and Schumann Distinguished Scholar, Middlebury College "This is an impressive, broad and forward looking book that integrates design thinking with a diverse range of contemporary and innovative ideas around sustainability, ecology and transformation. Its attention to not just the problems, but also to how address them is timely and much needed. As such the book is now one of the main core programme texts for our MSc Sustainability at the University of Dundee." Professor Ioan Fazey, Centre for Environmental Change and Human Resilience, University of Dundee. "Daniel Wahl... has the capacity to explain complex and subtle subjects such as systems theory, regenerative design, holistic management, biomimicry, the circular economy, quantum theory ... and much more, succinctly. There are so many paragraphs in this book that I highlighted to return to and savour later on. He is also well versed in the integral, holistic worldview and the processes which support the birth of a new consciousness that will enable these regenerative shifts. His book is not only a collection of well articulated ideas, it is a litany of so many of the world's best projects that are already in existence, balancing theory with practice. There is an unstoppable optimism implicit in this book, however care-worn and cynical the reader may feel." Maddy Harland in Permaculture Magazine. "Designing Regenerative Cultures has gained international acknowledgement for its pragmatic approach to the subject, reframing and questioning the current approaches to the challenges that humankind is currently facing with deeper understanding of the possible solutions surfacing with regenerative design." UNESCO Global Action Programme on ESD Aug 2016 "Daniel Wahl has had an important insight that makes this book an essential read for anyone trying to change the world. The necessary catalyst is in the title of this book: "regenerative systems." To quote Wahl, "Sustainability is not a fixed state to reach and then maintain, it is a community-based learning process aimed at increasing the health and resilience of our communities, our bioregional economies, ecosystems, and of the planetary life-support system as a whole." This is the core realization of Rob Hopkins (Transition Handbook) and David Fleming (Lean Logic) as well, but Wahl's book gets to the assembly language programming, explaining how ecological literacy and the social, technological, and entrepreneurial skills required for the transition are the entry point that leads to everything else. Arguably ecological literacy is already the foundation of much that is new in the world of industrial design - it is called biomimicry. Biological and ecological design intelligence is starting to reinvent the way we design communities, businesses, cities, and industries. This book gets out in front of that with the larger picture. We need to do these things, now, or we may not be here in another century. Wahl says, "We need to dare to envision a sustainable world, by re-designing our food systems, transport systems, energy systems, economic systems, and education systems, but most of all, we need to re-envision how we collaborate and how we relate to each other and the natural world." Whether we have time to make this unprecedented change in our social contract is still in doubt. Set your doubts aside for the moment and let this book give you a sense of "... but what if?" If we are going to get this right, it will begin here." Reviewed by Albert Bates, Ecovillage and Permaculture Pioneer, Right Livelihood Award Winner, and author of Climate in Crisis. "6 Star Handbook for Saving Civilization & Earth. This book makes the jump from 5 stars (generally I don't bother to review a book if it is not a four or five star read) to 6 stars - my top ten percent - because of the combination of Questions Asked, glorious color graphics, and the total holistic nature of the book - this is easily a PhD thesis in holistic analytics, true cost economics, and open source everything engineering. Indeed, this book could be used as a first-year reference across any humanities and science domain, they would be the better for it. It is of value to ministers of government, managers of corporations, administrators of non-profit and educational organizations, labor union and religious stewards, and every single citizen planning to be alive in five years and beyond." Reviewed by Robert David Steele on the Public Intelligence Blog and Amazon "Daniel Wahl has compiled a great deal of useful information in a masterful synthesis. That alone is a significant accomplishment, but he's given us more than that. Designing Regenerative Cultures describes the doorway to a possible, indeed, necessary future. We are not fated to the dystopia in prospect. We have, as he writes, the capacity to design and to organize our societies to protect, enhance, and celebrate life. The blueprint was there all along. The awareness of our possibilities is growing. The art and sciences of ecological design are flourishing. The choice, as always, is ours and that of those who will follow." From the Foreword by David Orr (environmentalist and Paul Sears Professor of Environmental Studies and Politics at Oberlin College and a James Marsh Professor at the University of Vermont). "This book is a treasure for everyone who is looking for a guide to more sustainable living and a roadmap for re-designing our societies , regenerating our communities , cities and societies in harmony with natural systems and our home planet. Author Daniel Wahl has deep experience to share and his knowledge in this beautiful book will help all those aspiring to be responsible global citizens working for our common future." Hazel Henderson, author and President, Ethical Markets Media , Certified B. Corporation, USA & Brazil "Daniel Wahl's Designing Regenerative Cultures provides an exhaustive review of current thinking on our global challenges as well as a refreshing approach to how we can "live into the questions" that will help us create a beautiful future. Anyone working in sustainability or social innovation will find this book to be a tremendously useful reference and provocative guide for framing regenerative solutions. It is a wonderful blend of passionate vision and practical insight." Denise K. DeLuca, Co-Founder & Director, BCI (Biomimicry for Creative Innovation) "The world is converging on integration and systems thinking, and regeneration of the world is the battle cry of any sentient being in the 21st century. Daniel Wahl provides good insights and inspirations on the index of possibilities -in mass scale regeneration of nature and society." Marcin Jakubowski, PhD, Founder & Executive Director of Open Source Ecology. Designing Regenerative Cultures is a wide ranging synthesis of key knowledge to take us into a more resourceful 21st Century. The book brings forth multiple perspectives on the ultimate challenge of our time. This living material will help one get beyond the bread and circus approach that the mainstream media is foisting upon us, and thereby subtlety turning us into bloated modern Romans without a clue on what really matters, let alone the power to create what matters. Shifting from a narrative of separation and scarcity, to interbeing and abundance opens the conceptual door to the next phase of the human enterprise. Read and absorb this powerful treatise, and learn from the dynamic context Daniel Wahl has created with the publication of his new book. Christopher Zelov conceived and produced the award winning film 'Ecological Design: Inventing the Future'. Recent projects include: A Visit With Magnus, City 21, and Design Outlaws. "To me as a life-long activist nourished on systems thinking and Buddhist teachings, this is one of the most intellectually exciting and soul stirring books I've read in years. I had the sense of drinking it, with pleasure and surprise, not having known what I'd so thirsted for. br> By starting with questions and keeping to questions throughout, Daniel engages the reader, and by example frees her from striving for, or pretending to know, any final answers. This approach -- in itself a rare lesson in systems epistemology - invites trust, openness, and a restructuring of the mind. Among the gifts for which I am especially grateful are these: Conceptual tools for perceiving and experiencing our mutual belonging , and especially what I've come to call the great reciprocity at the heart of the universe. The ways Goethe, Bortoft, Bateson, Maturana, and Varela are brought in, and key insights mediated with economy and clarity. The abundant evidence of the Great Turning, the manifold transition underway to a life-sustaining culture. And, especially valuable to those of an apocalyptic bent like myself, the 'adaptive cycle' of resilient systems, showing that at 'the edge of chaos' comes opportunity for the emergence of greater complexity and intelligence. These are but a few of the ways in which this remarkable book will enrich my thought, my teaching, and my life in this turbulent world of ours." Joanna Macy, environmental activist, scholar of Buddhism, general systems theory, and deep ecology and author of World as Lover, World as Self and numerous other books. "This is a seriously rich source of perspective on the nature of whole system design. The future is already here and Daniel Wahl has synthesized the wide ranging progress in the emerging field of `regenerating wholeness'. There is a lot of positive and effective activity happening around the planet! Of particular note, the title addresses "us" as a significant and often missing leverage point in our work towards regenerative relationships: our cultural ability to become collaborative weavers, integral to evolving a condition of long-lasting health. This book shows the powerful potential of how all these dimensions of wholeness are coming together." Bill Reed, Regenesis Group "Life on the Planet has sustained itself for billions of years by continually regenerating itself. Our modern industrial culture has interfered with these natural processes to the point of causing massive extinctions of species and threatening our very survival. This book is a valuable contribution to the important discussion of the worldview and value system we need to redesign our businesses, economies, and technologies - in fact, our entire culture - so as to make them regenerative rather than destructive." Fritjof Capra, author of The Web of Life, coauthor of The Systems View of Life: A Unifying Vision.Table of ContentsFOREWORD ~ David Orr FOREWORD ~ Graham Leicester INTRODUCTION CHAPTER 1 - Living the Questions: Why change the narrative now? Questioning dangerous ideologies Facing complexity means befriending uncertainty and ambiguity Caring for Earth is caring for ourselves and our community Wake up to find out that you are the eyes of the world The 'why' will guide the 'what' and the 'how'Spirituality, soul and solitude in nature Sustainability as a learning journey: pilgrims and apprentices Sustainability is not enough; we need regenerative cultures! CHAPTER 2 - Why choose transformative over sustaining innovation? The Three Horizons of innovation and culture change Evaluating disruptive innovation in the age of transition Transformative innovation is about deep questioning Sensitivity to scale, uniqueness of place and local culture The transformative power of social innovation Collaborative consumption and peer-to-peer collaboration Facilitating systems innovation and culture change CHAPTER 3 - Why do we need to think and act more systemically? Believing is seeing and seeing is believing The whole is more than the sum of its parts From the 'crisis of perception' to the 'systems view of life' Interbeing How can we participate appropriately in complex systems? The IFF World System Model Learning to see nature everywhere Being a process, and seeing in relationships CHAPTER 4 - Why nurture resilience and whole-systems health? Rolling back Earth Overshoot Day Learning to live within planetary boundaries What exactly are resilience and transformative resilience? The adaptive cycle as a dynamic map for resilience thinking Panarchy: a scale-linking perspective of systemic transformation Local and regional community resilience building is going global How can we nurture transformative resilience? From control and prediction to conscious participation, foresight and anticipation CHAPTER 5 - Why take a design-based approach? Design education enables cultural transformation Design is where theory and practice meet Design follows worldview and worldview follows design Ethics and design for regenerative cultures Aesthetics and design Emergence and design Designing for positive emergence (a case study) Scale-linking, salutogenic design for resilience The resurgence of a culture of makers: re-localizing production Collective visioning and design conversations change culture CHAPTER 6 - How can we learn to better design as nature? Ecoliteracy: Learning from living systems Valuing traditional ecological knowledge and indigenous wisdom How does life create conditions conducive to life? Biologically Inspired Innovation Green chemistry and material science Biologically inspired product design Biomimetic architecture Nature's whole system optimization informs community design Living the questions together creates community Industrial ecology and symbiosis are closing the loops Ecologically informed urban and regional planning CHAPTER 7 - Why are regenerative cultures rooted in cooperation? Redesigning agriculture for food sovereignty and subsidiarity Regenerative agriculture: effective responses to climate change Learning from and mimicking healthy ecosystems Redesigning economics based on ecology Creating circular economies Towards a regenerative economy Thriving communities and the solidarity economy Shifting from quantitative to qualitative growth Valuing the commons by cooperatively sharing the gifts of life Earth Law: the enabling constraints of collective living Life's collaborative lessons transform business Co-creating regenerative enterprises Collaboration and empathy as evolutionary success stories Activism revisited: conscious participation and collective intelligence We are coming back to life and this changes everything Learning to listen deeply Inner and outer resilience CONCLUSION - Regenerative cultures are about thriving together
£22.50
Penguin Books Ltd Regeneration Ending the Climate Crisis in One
Book SynopsisThe NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLERA radically new understanding of and practical approach to climate change by noted environmentalist and creator of Drawdown, Paul Hawken The dangers of climate change and a warming world have been in the public eye for fifty years. For three decades, scientists and the United Nations have urged us to address future existential threats. In Regeneration Paul Hawken has flipped the narrative, bringing people back into the conversation by demonstrating that addressing current human needs rather than future threats is the only path to solving the climate crisis.From land to ocean, food to industries - Regeneration proposes an extensive menu of actions that collectively can reverse the overheating and degradation of our planet. The solutions, techniques, and practices range from solar power, electric vehicles, and tree planting to bioregions, azolla fern and forest farms; they are all doa
£17.00
Oxford University Press Inc The Amazon
Book SynopsisThe Amazon is a land of superlatives. The complex ecosystem covers an area about the size of the continental U.S. The Amazon River discharges 57 million gallons of water per second--in two hours, this would be enough to supply all of New York City''s 7.5 million residents with water for a year. Its flora and fauna are abundant. Approximately one of every four flowering plant species on earth resides in the Amazon. A single Amazonian river may contain more fish species than all the rivers in Europe combined. It is home to the world''s largest anteater, armadillo, freshwater turtle, and spider, as well as the largest rodent (which weighs over 200 lbs.), catfish (250 lbs.), and alligator (more than half a ton). The rainforest, which contains approximately 390 billion trees, plays a vital role in stabilizing the global climate by absorbing massive amounts of carbon dioxide--or releasing it into the atmosphere if the trees are destroyed. Severe droughts in both Brazil and Southeast Asia have been linked to Amazonian deforestation, as have changing rainfall patterns in the U.S., Europe, and China. The Amazon also serves as home to millions of people. Approximately seventy tribes of isolated and uncontacted people are concentrated in the western Amazon, completely dependent on the land and river. These isolated groups have been described as the most marginalized peoples in the western hemisphere, with no voice in the decisions made about their futures and the fate of their forests. In this addition to the What Everyone Needs to Know series, ecologist and conservation expert, Mark J. Plotkin, who has spent 40 years studying Amazonia, its peoples, flora, and fauna. The Amazon offers an engaging overview of this irreplaceable ecosystem and the challenges it faces.Trade ReviewThere is a lot to learn, and value, from this guide, by an expert immersed in the subject. * Harvard Magazine *One can think of the broad themes of the book as scenes on a vast tapestry and the responses to the 67 questions as the threads used by Plotkin to weave the marvelous story of Amazonia. Readers can gaze at one part of the tapestry and later explore another portion, each time coming away with a better understanding of the nature of this extraordinary ecosystem. * Roger Mustalish, HerbalGram *As he has done in his other books and films ... Plotkin blazes a path for others to follow: a storied path that can help us both re-story and restore the precious places persisting on this planet, despite all odds. * Gary Paul Nabhan, LA Review of Books *Table of ContentsIntroduction What is a Tropical Rainforest? What Do We Mean When We Say the Amazon? Why is the Amazon Important? Geology, Soils and Vegetation Geological history - What is the geological history of Amazonia? Soils - Do large and diverse Amazonian rainforests thrive on poor soil? Terra preta - What is terra preta? Vegetation - What are the major forest and vegetation types in Amazonia? Savannas - What are savannas and how are they created? Tepuis - What are tepuis? Nutrient cycling - If the soils are so poor, how can lush rainforests flourish? Rivers The Amazon Source of the Amazon - What is the source of the Amazon River? River types - What are the various river types in Amazonia? Aquatic habitats - What are some of the characteristic aquatic habitats of Amazonia? Casiquiare canal - What is the Casiquiare Canal? Coral reef - Is there a coral reef in the Amazon? Indians 1492 population Languages - How many indigenous languages are there in Amazonia? Paleoindians, the first arrivals - When did the first humans arrive in Amazonia? Shamans - What is a Shaman? Shrunken heads - Shrunken heads: fact or fiction? Slash and burn agriculture - What is slash-and-burn agriculture? Uncontacted tribes - Do uncontacted tribes still exist? History The Struggle for the Amazon Treaty of Tordesillas - What was the Treaty of Tordesillas? Aguirre - Was Werner Herzog's film "Aguirre, the Wrath of God," based on a historical figure? Teixeira - What role did Pedro Teixeira play in the colonization of the Amazon? Mapping - What is the history of the mapping of the Amazon? The Advent of the European Scientists Merian - Was the first European scientific explorer of the Amazon a woman? Darwin - What is the connection between the Amazon and the origins of the Theory of Evolution? Agassiz / Harvard Amazon Rubber and the Jari Project Rubber atrocities - What were the Putumayo Rubber Atrocities? Rubber as commodity - How Did Amazonian Rubber Become A Key Global Commodity? Rubber / Fordlandia - Why did Henry Ford fail at Fordlandia in Brazil? Jari Project - Fordlandia redux - What was the Jari Project, and why did it fail? Rondon / Mendes - Who were Cândido Rondon and Chico Mendes? Amazonian biota Animals Faunal origins - What is the origin of the Amazonian fauna? Vampire bats - Do vampire bats suck human blood? Spiders - How dangerous are Amazonian spiders? Cats, crocodilians and serpents - Do jaguars, crocs and snakes eat people in Amazonia? Frogs - Are there hallucinogenic frogs in the Amazon Rainforest? Pink dolphins - Are there pink dolphins in the Amazon? Fish diversity - Why does Amazonia harbor the most diverse freshwater fish fauna in the world? Candiru catfish - Is the tiny candiru catfish as terrifying as its reputation? Electric eels - How dangerous are electric eels? Piranhas - Do piranhas deserve their fearsome reputation? Sharks - Are there man-eating sharks in the Amazon? Plants Ayahuasca - What is ayahuasca? Bromeliads - What are the aerial aquaria of the Amazon? Coca - What is the traditional use of coca in the Amazon? Curare - What is Curare and Why is it Important? Lianas - Why are lianas so important and yet so poorly understood? Figs - Why are strangler figs not considered to be lianas? Palms - Why are palms the single most useful group of organisms to the indigenous peoples of the Amazon? Palms with economic promise - Which Amazonian palms offer the greatest economic promise for the future? Victoria lily - Did an Amazonian water lily serve as the inspiration for steel frame architecture? Threats Cattle - What is the role of cattle ranching in Amazonian agriculture? Dams - What is the status of hydroelectric dams in the Amazon? Gold - What is the impact of gold mining in the Amazon? Agriculture / Big - The Role of Export-Driven Large-Scale Agricultural Production in Deforestation Agriculture / Small - What is the role of small-scale farming in deforestation? Logging - What is the status of logging in the Amazon? Climate Change - How will climate change affect Amazonia? Deforestation - What drives deforestation in the Amazon? Oil and gas - What is the impact of oil and gas exploration on forest peoples? Overhunting - What is the impact of overhunting and overfishing on the Amazon? China - What is the Impact of China in Amazonia? Conclusion Conservation - How to Save the Amazon?
£10.44
Oasis Design The New Create an Oasis with Greywater Integrated
Book Synopsis
£18.90
Basic Books Back to Earth: What Life in Space Taught Me About
Book SynopsisWhen NASA Astronaut Nicole Stott first saw the Earth from space, she was filled with awe. Our shared home was a brilliant blue marble, with a razor thin atmosphere protecting billions of people, including everyone she loved. She realized that we are all bound together on this fragile planet. When she came back to earth, she knew she had to share this vision to help protect it.Stott knows the scale of the daunting task at hand-and yet, she believes we can set aside our differences and work together to tackle the most challenging planetary problems humanity has ever faced. She knows this, because she's seen it happen, on the International Space Station. Throughout her book, Stott imparts hard-won lessons in high-stakes problem solving, survival, and responding to crisis in space. On a space station, astronauts can't wait for someone else to handle a rescue; and when it comes to our earthbound problems, Stott learned that everyone should live like a crewmember, not like a passenger. In space, where everyone survives in a closed system, everything is local-and Stott discovered that in a profound way, the same is true back at home. Back to Earth distills these lessons and more into seven principles that can be practiced by each and every one of us to make much-needed change.In addition to sharing stories from her own spaceflight, Stott offers eye-opening insights from scientists and changemakers already sparking meaningful change in their communities and around the globe. She explores the complexities and splendor of the earth's biodiversity, and what it takes to preserve it, with both pioneering scientists on earth and engineers working to enable life in space. She meets with activists who use their time in space to advocate for clean water, and with executives who quit their corporate positions and use their global reach to become environmental leaders.Through her stirring call to action, Nicole Stott reveals how we each have the power to respect the Earth and one another-and to change our own lives in the process. And, while we're at it, we might just save humanity.
£22.50
PublicAffairs,U.S. Disposable City: Miami's Future on the Shores of
Book SynopsisMiami, Florida, is likely to be entirely underwater by the end of this century. Residents are already starting to see the effects of sea level rise today. From sunny day flooding caused by higher tides to a sewer system on the brink of total collapse, the city undeniably lives in a climate changed world. In Disposable City, Miami resident Mario Alejandro Ariza shows us not only what climate change looks like on the ground today, but also what Miami will look like 100 years from now, and how that future has been shaped by the city's racist past and present. As politicians continue to kick the can down the road and Miami becomes increasingly unlivable, real estate vultures and wealthy residents will be able to get out or move to higher ground, but the most vulnerable communities, disproportionately composed of people of color, will face flood damage, rising housing costs, dangerously higher temperatures, and stronger hurricanes that they can't afford to escape. Miami may be on the front lines of climate change, but the battle it's fighting today is coming for the rest of the U.S.--and the rest of the world--far sooner than we could have imagined even a decade ago. Disposable City is a thoughtful portrait of both a vibrant city with a unique culture and the social, economic, and psychic costs of climate change that call us to act before it's too late.
£16.50
Workman Publishing Now Is the Time for Trees: Make an Impact by
Book Synopsis“Celebrates the power of trees to oxygenate the planet, purify water and air, lower city temperatures, provide habitat, nurture the soul, and provide essential food sources.” —Booklist Trees and forests are the number one nature-based solution for reversing the negative effects of a changing climate. If ever there was a time to be planting trees, that time is now. Inspired by a collective sense of urgency, a global movement to plant trees is gaining momentum. To move the needle, we need to act on a massive scale and plant millions of trees today to have a measurable and lasting impact on billions of lives tomorrow. In Now Is the Time for Trees, the experts at the Arbor Day Foundation will inspire you to do your part by showing you everything you need to know to plant trees at home or in your community. From advice on choosing the right size and type of tree to tried-and-true tips for planting success, this book will help you plant a tree today and leave your own legacy of hope. Equal parts inspiration and advocacy, Now Is the Time for Trees is a rousing call for environmental action and a must-have book for nature lovers everywhere.
£15.19
Hardie Grant Books Mushrooms
£11.24
Penguin Books Ltd The Island of Missing Trees
Book SynopsisSHORTLISTED FOR THE WOMEN''S PRIZE FOR FICTION 2022 THE TOP TEN SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER & REESE WITHERSPOON BOOK CLUB PICK*****You don''t fall in love in Cyprus in the summer of 1974. Not here, not now. In 1974, two teenagers, from opposite sides of a divided Cyprus, meet at a tavern in the city they both call home. The tavern is the only place that Kostas, who is Greek, and Defne who is Turkish, can meet in secret, hidden beneath the leaves of a fig tree growing through the roof of the tavern. This tree will witness their hushed happy meetings, and will be there when the war breaks out and the teenagers vanish.Decades later in north London, sixteen-year-old Ada has never visited the island where her parents were born. She seeks to untangle years of her family''s silence, but the only connection she has to the land of her ancestors Is a fig tree growing tin the garden of their home . . .*****''This book moved me to tears . . . in the best way. Powerful and poignant'' Reese Witherspoon''A brilliant novel -- one that rings with Shafak''s characteristic compassion'' Robert Macfarlane''This is an enchanting, compassionate and wise novel and storytelling at its most sublime'' Polly Samson*** ELIF SHAFAK''S NEW NOVEL, THERE ARE RIVERS IN THE SKY, IS AVAILABLE FOR PRE-ORDER NOW ***Trade ReviewAn outstanding work of breathtaking beauty -- Lemn SissayA writer of important, beautiful, painful, truthful novels -- Marian KeyesLovely heartbreaker of a novel centered on dark secrets of civil wars & evils of extremism: Cyprus, star-crossed lovers, killed beloveds, damaged kids -- Margaret Atwood on TwitterElif Shafak is a unique and powerful voice in world literature -- Ian McEwanOne of the best writers in the world today * Hanif Kureishi *A wise novel of love and grief, roots and branches, displacement and home, faith and belief. The Island of Missing Trees is balm for our bruised times -- David Mitchell, author of Utopia Avenue
£9.49
Johns Hopkins University Press The Killer Whale Journals
Book SynopsisTable of ContentsForewordAcknowledgementsPrologue1. Bloody Beasts2. Sea Change3. Blubber Choppers4. The Law of the Tongue5. War Zone6. A Turn for the Better7. The Whales in the Potato Field8. The Whales at the End of the World9. The Whale Jail10. Attack11. Family Matters12. Cut in StoneReferences
£22.50
Penguin Books Ltd Into the Clear Blue Sky
Book SynopsisTHE TIMES BEST SCIENCE BOOK OF 2024WINNER OF THE BLUE PLANET PRIZE 2025'Argues persuasively . . . nothing less than eye-opening' Financial TimesCan we really restore the earth's atmosphere within our lifetime?Whether through sustainable technologies such as fossil-free steel production, hydrogen-powered ships and electric motorbikes, or natural solutions like rewilding peatlands, people all over the world are finding new ways to travel, feed themselves and drive industry while safeguarding a liveable planet for future generations. Drawing on decades of research and a vast network of experts, Rob Jackson, Chair of the Global Carbon Project, introduces some of the brilliant innovators behind the boldest solutions to climate change including an Eritrean agricultural scientist, a Swedish CEO and a Brazilian hydrologist. Now we have more tools to combat climate change than ever before, Into the Clear Blue Sky traces a clear path to a better future for us all one that will see us cutting emissions in inventive new ways that protect our health and livelihoods, while repairing the damage we have caused to the atmosphere. This visionary and transformative book is the call to action we need right now.
£10.44
Penguin Books Ltd The Blue Commons
Book SynopsisA FINANCIAL TIMES BEST ECONOMICS BOOK OF 2022 ''A landmark book... The Blue Commons is at once a brilliant synthesis, a searing analysis, and an inspiring call to action.'' - David Bollier''With remarkable erudition, passion and lyricism, Guy Standing commands the reader to wake up to the threat posed by rentier capitalism''s violent policies for extraction, exploitation and depletion of that which is both common to us all, but also vital to our survival: the sea and all within it.'' - Ann Pettifor ''Shines a bright light on the economy of the oceans, directing us brilliantly towards where a sustainable future lies.'' - Danny Dorling''This is a powerful, visionary book - essential reading for all who yearn for a better world.'' - Jason HickelThe sea provides more than half the oxygen we breathe, food for billions of people and livelihoods for hundreds of millions. But giant corporations are plundering the world''s oceans, aided by global finance and complicit states, following the neoliberal maxim of Blue Growth. The situation is dire: rampant exploitation and corruption now drive all aspects of the ocean economy, destroying communities, intensifying inequalities, and driving fish populations and other ocean life towards extinction.The Blue Commons is an urgent call for change, from a campaigning economist responsible for some of the most innovative solutions to inequality of recent times. From large nations bullying smaller nations into giving up eco-friendly fishing policies to the profiteering by the Crown Estate in commandeering much of the British seabed, the scale of the global problem is synthesised here for the first time, as well as a toolkit for all of us to rise up and tackle it.The oceans have been left out of calls for a Green New Deal but must be at the centre of the fight against climate change. How do we do it? By building a Blue Commons alternative: a transformative worldview and new set of proposals that prioritise the historic rights of local communities, the wellbeing of all people and, with it, the health of our oceans.Trade ReviewIn this landmark book, Guy Standing not only documents how state-corporate collusion is destroying fragile ocean ecosystems, fisheries, and coastal communities. He explains how degrowth economics and fishery commons could restore the 'Blue Commons-Wealth' that belongs to all of us. The Blue Commons is at once a brilliant synthesis, a searing analysis, and an inspiring call to action -- David Bollier * author of The Commoner’s Catalog for Changemaking *Shines a bright light on the economy of the oceans, directing us brilliantly towards where a sustainable future lies -- Danny DorlingGuy Standing writes with remarkable erudition, but also with passion and lyricism about the Blue Commons. He commands the reader to wake up to the threat posed by rentier capitalism's violent policies for extraction, exploitation and depletion of that which is both common to us all, but also vital to our survival: the sea and all within it. He offers radical and hopeful alternatives to the dominant economics for 'making a killing' from the commodification of nature - giving hope to the dedicated stewards of the seas - fishers and 'blue commoners' - but also to his readers -- Ann PettiforAs capital sets its sights on the seas, our planet's final frontier, the struggle for the commons becomes all the more urgent. This is a powerful, visionary book - essential reading for all who yearn for a better world -- Jason HickelA powerful indictment of all that has gone wrong with contemporary oceanic governance, and an inspiring account of how it can be put right. Guy Standing shows how local communities can turn the tide on neoliberal excess and put a vibrant and inclusive politics in its place -- Chris ArmstrongLooking out of my window at the radiant blue of the Aegean Sea, I surrender to the dream of a near future where Guy Standing's Blue Commons proposals have been implemented - an indispensable blue section of any genuine Green New Deal. It is a good dream, one that deserves a shot at infecting our sad reality -- Yanis VaroufakisStanding makes an urgent case for a new politics of the ocean . . . For anyone who has watched a David Attenborough documentary and wished it made a clearer appeal for a change in ocean governance, this is the book for you -- India Bourke * New Statesman *
£12.34
The History Press Ltd Zero Altitude
Book SynopsisHow going flight-free can save the planet - and change how you see the worldTrade ReviewHelen Coffey’s book is an inspiration to share the joys of terrestrial travel – whether on high-speed rail, a slow boat to Africa or, as a pilgrim, on two feet. Be transported to a gentler, more analogue world – with simple pleasures such as the splash of the Adriatic less than 24 hours after leaving London -- Simon Calder, author of No Frills: The Truth Behind the Low-Cost Revolution in the SkiesZero Altitude is passionate, entertaining and compelling, yet light-hearted. Helen puts forward a strong case for travelling without flying that will have you yearning to follow in her grounded footsteps -- Anna Hughes, director of Flight Free UK
£15.29
J Ross Publishing The Secret Life of Corals: Sex, War and Rocks
Book Synopsis
£23.36
Bucknell University Press A History of Ecology and Environmentalism in
Book SynopsisA History of Ecology and Environmentalism in Spanish American Literature undertakes a comprehensive ecocritical examination of the region’s literature from the foundational texts of the nineteenth century to the most recent fiction. The book begins with a consideration of the way in which Argentine Domingo Faustino Sarmiento’s views of nature through the lens of the categories of “civilization” and “barbarity” from Facundo (1845) are systematically challenged and revised in the rest of the century. Subsequently, this book develops the argument that a vital part of the cultural critique and aesthetic innovations of Spanish American modernismo involve an ecological challenge to deepening discourses of untamed development from Europe and the United States. In other chapters, many of the well-established titles of regional and indigenista literature are contrasted to counter-traditions within those genres that express aspects of environmental justice, “deep ecology,” the relational role of emotion in nature protectionism and conservationism, even the rights of non-human nature. Finally, the concluding chapters find that the articulation of ecological advocacy in recent fiction is both more explicit than what came before but also impacts the formal elements of literature in unique ways. Textual conventions such as language, imagery, focalization, narrative sequence, metafiction, satire, and parody represent innovations of form that proceed directly from the ethical advocacy of environmentalism. The book concludes with comments about what must follow as a result of the analysis including the revision of canon, the development of literary criticism from novel approaches such as critical animal studies, and the advent of a critical dialogue within the bounds of Spanish American environmentalist literature. A History of Ecology and Environmentalism in Spanish American Literature attempts to develop a sense of the way in which ecological ideas have developed over time in the literature, particularly the way in which many Spanish American texts anticipate several of the ecological discourses that have recently become so central to global culture, current environmentalist thought, and the future of humankind.Trade Review[R]eaders will find that DeVries possesses a thorough understanding of ecological criticism and environmentalism, exemplified by the book's introduction, where he establishes the theoretical framework for his study. For the benefit of those readers who do not have advanced proficiency in reading Spanish he provides an English translation of all Spanish quotations, including definitions of commonly employed Spanish American cultural and literary terminology. Readers who are unacquainted with Spanish American literature, beyond internationally known giants such as Gabriel García Márquez, Mario Vargas Llosa, or Pablo Neruda, will appreciate the sweeping scope of the author's work. DeVries has managed to deal in a cohesive fashion with a two-hundred year period—the post-independence literary production of the nineteen countries of the western hemisphere in which Spanish is an official language—unfolding 'the tradition of an ecological literature from Mexico to Patagonia and from Puerto Rico to Easter Island'. Those who are already familiar with Spanish American literature will value his insights into ecocriticism as well as his examination of the canon from a fresh perspective. As is the case with most groundbreaking studies, DeVries's work suggests myriad possibilities for future scholarship. * ISLE: Interdisciplinary Studies in Literature and Environment *Table of ContentsAcknowledgments Introduction Part One: Foundations, Aesthetics, Ecology One: Foundations of Environment: Literary Political Ecologies of 19th Century Southern Cone Literature Two: Foundations from Topography: Literary Political Ecologies of 19th Century Andean, Amazonian, Caribbean, and Central American Literature Three: Green Modernism Part Two: Land, People, Ecology Four: Swallowed: Environmentalism in the Spanish American novela de la selva Five: Other Lands: Ecology in the Spanish American novela de la tierra Six: Ruin: The Precedents of Ecological Destruction in Early and Canonical indigenista Novels Seven: Indigenous Land: Place, then Space Part Three: Literature, Environmentalism, Ecology Eight: Nature after the “Boom”: Ecology and Environmentalism in Late 20th Century Spanish American Fiction Nine: Eco-Satire: Green Humor, Contaminated Imagery, and Environmental Language in Recent Spanish American Fiction Ten: Paradise Trashed: Utopian and Dystopian Ecological Scenarios in Gioconda Belli’s Waslala and Fernando Raga’s Gaia Trilogy Conclusions Bibliography Index About the Author
£46.00
Allen & Unwin The Ancients
Book SynopsisAndrew Darby is the author of Flight Lines, on long distance migratory shorebirds, and Harpoon on whales and whaling. Flight Lines won the Royal Zoological Society of NSW's Whitley Award for the Best Natural History, and the Premier's Prize for Non-fiction in the Tasmanian Literary Awards. It was shortlisted for the Prime Minister's Award for Non-fiction. He was the Hobart correspondent for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.
£15.29
September Publishing Rock Pool: Extraordinary Encounters Between the
Book SynopsisThe British beach is full of creatures that we think we know - from crabs to clams, starfish to anemones. But, in fact, we barely understand how many survive or thrive. In Rock Pool the delights of childhood paddling are elevated to oceanic discoveries, as the fragile beauty and drama of intertidal existence is illustrated through the incredible lives of twenty-four individual creatures. Rock Pool is the eye-opening account of a life-long passion by a talented writer and naturalist.Trade Review`Here are three simple steps to help you feel better about the world: read Heather Buttivant's marvellous book, grab a pair of wellies and get yourself to a rocky shore ... [a] thoughtful, enlightening and entertaining read.' BBC Wildlife Magazine | 'An utterly joyous book, a celebration of our incomparable 11,000 miles of British coastline ... an eye-opening delight from start to finish.' Daily Mail
£9.49
Jacaranda Books Art Music Ltd Sister Nature
Book SynopsisThe revolution will not take place indoors.Kenyan beekeeper-turned-farmer Jess de Boer embarks upon a decade-long journey to find purpose and potential in the explosive world of regenerative agriculture.From honey hunting in the last remaining pockets of rainforest in southern Ethiopia, to gardening in the depths of Kenya''s largest slum, Jess takes you to the arid lands of Northern Kenya where a group of pioneering farmers have begun to connect the people with the dust beneath their feet.This is a journey into restorative action. Confronting the challenges of our stagnant education systems, unsustainable food production techniques and the growing disconnect of our youth, de Boer merges fact and science with hard-won wisdom in this inspiring and accessible tale of proactivity and hope.
£9.49
Octopus Publishing Group The Last Tree: A Seed of Hope
Book Synopsis From the Sunday Times bestselling author of Together. Imagine a world without trees. A world that is in many ways like our world, but where magnificent canopies, tree climbing and leaves rustling in the breeze are now only distant memories.Until a young girl comes along, a girl who is brave and spirited and willing to follow where her imagination takes her. Through Olive's adventures in the world of trees we are reminded of nature's extraordinary power and beauty, and her actions ultimately sow the seeds of new life in her own world.From the mind and pen of bestselling author Luke Adam Hawker, The Last Tree is a powerful evocation of the fragility of our natural world and a magnificent celebration of its beauty.Praise for Together:"An accurate and thoughtful account of one of the most challenging years in modern history." -The Guardian"Hawker's images always seem to have just the right mixture of gravitas and sly, understated humour." -The ScotsmanTrade ReviewThe Last Tree is a superbly illustrated narrative, told with simple yet deeply effective prose * Artists & Illustrators *
£15.29
Penguin Books Ltd The Most Dammed Country in the World Dai Qing
Book SynopsisIn twenty short books, Penguin brings you the classics of the environmental movement.The courageous, unflinching speeches and writings collected in The Most Dammed Country in the World detail the devastating human and environmental cost of China''s economic rise.Over the past 75 years, a new canon has emerged. As life on Earth has become irrevocably altered by humans, visionary thinkers around the world have raised their voices to defend the planet, and affirm our place at the heart of its restoration. Their words have endured through the decades, becoming the classics of a movement. Together, these books show the richness of environmental thought, and point the way to a fairer, saner, greener world.
£6.23
Floris Books Hidden Nature
Book SynopsisDescribes and explains Schauberger's insights in an accessible way, including his discoveries about sick water, ailing forests, climate change and renewable energy.Trade Review'The book seeks to explain its concepts in simple language, assisted throughout by clear and well-annotated illustrations. Thought-provoking.'-- Jeff Sanderson, Light, Summer 2004'Hidden Nature is a comprehensive breakdown of Viktor Schauberger's stunning ideas and observations. Alick Bartholomew strips away the complexity of Callum Coats' book Living Energies, in order better to understand Schauberger's main themes. It will certainly transform your views on water. The graphics are the clearest I've seen in any book on Schauberger. I highly recommend it if you want to learn about Schauberger's natural science.'-- Amazon UK review'Hidden Nature gives a context for Schauberger's thinking and brings it into the framework of later understandings, such as Gaia theory and Lawrence Edwards' work. As one reads this very accessible book, one is left with a growing sense that his system is so simple, so sensible and rooted in reality, that one wonders why on earth more people don't know about it.'-- Jane Cobbald, Star and Furrow, Winter 2003'Alick Bartholomew is in a very good position to have written this introductory overview of Schauberger's work for the general reader. With its readable text and informative illustrations, this is an essential primer.'-- David Lorimer, Scientific and Medical Network Review, Spring 2004'A spacious and well-presented book with plenty of diagrams. The concepts are explained well. Fascinating and thought-provoking.'-- Reforesting Scotland, Spring 2004'The book's scope is very broad and it is intended to be more accessible to the lay reader than the technical publications on Schauberger. [...] It has always puzzled me that Jack and Jill went *up* the hill for their water. The "anomaly point", central to Schauberger's understanding of how true springs form, might be a clue.... Schauberger's ideas, ideals even, resonate strongly with the modern debate about sustainability.'-- New View, December 2003'This is a timely book on a profound subject ... Hidden Nature reveals a timeless wisdom requiring urgent attention ... Water may seem to you so ordinary, but this book will totally transform your perception of it. After reading Hidden Nature you will know that it is the most precious substance on the Earth.'-- Satish Kumar, Editor, Resurgence magazine'Alick Bartholomew tells how in 1950 Richard St Barbe Baker arranged for Schauberger's son, a trained physicist, to talk to a group of atomic physicists at Birmingham University. A few weeks later, Baker asked the scientists if they had held a postmortem on Schauberger's presentation. "Yes indeed," they admitted; they had decided that it was "unchallengable". "Then what are you going to do about it?" asked Baker. "Nothing," was their retort. "Why not?" "Because it would mean rewriting all the textbooks in the world." That, in my view, is reason enough to read this book.'-- Jane Cobbald, Star and Furrow, Winter 2003'Alick Bartholomew provides a fitting first glimpse [of Schauberger's insights and inventions] with Hidden Nature. If you've had enough of the mechanistic, materialistic worldview and are looking for an alternative approach that's based on a real appreciation of Nature's workings, this is the book for you.'-- Ruth Parnell, Nexus Magazine, February 2004'Schauberger was an untutored genius well ahead of his time. His remarkable insights and investigations into water and living energies challenge established scientific dogmas then and now. Alick Bartholomew has done an admirable job of making Schauberger's work accessible and relevant to our age without compromising its artistic integrity. Read it for pure inspiration and for concrete ideas on disciplines as diverse as bioenergetics, consciousness, earth science, hydrodynamics, thermodynamics, and many others yet to be named.'-- Dr Mae-Wan Ho, biologist, author, and editor of Science in SocietyTable of ContentsForeword by David BellamyIntroduction: Levitation and resistanceless movement; The non-conformist; Alternative worldviewPart One: An Alternative World-View1. Schaubergers Vision: Water wizard; Log flumes; Water, source of life; Subtle energies; Motion is crucial; Temperature controls; Water, source of life; Evolution; Balance; Implosion; The visionary2. Different Kinds of Energy: Subtle energies; Viktors worldview; Why the mystery? Degrees of energy; Vortex, key to creative evolution; Energies as creative process; Spiritual science; Different dimensions; Changing octaves3. Attraction & Repulsion of Opposites: Sun as fertilizing entity; Polarities; Opposites working towards balance; Gravity & levity4. Nature's Patterns & Shapes: Sound as Resonance; Resonance is about qualities; Plants have perception and memory; Cymatics; Patterns & shapes; Patterns in motion; Rhythms in solar system; Cosmic rhythms; The confrontation of two Geometric Systems; Sacred geometry; The Golden Mean; The magic of the egg form Part Two: How the World Works5. Energy Production: Inefficiency of modern technology; Entropy & ectropy; Scientific laws; Energy pollution; The choice before us; Energy defines quality; The creative energy vortex6. Motion, Key to Balance: We use the wrong form of motion; The original motion; Types of motion7. Atmosphere & Electricity: Earths atmosphere; Electricity; Terrestrial bio-condenser; Earth as accumulator of energy; Electrism and magnetism; Storms, water vapour and climatePart Three: Water the Source of Life8. The Nature of Water: Memory of water; Creation of water; Anomaly point of water; Qualities of water; How the river protects itself; Temperature gradient. & nutrient supply9. The Hydrological Cycle: Full & half hydrological cycles; Temperature gradients & nutrient supply10. Formation of Springs: The veneration of springs; Seepage springs; True springs; How spring water rises; Energy from deep ocean11. How Rivers Flow: Stages of a river; Temperature & movement of water; Positive temperature gradients; Dams; Flow guides; Energy bodies; Formation of vortices; Vortices as the source of creative energy; Formation of bends; Conventional river engineering; Hydro-electric power12. Supplying Water: Dwindling water supplies; Water for profit; Modern water treatments chlorine fluoride; Transmuting waters memory; Tubular water movement; Water main materials; The wooden water main; Stuttgart tests; Circulation of bloodPart Four: The Life of Trees13. The Role of the Forest: Evolution of the forest; Destruction of the forests; A moral tale; Tropical rainforests; Forestry; Monoculture; Biodiversity; Energy in the forest14. Trees: Trees in the biosphere; Form of a tree; Trees and humans; Trees and colour; Their physical nature; Tree classification; Trees response to light; Light & shade demanding trees; Light-induced growth; Man-made depredations; Importance of photosynthesis; Creation of water; Maturation of water15. Tree Metabolism: Sap movement; Temperature gradients; Trees as bio-condensers; Root systems. Soil and nutritionPart Five: Working with Nature16. Soil Fertility and Cultivation: Crisis in intensive farming; Ploughing methods; Two kinds of electromagnetism; Golden plough; Bio plough; Aligning furrows; Grazing & grass cutting; Artificial fertilizers17. Organic Cultivation: Biological agriculture; Soil mineralization; Organic farming, Biodynamic farming; Subtle energies in Nature; Cold Fire; Fertilizing agenciesPart Six: The Energy Revolution18. Harnessing Implosion Power: An American consortium; A new kind of aircraft? The beginnings of implosion research; Schaubergers Free Energy Search; Flying saucers; Biological vacuum; The repulsator; The implosion motor; The repulsine & flying saucer19. Viktor Schauberger & Society: The human legacy; Implementing Schaubergers researchAcknowledgments, Resources, Bibliography, Index
£19.00
Headline Publishing Group Falter
Book Synopsis''This is Bill McKibben at his glorious best. Wise and warning, with everything on the line. Do not miss it'' Naomi Klein, author of This Changes Everything and The Shock DoctrineThirty years ago, Bill McKibben wrote The End of Nature, the first book that alerted us to the dangers of climate change. Falter is a new call to arms, to save not only our planet but our very souls as well.Over tens of thousands of years, through the harnessing of nature, the development of civilization, and the application of new technologies, human beings have created the world we live in. But as McKibben points out in this provocative and sobering look at the world today, we are fast approaching a tipping point, putting into question the viability of humanity itself.McKibben argues that we have failed to recognize how individual actions often operated against our collective interest, and as a result we now face three daunting chall
£10.44
Pan Macmillan A Bigger Picture: My Fight to Bring a New African
Book Synopsis‘Vanessa Nakate continues to teach a most critical lesson. She reminds us that while we may all be in the same storm, we are not all in the same boat.’ - Greta ThunbergNo matter your age, location or skin colour, you can be an effective activist.Devastating flooding, deforestation, extinction and starvation. These are the issues that not only threaten in the future, they are a reality. After witnessing some of these issues first-hand, Vanessa Nakate saw how the world’s biggest polluters are asleep at the wheel, ignoring the Global South where the effects of climate injustice are most fiercely felt.Inspired by a shared vision of hope, Vanessa’s commanding political voice demands attention for the biggest issue of our time and, in this rousing manifesto for change, shows how you can join her to protect our planet now and for the future.Vanessa realized the importance of her place in the climate movement after she, the only Black activist in an image with four white Europeans, was cropped out of a press photograph at Davos in 2020. This example illustrates how those who will see the biggest impacts of the climate crisis are repeatedly omitted from the conversation. As she explains, ‘We are on the front line, but we are not on the front page.’Without A Bigger Picture, you’re missing the full story on climate change.‘An indispensable voice for our future.’ - Malala Yousafzai‘A powerful global voice.’ - Angelina JolieTrade ReviewIn this moment of intersecting crises, Vanessa Nakate continues to teach a most critical lesson. She reminds us that while we may all be in the same storm, we are not all in the same boat. -- Greta ThunbergVanessa Nakate is a powerful global voice. A strong spirit who will clearly not give up and only grow in strength. -- Angelina JolieThrough Vanessa Nakate's eyes, A Bigger Picture shows us the threat of climate change to people in East Africa and the relentless courage of one activist fighting to be heard. Vanessa is more than an inspiration – she's an indispensable voice for our future -- Malala YousafzaiVanessa Nakate's message couldn't be more urgent or her voice more desperately needed. At once intimate and sweeping, A Bigger Picture is a must-read for anyone who cares about the future. -- Elizabeth Kolbert, author of Under a White Sky and The Sixth ExtinctionThe most important climate book of the year! -- Jeremy Williams, author of Climate Change is RacistVanessa's story, her voice and fearless spirit are an inspiration to all of us. This book is a vital reminder that the costs of climate change have been transforming negatively the lives of those who have had the least part in causing the problem. Without racial justice and equality, climate justice can never be a reality. -- Mary Robinson, former president of Ireland and author of Climate Justice: Hope, Resilience, and the Fight for a Sustainable FutureThis is a wonderful story, wonderfully told! Vanessa Nakate is a crucial climate leader, reminding us of one of the iron laws of global warming: the less you did to cause it, the sooner and harder you get hit. Thank heaven her voice will echo far and wide, and down through the years. -- Bill McKibben, author of Falter: Has the Human Game Begun to Play Itself Out?Vanessa’s deeply personal and thought provoking account of her experience in the climate movement, specifically in the global south reminds us that at the center of this crisis is our shared humanity. -- Bonnie WrightVital, urgent, eye-opening. This is one of the most important and empowering books ever written about the climate change emergency. A must-read for all of us, no matter where we’re from -- Dr Ali Foxon, author of The Green Sketching HandbookEnthusiasm, commitment and energy jump out from every page of A Bigger Picture. After presenting the emergency climate problems facing Africa and the rest of the world Vanessa goes on to signpost the reader with solutions – an inspiring read! -- Nancy Birtwhistle, author of Clean & Green
£9.49
Heyday Books Rocks and Riches
Book SynopsisTake a road trip through deep time and California history, with a friendly expert geologist at the wheel.From its epic earthquakes to its famed epithet "the Golden State," California as we know it would not exist without geology. Gary L. Prost, an expert geologist born and raised in California, embarked on a quest to better understand the state''s rocky history. His road trips have culminated in Rocks and Riches, an accessible and entertaining look at the land that has shaped the lives of all Californians. With humor and abiding curiosity, Prost examines the workings of deep time, the fascinating and troubled legacies of the Gold Rush, and the ways geology continues to influence life in California today. Visiting 55 stops of geologic interest, he traverses the Marin and Sonoma coasts, the Central Valley, the Sierra Foothills, Yosemite, and the Basin and Range country, ending with an extended journey through Death Valley to meditate on the awe-inspiring intensity of California''s deserts. Including dozens of illustrations and road maps, as well as guidance for fellow travelers, Rocks and Riches is both a practical handbook and an invitation to see California''s landscapes with wonder.
£17.99
Island Press The Unnatural History of the Sea
Book SynopsisHumanity can make short work of the oceans' creatures. As Callum M. Roberts reveals in The Unnatural History of the Sea, the oceans' bounty didn't disappear overnight. While today's fishing industry is ruthlessly efficient, intense exploitation began not in the modern era, or even with the dawn of industrialization, but in the 11th century in medieval Europe.
£33.22
Vintage Publishing Under a White Sky: Can we save the natural world
Book SynopsisThe author of the international bestseller The Sixth Extinction returns to humanity's transformative impact on the environment, now asking: after doing so much damage, can we change nature, this time to save it?Meet the biologists trying to save the world's rarest fish; the engineers who are turning carbon emissions to stone; the researchers trying to develop a 'super coral'; and the physicists contemplating shooting tiny diamonds into the stratosphere to cool the earth.Elizabeth Kolbert is one of the most important writers on the environment. Here she investigates the immense challenges humanity faces as we scramble to reverse, in a matter of decades, the effects we've had on the natural world and asks - can we save the natural world in time?'Important, necessary, urgent' Helen MacDonald'Meticulously researched and deftly crafted' GuardianTrade ReviewImportant, necessary, urgent and phenomenally interesting * Helen Macdonald, New York Times *Smart * Bill Gates *A meticulously researched and deftly crafted work of journalism that explores some of the biggest challenges of our age * Guardian *Riveting * Washington Post *A superb and honest reflection of our extraordinary time * Nature *
£9.49
Verso Books The Conservation Revolution: Radical Ideas for
Book SynopsisConservation needs a revolution. This is the only way it can contribute to the drastic transformations needed to come to a truly sustainable model of development. The good news is that conservation is ready for revolution. Heated debates about the rise of the Anthropocene and the current 'sixth extinction' crisis demonstrate an urgent need and desire to move beyond mainstream approaches. Yet the conservation community is deeply divided over where to go from here. Some want to place 'half earth' into protected areas. Others want to move away from parks to focus on unexpected and 'new' natures. Many believe conservation requires full integration into capitalist production processes.Building a razor-sharp critique of current conservation proposals and their contradictions, Büscher and Fletcher argue that the Anthropocene challenge demands something bigger, better and bolder. Something truly revolutionary. They propose convivial conservation as the way forward. This approach goes beyond protected areas and faith in markets to incorporate the needs of humans and nonhumans within integrated and just landscapes. Theoretically astute and practically relevant, The Conservation Revolution offers a manifesto for conservation in the twenty-first century-a clarion call that cannot be ignored.Trade ReviewIn our era of unprecedented conservation needs and challenges, this hard-hitting, clear-sighted book offers a radical and timely way forward. Two eminent and committed political ecologists cut a path through old and new conservation debates and dichotomies - people vs. nature, capitalism vs. post-capitalism - to offer a new paradigm and politics around conviviality. Vital reading, and a vital manifesto for all concerned with how people and non-human natures can live well together -- Professor Melissa Leach, Director, Institute of Development Studies, University of SussexBuscher and Fletcher significantly advance radical alternatives to mainstream conservation, especially by locating them within the need for systemic alternatives to capitalism (and hopefully by implication, though not explicitly stated, patriarchy). Their notion of convivial conservation, building on innovative traditions that have broken away from dominant notions of progress and development, helps envisage an end to the human domination of the earth, so desperately needed. -- Ashish Kothari, co-author with A. Shrivastava of Churning the Earth: The Making of Global India (2012)This book is a remarkable intellectual and political achievement, demonstrating nothing less than how to organize and practice revolutionary conservation beyond the Anthropocene, but within the ruins of uneven socio-ecological capitalist development. A razor-sharp analysis of conservation and how to politicize its futures. -- Erik SwyngedouwThe debate over the conservation of creation is necessarily deep and contentious--this new approach deserves a careful reading from everyone who cares about human and more-than-human nature! -- Bill McKibbenA thoughtful, gentle and comprehensive overview...will become a mandatory read in political ecology, environmental history and conservation courses everywhere. * Journal of Political Ecology *Both a theoretical and practical guide for anyone looking to reevaluate their relationship with capitalism-and the future of life on earth. ... As the world experiences the catastrophic effects of political and economic systems that prioritize profits over people, The Conservation Revolution provides an essential foundation for reconsidering the status quo and prompts us to move toward a more equitable, sustainable future. -- Amelia Rina * BOMB Magazine *Both rigorous and accessible...an important addition to revolutionary thought in political ecology. -- Jordan Teicher * Uneven Earth *Highly recommend reading this book - it forces you to closer think about what is really needed in order to move from treating only symptoms to the much-needed real, efficient, sweeping change towards a sustainable society. -- Tina Heger * Basic and Applied Ecology *The Conservation Revolution was, for me, a refreshing read in bleak times. It struck the right balance between realism and hopeful optimism by putting forward ideas for conserving nature that do not simply imagine ways of being outside of capitalism, but that recognize the need to remedy capitalist conservation's cumulative negative effects -- Y. Ariadne Collins * Antipode *
£14.99
Flying Eye Books I Ate Sunshine for Breakfast: A Celebration of
Book SynopsisGet ready to learn everything you never knew about plants and then some! Now in paperback, this illustrated compendium celebrates the plants you didn't even know you used, from your toothpaste to your car tires to the name of your great-great-aunt. This comprehensive overview also contains great plant projects you and your friends can try at home!Trade ReviewFunny and clever, with illustrations that are a feast for the eye. An instant classic. -- Sir Tim Smit * Co-founder of The Eden Project *A fun read from start to finish with some brilliant experiments. -- Neil Jones * Chelsea Physics Garden *I Ate Sunshine for Breakfast (Flying Eye) is a compendium of plants so full of dazzling, delicious pictures that it's like opening up a world-class garden in your hands. * The Guardian *
£10.79
Vertebrate Publishing Ltd Toes In The Water: Stories of lives changed by
Book SynopsisWhy do so many of us step into the water? Compiled and edited by Rachel Jones, Toes in the Water explores the life-affirming and healing power of wild swimming. With insights from a wide range of swimmers, the book explores the community around wild swimming, interwoven with the mental and physical health benefits which swimmers gain from it. The featured swimmers share the connection they feel with the natural world, and how this can lead to a positive impact on the environment around them. Packed full of inspiring stories, Toes in the Water is a book that could change your life. The featured swimmers include open-water coach and year-round outdoor swimmer Ella Foote, who describes how the swimming community has supported her and given her skills and confidence in the outdoors; meanwhile, Beth Pearson, co-director of the Outdoor Swimming Society, explains the motivation behind and evolution of creating a wild swimming community. Also, Yorkshire-based wild swimming guide Les Peebles reflects on how healing he finds being in the water and how much joy he finds in helping others to discover wild swimming; and Lindsey Cole, mermaid, adventurer and environmental campaigner, explains how she raises awareness of river pollution through storytelling and activism.Table of Contents Introduction COMMUNITY Anna Deacon: A sense of belonging Johnny Hartnell: Wheelie bins and swimventures Beth Pearson: The OSS community Ella Foote: Strength from strangers CP Robinson: The coast is queer Pauline Barker: The Polar Bear Challenge Wendy, Lisa and Julia: Hampshire Open Water Swimmers Colin Hill: The antisocial swimmer Louise Owen: Friends old and new Simon Harmer: The benefits of an outdoor swimming community Katie Richards: Cold-water connection Deb Phillips: Channel swimming Stefan Hargrave: See you next week Sara Barnes: The ghosts of Cow Pool ENVIRONMENT Alice Kloker: River bed Sarah Shreeve: Sewage in our seas Chris Thomas: 365 Sea Swim Challenge Lindsey Cole: The mermaid, the otter and the big poo Emma Harper aka Mischief the Mermaid: Aiming for an ideal – the ghost hunt Susanne Masters: Tastes of water MENTAL HEALTH Catherine White: Waves of freedom Beth French: The glacier Dr Heather Massey: My life through outdoor swimming Jo Clement: Rhythm of the ocean Les Peebles: Helping others discover wild swimming Kate Steels: The Ice Sevens Mikayla Guidera: Freezbrury Kathleen Wotton: The sea saved me Loretta Cox: Discovering open-water swimming Sarah Kennedy Norquoy: Swimming to reset Rachel Ashe: Trying to fit Contributors About the editor
£13.46
Scribe Publications Fathoms: the world in the whale
Book SynopsisWinner of the Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Nonfiction, Finalist for the Kirkus Prize for Nonfiction, and the PEN/E.O. Wilson Literary Science Writing Award, Shortlisted for the Stella Prize, Highly Commended in the Wainwright Prize for writing on global conservation, and a Sunday Independent Book of the Year. How do whales experience environmental change? Has our connection to these animals been transformed by technology? What future awaits us, and them? Fathoms blends natural history, philosophy, and science to explore these questions. Giggs introduces us to whales so rare they have never been named and tells us of whale ‘pop’ songs that sweep across hemispheres. She takes us into the deeps to discover that one whale’s death can spark a great flourishing of creatures. We travel to Japan to board whaling ships, examine the uncanny charisma of these magnificent mammals, and confront the plastic pollution now pervading their underwater environment.Trade Review‘Fathoms is perhaps the finest book written about whales since Moby Dick was published 170 years ago. It’s also one of the best accounts I’ve ever read of the interaction, intended and unintended, between humans and other species — a work of genuinely literary imagination.’ -- Verlyn Klinkenborg * New York Review of Books *‘Fathoms took my breath away. Every page is suffused with magic and meaning. Humanity’s relationship with nature has never been more important or vulnerable, and we are truly fortunate that at such a pivotal moment, a writer of Rebecca Giggs’s calibre is here to capture every beautiful detail, every aching nuance. She is in a league of her own.’ -- Ed Yong, author of I Contain Multitudes‘Fathoms is a magnificent book, as grand and profound in its sweep as the whale itself. Rebecca Giggs is a brilliant writer - her prose packed with wonders and glittering with ideas.’ -- Philip Marsden, author of The Summer Isles‘Fathoms reads like a poem. Its virtuoso thinking is a revelation. I can’t think of many books in which love for the world and uncompromising, ever-deepening rigour come together in this way. Time slows down. This book makes a permanent dent in the reader.’ -- Maria Tumarkin, author of Axiomatic‘Fathoms is a marvel: a glorious, prismatic, deeply affecting hymn to the beauty, majesty, and extremity of whales and the human imagining of them.’ -- James Bradley, author of Clade‘[A] lyrical, wide-ranging meditation on whales and their complex relationship with humanity … Meticulously researched and full of fascinating information.’ -- Books+Publishing‘In Fathoms, Rebecca Giggs rips the metaphors off whales and brings us closer than we can usually get to the creatures themselves. Along the way, she shows us how intimately whales are shaping our lives, how they change air quality, and crime, and even our conception of time. I can't stop thinking about the connections she has unearthed, how a whale is connected to a meteor, a mother's breast, a landfill. Under the spell of her deliciously evocative prose, you get the sense that you are truly, finally, glimpsing a whale in full glory. Like the busks she writes about—tiny missives carved into whalebone corsets by sailors—this book leaves an imprint.’ -- Lulu Miller, author of Why Fish Don’t Exist and co-founder of NPR’s Invisibilia‘Seafaring scrutiny of whales, their oceanic environment, and the dangers to their survival … Giggs presents … scholarship in crisp, creatively written chapters addressing the many layers of the whale population’s unique physiology and evolutionary history, sociality, above-water balletic athleticism, and enigmatic ‘biophony’ of their vocalisations. Most importantly, she analyses how their behaviour can be predictive for the Earth’s future … Giggs reiterates that the whale and its life, legacy, and precarious environmental state are reflective of the greater issues the Earth faces, from ecological upheaval to overconsumption. Whether describing the majesty of the blue whale or the human assault on sea ecology due to paper and plastic pollution, the author’s prose is poetic, beautifully smooth, urgently readable, and eloquently informative. Her passion for whales leaps off the page, urging readers to care and—even more so—become involved in their protection and preservation. Throughout the book, the author’s debut, she brilliantly exposes ‘how regular human life seeped into the habitats of wildlife, and how wildlife returned back to us, the evidence of our obliviousness.’ Refreshingly, she also reveals glimmers of hope regarding what whales can teach the human race about our capacity to ecologically coexist with the natural world. A thoughtful, ambitiously crafted appeal for the preservation of marine mammals.’ STARRED REVIEW * Kirkus Reviews *‘Astonishing ... utterly original ... Fathomsis an attempt to interpret our contemporary moment – and in particular our relationship with the non-human world – through the glistening figure of the whale in all its myriad aspects ... The language of Fathoms has a remarkable, almost gothic intensity. The style is vivid and estranging and luridly compelling, full of weird lights and unexpected textures ... A remarkable literary event because it is a new and hugely ambitious kind of nature writing, verging on poetry. It is itself a whale cure, thrusting us into the dark intestine of the whale, among the indigestible plastics and other pollutants, the better to hear the conscience of tomorrow.’ -- Andrew Fuhrmann * The Monthly *‘In Fathoms, Rebecca Giggs unravels a powerful nonfiction narrative, masterfully blending history, philosophy and science.’ -- Dan Shaw * Happy Magazine *‘This book is nothing less than a small masterpiece. … Rebecca Giggs’ Fathoms – the world in the whale is a remarkable meditation on, nominally, whales, but through them the delicacy and intricacy of human relationships with the environment, and the history and legacy of our intimate and devastating impact upon ecosystems … The book is a striking piece of narrative nonfiction, philosophical and personal at once wrestling with liminal vulnerabilities, fantasies, conceits and projections, and it deserves global attention.’ 4.5 STARS -- Anna Westbrook * ArtsHub *‘Fathoms is horrific, poetic and profound; a morbid dirge shot through with celestial light. As well as being an extensively researched and deeply considered study, the book is also a wunderkammer of tales that illustrate the hot mess of human aggression, obliviousness and folly … Fathoms is a vast book, the scale of which brings to mind the blue whale, anatomically mysterious and the largest creature to have lived. Giggs weaves together cosmological phenomena with their deep-sea reverberations to give us a book that feels universal.’ -- Justine Hyde * The Saturday Paper *‘With remarkable detective work, author Rebecca Giggs explores the habitats and migratory patterns of whales to reveal a great deal about them, and even more about us. It is a hauntingly beautiful examination of the moral force of animals, offering hope as well as despair.’ -- Jeff Maynard * Herald Sun *‘A work of bright and careful genius. Equal parts Rebecca Solnit and Annie Dillard, Giggs masterfully combines lush prose with conscientious history and boots-on-the-beach reporting. With Giggs leading us gently by the hand we dive down, and down, and down, into the dark core of the whale, which, she convincingly reveals, is also the guts of the world.’ -- Robert Moor, New York Times bestselling author of On Trails: an exploration‘Rebecca Giggs’ Fathoms is a triumph, a deliciously rich work of art that, as if by magic, combines exquisite prose that floats off the page and into your heart with scientific accuracy and epic scope. This is by far the best book about whales I have ever read. What an achievement!’ -- Wendy Williams, author of The Language of Butterflies and New York Times bestseller The Horse: the epic history of our noble companion‘One of the most beautifully written nonfiction books I have read in a long time. It's so hard to do justice to the immense importance of whales and the lessons they have for us all. Rebecca Giggs does an extraordinary job of bringing together the science, the history, and the brilliance and fragility of whales.’ -- Christine Kenneally, author of The Invisible History of the Human Race‘Fathoms is a work of profound insight and wonder.’ * X-Press Magazine *‘The book is a masterpiece. I am astonished that it is Giggs’s first, for it reads like the work of a far more experienced author ... Giggs’s exquisite prose is so striking as to be almost poetic, pulling the reader up constantly, either to savour a particularly apposite phrase, or to ponder a deep, unexpected connection. If a whale warrants a pause, then Fathoms warrants many.’ -- Tim Flannery * The Australian *‘Lyrical, meditative and deeply researched, this gorgeous book by WA writer Rebecca Giggs is one to linger over.’ * The Weekend West *‘This is a heavy read, but a fascinating and vital one.’ -- Ellen Cregan * Kill Your Darlings *‘Fathoms is beautifully written, always aiming for the bigger picture: what it means to live in the world; and what it means to be enthralled by the world we live in and destroying it … Fathoms is a glorious, beautiful and deeply important book.’ -- Magdalena Ball * Compulsive Reader *‘Truly remarkable … Each page is full of wonder and revelation.’ -- Grey Kelly * Talking Heads Magazine *‘This is an unforgettable, meticulously researched work that examines the ways that we’re all connected — with whales, with the, environment and each other.’ -- Eliza Henry-Jones * Organic Gardener Magazine *‘Meticulous research and stunning prose … unique, introspective and poetic.’ -- Zoya Patel * Canberra Times *‘[A] moving homage to the whale … A book that begins with obsequies for a whale ends by enlarging our knowledge of, and sense of wonder about, this magnificent species. It is non-fiction told with the vivacity and moral authority that was once reserved for fiction.’ * Australian Financial Review *‘Giggs’ meticulous research is itself awesome. Every page has its breathtaking revelations … For all this wondrous detail, the whale remains a lens through which to consider humanity’s relationship with the environment … Fathoms’ exhilarating poetic language is richly allusive and orchestrated … this marvellous work of haunted wonder ends with a fiercely unabashed vision of humanity moved 'from indecision to action', for whales, for love, for the world.’ -- Felicity Plunkett * Sydney Morning Herald *‘[A] delving, haunted and poetic debut. Giggs is worth reading for her spotlight observations and lyricism alone, but she also has an important message to deliver … [S]he uses whales as invitations to consider everything else: the selfie-isation of environmentalism, the inherent worth of parasites, Jungian psychoanalysis, solar storms, whale songs records going multiplatinum and so much more. In the cascade of mini-essays that results, Giggs comes off as much as a cultural critic as a naturalist.’ -- Doug Bock Clark * The New York Times Book Review *‘There is much to marvel at here … Deeply researched and deeply felt, Giggs’ intricate investigation, beautifully revelatory and haunting, urges us to save the whales once again, and the oceans, and ourselves.’ STARRED REVIEW * Booklist *‘In the whale, Giggs truly does find the world. She finds clues that unlock how humans have engaged nature — tales of greed, aggression, wonder, desperation, longing, nostalgia, love, curiosity and obsession. Her prose is luminous … tracing humankind’s continuing intersection with these alluring creatures, Giggs ultimately uncovers seeds of hope and, planting them in her fertile mind, cultivates a lush landscape that offers remarkable views of nature, humanity and how we might find a way forward together.’ STARRED REVIEW * BookPage *‘Fathoms immediately earns its place in the pantheon of classics of the new golden age of environmental writing.’ -- Stephen Sparks * Literary Hub *‘A profound meditation … Giggs explores how whales have permeated our lives and the many ways we have invaded and transformed theirs. Each chapter orbits a different aspect of this long and fraught relationship — commodification, pollution, voyeurism, adoration, mythology — swerving wherever Giggs’s extensive research and fervent curiosity take her … Giggs’s prose is fluid, sensuous, and lyrical. She has a poet’s gift for startling and original imagery … The lushness of her sentences and the intensity of her vision inspire frequent rereading — not for clarity, but for sheer pleasure and depth of meaning.’ -- Ferris Jabr * Los Angeles Review of Books *‘[W]idens the aperture of our attention with a literary style so stunning that the reader may forget to blink ... In a story that extends across several continents, Ms. Giggs marshals lapidary language to give the crisis a compelling voice. Her prose, like the oceans in which her subjects roam, is immersive; her sentences submerge us in a sea of sensations … [M]ore descriptive than prescriptive concerning the plight of whales and, by implication, the health of the Earth. But as with George Orwell’s Shooting an Elephant and E.B. White’s Death of a Pig, Ms. Giggs, tending the final hours of a humpback on an Australian beach, reminds us that paying attention to the close of another creature’s life can be its own form of moral instruction.’ -- Danny Heitman * The Wall Street Journal *‘Immersive … Illustrating the interconnectedness of all life and the ways man's depredations travel from the smallest creatures to this largest of Earth's animals … In lyrical language, Giggs leads readers on a journey through underwater cultures and the place of whales in the chain of life. Recommended for readers interested in nature, ecology, and environmentalism.’ -- Caren Nichter * Library Journal *‘A searching debut … Giggs displays a keen awareness of what it means to write about a creature whose future is just as uncertain as our own.’ * The Nation *‘As well as being dazzlingly well researched and conveyed, the language in Fathoms is wonderful in that it never becomes sentimental and yet is thoroughly moving. Combining reportage, cultural criticism and poem as a call to action in the spirit of Rachel Carson, Giggs is an assured new voice in narrative nonfiction … Gloriously, she presents whales as poets … We need to be moved – therein the particular power of literature to expand the parameters of our compassion … More prescient for its time than the author could have imagined.’ -- Abi Andrews * The Irish Times *‘Fathoms is brilliantly full of wonder.’ * The Economist *‘Masterly.’ * The New Yorker *‘Glorious and astounding.’ -- Robbie Arnott‘With distinctive prose, as philosophical as it is scientific, this is a challenging and illuminating portrait of the oceans’ great cetaceans and what they mean to people.’ -- Helen Scales * BBC Wildlife Magazine *‘Beautiful and insightful.’ -- Pádraic Fogarty * Sunday Independent *‘By looking at the largest of our mammalian cousins Rebecca Giggs returns us to ourselves. This vital and urgent book awakens our wonder and our fear. In dense language, rich in poetry and science, it fathoms a deep empathy for the living world.’ -- Antony Gormley‘Some of the most alive, inventive writing on the planet is nature writing, and Giggs’ Fathoms is glorious proof. Ostentatious, mythic and strange, this is the kind of book that swallows you whole. Entirely fitting for its subject.’ -- Beejay Silcox * The Guardian *‘Fathoms is the result of years of research and contemplation: a cultural, historical and ecological exploration of whales and their place in human life and thought … It is simply one of the most miraculous and illuminating accounts of animality I’ve come across. Read it, read the whole magnificent tome: you’ll leave it filled with renewed awe for cetacean existence.’ -- Geordie Williamson * The Australian *‘A poetic and surprisingly wide-ranging blend of natural history, science and philosophy.’ -- Gemma Nisbet * The Weekend West Australian *‘This remarkable study of whales examines much more than the magnificent creatures of the deep. Through brilliant detective work, Giggs explores the habitats and migratory patterns of whales to reveal a great deal about them, and even more about the human impact on the oceans.’ * The Chronicle *‘Giggs’s style is all the more impactful for its sparseness … Her journey encompasses everything from whale-hunting ships in Japan to Loch Ness monster conspiracy theories in Scotland, with all of the disparate subjects deftly woven together by clipped, polished prose.’ -- Caroline Crampton * The Mail on Sunday *‘Wonder pours out of every page of this gorgeously written and daringly imagined book.’ -- Laura Miller * Slate *‘Extraordinary.’ -- Hannah James * Australian Geographic *‘A book like this shows the best of what reflective, creative non-fiction can do.’ -- Kate Evans * ABC Radio *‘Rebecca Giggs’ enthralling Fathoms: the world in the whale presents whales as immense, enigmatic, intelligent and majestic sea creatures, but also vividly describes the intricate ecosystem of the vast oceans in which they live and die. Drawing from science, history, literature, art and mythology, Fathoms is both epic in scale and rich in detail about the life cycle of whales, their behaviours and sociality.’ -- Donna Lee Brien * The Conversation *‘Lyrical … Facts like these are eye-opening. But the book shines most brightly in its poetry … Giggs’s writing has an old-fashioned lushness and elaborateness of thought … its finest passages — and they are many — awaken a sense of wonder. That other lives as marvellous and mysterious as these still exist is, for the moment at least, a reason to celebrate.’ -- Richard Schiffman * The Washington Post *‘Like fine tapestry, strands unite into a coherent work of great beauty. Yes, this is a book about what whales mean to us, but it’s also about how to interweave and admire cultural and biological stories, metaphors, and meanings.’ -- David George Haskell * Geographical Magazine *'An incredibly wonderful book ... [Giggs] is a fabulous writer' -- Brian Eno‘Giggs' work [Fathoms] … on whales, climate change and pollution has been one of the most affecting [books] I've read in a while.’ -- Sophie Overett * The Courier-Mail *‘It’s rare for whales to get what they deserve from our species, but Giggs’ fascinating and poetic natural history starts to pay back a portion of an impossible debt.’ -- Christopher J. Preston * Geographical Magazine *
£9.49
Saraband Seasons of Storm and Wonder
Book SynopsisLonglisted for the 2022 Highland Book Prize From Jim Crumley, the "pre-eminent Scottish nature-writer” (Guardian), this landmark volume documents the extraordinary natural life of the Scottish Highlands and bears witness to the toll climate chaos is already taking on our wildlife, habitats and biodiversity – laying bare what is at stake for future generations. A display of head-turning autumn finery on Skye provokes Jim Crumley to contemplate both the glories of the season and how far the seasons themselves have shapeshifted since his early days observing his natural surroundings. After a lifetime immersed in Scotland's landscapes and enriched by occasional forays in other northern lands, Jim has amassed knowledge, insight and a bank of memorable imagery chronicling the wonder, tumult and spectacle of nature’s seasonal transformations. He has witnessed not only nature’s unparalleled beauty, but also how climate chaos and humankind has brought unwanted drama to wildlife and widespread destruction of ecosystems and habitats. In this landmark volume, Jim combines lyrical prose and passionate eloquence to lay bare the impact of global warming and urge us all towards a more daring conservation vision that embraces everything from the mountain treeline to a second spring for the wolf.Trade Review'This is a book from an author that can inspire those with a good knowledge of wildlife but also, I feel, draw in others to that subject through the beauty of the writing and the incisiveness of the observation. A great book, and obviously a book for all seasons.' -- Mark Avery'Jim Crumley … has been our predominant writer on the natural world … [He] is a naturalist with a great gift for observation … His work engages us in the best ways – it addresses us as equals. We are drawn alongside him, to appreciate what he appreciates.' -- Kathleen Jamie
£21.25
Harvard University Press Ecology without Nature
Book SynopsisMorton argues that the chief stumbling block to environmental thinking is the image of nature most writers promote: they propose a new world view, but their very zeal to preserve the natural world leads them away from the “nature” they revere. To have a properly ecological view, Morton suggests, we must relinquish, once and for all, the idea of nature.Trade ReviewRigorous and unsettling, Timothy Morton's book is a vividly realized critique of the political and ethical meanings of "place" and "space." Steeped in philosophical and literary history, Ecology without Nature is a profoundly convinced and convincing intervention, calling as it does for a more intellectually robust and politically supple environmentalism, one much better suited to the realities of twenty-first-century life. A more thoughtful reflection on the future of dwelling together in a vulnerable world would be hard to find. -- David L. Clark, Professor of English and Cultural Studies, McMaster UniversityMorton demonstrates that because most ecocriticism assumes nature/environment as a concept, most ecocritics perpetuate the assumptions of the literature that they purport to critique. He argues that nature is an arbitrary rhetorical concept whose modern origins can be traced to Romantics writing during the Industrial Revolution--essentially, that ecocriticism fetishizes "nature." He contends that a "really deep ecology" would let go of the idea of nature because it marks the difference between "us" and "it." Drawing on writers from Adorno to Zizek, and considering literature and art from the 18th century to the present, Morton offers a complex, important, and often playful argument that lays the groundwork for new directions in ecocriticism. -- G. D. MacDonald * Choice *We’re in the sh**. We have to face it and learn to live with it. That’s a basic idea in dark ecology, which Timothy Morton outlines in his book Ecology Without Nature...Dark ecology has a realistic take on the human state without resorting to false optimism or fatalistic tones of apocalypse. It also requires people to take control, and not lay down in the mud with blind faith of staying above the surface without ever drowning. When we realise our connection to the rest of the world, we understand that our actions reflect all life on the planet...Dark ecology has the potential to be the punk rock or experimental pop of ecological thinking. Or even the death metal, since it shares a goth sensibility that focuses on the dark. * Kasino A4 *Ecology Without Nature offers original and important critiques of ecocritical theory, in particular through its analysis of the legacy of Romanticism and the paradox of dualism that pervades much ecological writing. Its occasionally irreverent style and embrace of kitsch make it an enjoyable read, even when the associationist organization and technical terminology require the reader to slow down. However, this slowing down is exactly what Morton recommends for ecocritics as we enter the twenty-first century and the increasingly urgent demands of “this poisoned ground” where Morton calls us to stand. -- Janet Fiskio * Environmental Philosophy *Table of Contents* Introduction: Toward a Theory of Ecological Criticism * The Art of Environmental Language: "I Can't Believe It Isn't Nature!" * Romanticism and the Environmental Subject * Imagining Ecology without Nature * Notes * Index
£24.26
Duke University Press The Extractive Zone
Book SynopsisExtending decolonial theory into greater conversation with race, sexuality, and Indigenous studies, Macarena Gómez-Barris traces the political, aesthetic, and performative practices of South American indigenous activists, intellectuals, and artists that emerge in opposition to the ruinous effects of extractive capital.Trade Review"The Extractive Zone offers a glimpse into what kind of world may be possible through the everyday practices and knowledges of submerged perspectives." -- Megan Spencer * The New Inquiry *"A timely study. . . . The result of substantive situated fieldwork. . . . There may be no greater testament to the value and urgency of decolonial approaches to embodied vernacular knowledge today." -- Kimberly Richards * TDR: The Drama Review *"Gómez-Barris’s compelling text grapples with the destruction and death dealt by extractive industries. . . . This is all provocative and engaging material, particularly when set against political economic critiques of extractivism." -- Joe Bryan * The Americas *"Gómez-Barris’s writing provides an anecdote to technocratic visions of 'green capitalism' by foregrounding questions of justice, identity, and the contingency of politics. Scholars interested in the debates animating anti-extractive social movements in Latin America and beyond should begin here." -- Matthew Shutzer * Enterprise & Society *"The Extractive Zone contributes an important feminist and indigenous hemispheric genealogy and cultural studies lens on current political economic debates circulating in Latin America and beyond regarding alternatives to growth-oriented, capitalist and extractive-based models of development. The book also complicates heroic and romantic readings of the conceptual and legal mechanisms surrounding the state-based rhetoric of buen vivir in Latin American constitutionalism that too often appear uncritically examined in scholarship produced in the global North." -- Kristina Lyons * Journal of Latin American Studies *Table of ContentsAcknowledgments ix Preface. Below the Surface xiii Introduction. Submerged Perspectives 1 1. The Intangibility of the Yasuní 17 2. Andean Phenomenology and New Age Settler Colonialism 39 3. An Archive for the Future: Seeing through Occupation 66 4. A Fish-Eye Episteme: Seeing Below the River's Colonization 91 5. Decolonial Gestures: Anarcho-Feminist Indigenous Critique 110 Conclusion. The View from Below 133 Notes 139 Bibliography 165 Index 179
£18.99
Sounds True The Wisdom of the Hive
Book SynopsisPotent and timely lessons on healing and connection?both individually and collectively?through the wisdom and magic of honeybees. We?ve heard the refrain to save the bees, but what if the bees can save us too? Beloved equity educators, authors, and beekeepers Michelle Cassandra Johnson and Amy Burtaine invite us to contemplate this question deeply. By looking at bees as teachers, the authors draw us into an examination of our relationship with each other and the world at large. Honeybees illustrate communal interdependence, attunement to nature, coexistence with darkness, and so much more?lessons worthy of emulating within our own human world. In times marked by turmoil and uncertainty, honeybees offer a powerful example of how to turn toward each other, to deeply commit to creating conditions for survival of all beings, and to build a future where all can thrive. As Michelle and Amy write, ?We won?t survive unless we remember our interconnectedness to all beings and change our ways of being?how we are to ourselves, one another, and the planet.?This beautiful and thought-provoking book offers:? Insights from beekeeping, Buddhism, and nature-based shamanic practices? Stories, meditations, reflection questions, and practices to bring the wisdom of the hive to our own lives and bodies? Encouragement to connect with nature and each other in new waysWith each chapter, we learn more about the life of a honeybee, our own lives, and our relationship to the collective as a part of an ever-changing ecosystem.
£14.99
CABI Conservation of Dragonflies
Book SynopsisDragonflies are among the most familiar and popular of all insects, deeply embedded in human cultural history. They are iconic and tell us much about the environments in which we and they live. Their conservation is an important part of biodiversity conservation.One modern dragonfly species is listed as extinct, with many others currently threatened. It is now essential to increase conservation efforts towards saving these threatened species, with strategies now available for doing this. Recovery of dragonfly populations goes hand in hand with improvements to both freshwater conditions and bank vegetation quality. In contrast, some other dragonfly species have benefitted greatly from human transformation of the landscape, with artificial ponds in particular, increasing the population levels of many species. In turn, climate change is seeing many geographical range shifts.Dragonflies are variously sensitive to the health of freshwater systems, and the quality of vegetation along rivers and around ponds. Dragonflies are excellent indicators in these times of great concern over the quality of our freshwater supplies. Their wide range of sensitivities enables us to measure the extent to which freshwater ecosystems are either deteriorating or are improving when we undertake restoration. They enable us to gauge how well we are conserving freshwaters, whether ponds and lakes, streams or rivers. They are also good umbrellas for many other freshwater inhabitants, which altogether reflect the health of a freshwater system.Conservation of Dragonflies: Sentinels for Freshwater Conservation is for naturalists, citizen scientists, entomologists and conservation scientists, as well as practitioners and policy makers around the world.
£49.50
Oro Editions Media Matters in Landscape Architecture
Book SynopsisA unique contribution to landscape architectural praxis in its explicit framing of environmental media in terms of its dual meaning within our discipline.
£24.00
Johns Hopkins University Press Sea Turtles
Book SynopsisIllustrated with stunning color photographs by the world's leading nature photographers, Sea Turtles will inform and inspire readers of all ages everywhere.Trade ReviewIn this comprehensive guide, [Spotila] treats in detail the seven species: green turtles, hawksbills, olive ridleys, Kemp's ridleys, loggerheads, flatbacks, and leatherbacks. Each chapter includes tables of data on where the species is found, population estimates of colonies, and, in some cases, a chronology of conservation efforts... Spotila, fittingly, offers vignettes of conservation projects that provide human interest... Spotila's book is recommended for high school, university, and research-level libraries. Library Journal Such enthusiasm is infectious... The accessible text is beautifully illustrated with numerous color photographs. The lay readers will be captivated. The book's review of what scientists know about these charismatic but woefully endangered creatures is substantial enough to interest biologists and conservationists as well. -- Roger Harris American Scientist 2005 Each species gets a chapter with sumptuous photographs, and short personal profiles pay homage to those spearheading conservation efforts. New Scientist 2005 Sea Turtles is spellbinding, articulate, indispensible and, with its many full-color photos, taken by the world's leading underwater photographers, astonishing. Spirit of Aloha 2005 The author is both a leading authority on sea turtles and a talented writer; his passion for the subject is on every page. Choice 2005 An evocative portrait of the seven species and their valiant fight for survival. Compendium Newsletter 2006 This is a great book. Wildlife Activist 2006 Clearly written and well-illustrated book... provides a helpful primer for nonscientists. -- Larry Evans Charlotte Herald-Tribune 2005 It is this mixture of scientific expertise and outright human awe that makes this book such a treasure... A trove of information, a collection of spectacular photos, and an ode to a creature that somehow, years after its birth, is able to navigate back to the precise beach where it was born to lay its own eggs. Philadelphia Inquirer 2004 Bottom line: This book is worthy of centerpiece placement on any coffee table. But Sea Turtles' loftier goal make it more than just another pretty picture book. -- Mary Beth Regan Baltimore Sun Sea Turtles capitalizes on the depth of James Spotila's experience in field and political environments as well as his evident passion for conservation, [producing] an equally compelling, modern book. Readers of all stripes will be captivated by the outstanding photography and entertained by the stories... A wonderful entree into the exciting world of sea turtles for the uninitiated and a delightful repast for everyone. His eloquent words are inspiring, and his hopeful message deserves to be heard. -- Fredric J. Janzen Science 2005 This lavishly produced book is filled with numerous excellent photographs, as well as beautiful schematics of anatomy and distribution maps. But this is much more than a coffee-table book: it deserves space on the academic's bookshelf. -- Graeme C. Hays Nature 2005 Open this new, beautifully produced book and you'll find yourself hopelessly caught up in the life of sea turtles. Post Register 2006 This is simply a great book: lucid, literate, and lavishly illustrated. -- Tony Tucker Aquatic Mammals 2006 This volume hits the sweet spot between a hard science manual and a mere coffee table book. -- Michael Stachowitsch Marine Ecology 2008 A worldwide study into what is causing the decrease in sea turtles throughout the world. Going beyond just what is causing it, though, [Spotila] carefully explicates why the decline is so important to all living things. Black Sheep Dances 2011Table of ContentsPrefaceChapter 1. Introduction: The Seven SwimmersChapter 2. Life Cycles: From Sand to SeaChapter 3. Biology: Under the ShellChapter 4. History: The Ancient LineageChapter 5. Conservation: An Uncertain FutureChapter 6. Green Turtles: The Grass EatersChapter 7. Hawksbills: The Sponge EatersChapter 8. Olive Ridleys: A Phenomenon of NatureChapter 9. Kemp's Ridleys: The Rarest of AllChapter 10. Loggerheads: A Crushing JawChapter 11. Flatbacks: Australia's TurtleChapter 12. Leatherbacks: The Giant MarinerChapter 13. Conclusion: Dreaming of Eden Sources and Suggested ReadingIndex
£26.12
HarperCollins Publishers Solitary Bees
Book SynopsisA completely up-to-date introduction to the most common group of bees in Britain.Bees, for most people, mean honey or bumble bees, but in fact these social species make up only a small proportion of the species that live in Britain. Open your eyes to the so-called solitary' bees, and discover a wonderfully diverse population miners, leafcutters, carpenters and masons many of which can be found in your own back garden.Solitary bees come in a variety of colours and sizes, with some as large as bumblebees and some only a few millimetres long, and many are key pollinators for our crops and wildflowers. This comprehensive book will tell the story of how these bees live, reproduce and thrive: discover the numerous strategies used by male bees to find females and persuade them to mate; follow the females as they build their nests or in the case of cuckoo' species, sneak into the nests of their neighbours and watch as the new generation appears. Explore the interactions between flowering pTrade ReviewPraise for New Naturalist Solitary Bees:‘This stands out as my book of the year, and if you are only going to have one New Naturalist book on your shelves or you are an avid collector of the series, this book is a must have and I thoroughly recommend it.’ Steven Rutherford FBNA, Honorary Chairman, British Naturalists Association Reviews of Ted Benton’s previous volumes in the New Naturalist Series – Bumblebees and Grasshoppers & Crickets: ‘The most authoritative work on British bumblebees ever published.’Independent ‘This book is an inspiration. It will fascinate and arm you with everything you need to know to help you save our bumblebees. Buy it, enjoy it, and keep it safe.’BBC Wildlife ‘Ted Benton's entomological opus [New Naturalist] Grasshoppers & Crickets led me into the weird world of British orthoptera, with their edible nuptial gifts, "mate-guarding", harems and extraordinarily complex songs. No field or meadow will seem or sound the same again’ Robert Macfarlane, ‘Books of the Year 2012’, Guardian
£48.75
HarperCollins Publishers Mr Dog and a Hedge Called Hog
Book SynopsisA brand new young fiction series by TV broadcaster and intrepid explorer Ben Fogle, inspired by his real-life animal experiencesCo-written with best-selling children's author Steve Cole and illustrated throughout with beautiful black and white illustrations by Nikolas Ilic.You can always count on Mr Dog to help an animal in troubleMr Dog has travelled north for an island escapade. But when a local hedgehog problem seems set to threaten his new friend, Hog, he knows he'll have to act quickly to save his prickly companionTrade ReviewPraise for other titles in the Mr Dog series ‘Fantastic for reading aloud’ Books for Topics ‘Sensantional!’ Rory, Age 7, National Geographic Kids ‘Ben Fogle’s passion for animals and love of adventure have been put to good use in this book, with its cast of loveable animals and I’m looking forward to seeing the series continue.’ Parents In Touch
£6.99
HarperCollins Publishers Mr Dog and a Deer Friend
Book SynopsisA brand new young fiction series by TV broadcaster and intrepid explorer Ben Fogle, inspired by his real-life animal experiencesCo-written with best-selling children's author Steve ColeWhen Mr Dog meets a fawn whose forest home is in danger, he know he needs to help quickly.As Mr Dog joins the search for the fawn's missing mother, trouble lies ahead for the whole herd. Mr Dog has a plan, though, that might just keep them all out of danger
£6.99