Download or read book People and Nature written by Emilio F. Moran and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2016-07-28 with total page 272 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Now updated and expanded, People and Nature is a lively, accessible introduction to environmental anthropology that focuses on the interactions between people, culture, and nature around the world. Written by a respected scholar in environmental anthropology with a multi-disciplinary focus that also draws from geography, ecology, and environmental studies Addresses new issues of importance, including climate change, population change, the rise of the slow food and farm-to-table movements, and consumer-driven shifts in sustainability Explains key theoretical issues in the field, as well as the most important research, at a level appropriate for readers coming to the topic for the first time Discusses the challenges in ensuring a livable future for generations to come and explores solutions for correcting the damage already done to the environment Offers a powerful, hopeful future vision for improved relations between humans and nature that embraces the idea of community needs rather than consumption wants, and the importance of building trust as a foundation for a sustainable future

Download or read book Birthright written by Stephen R. Kellert and published by Yale University Press. This book was released on 2012-11-13 with total page 379 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Human health and well-being are inextricably linked to nature; our connection to the natural world is part of our biological inheritance. In this engaging book, a pioneer in the field of biophilia—the study of human beings' inherent affinity for nature—sets forth the first full account of nature's powerful influence on the quality of our lives. Stephen Kellert asserts that our capacities to think, feel, communicate, create, and find meaning in life all depend upon our relationship to nature. And yet our increasing disconnection and alienation from the natural world reflect how seriously we have undervalued its important role in our lives. Weaving scientific findings together with personal experiences and perspectives, Kellert explores specific human tendencies—including affection, aversion, intellect, control, aesthetics, exploitation, spirituality, and communication—to discover how they are influenced by our relationship with nature. He observes that a beneficial relationship with the natural world is an instinctual inclination, but must be earned. He discusses how we can restore the balance in our relationship by means of changes in childhood development, education, conservation, building design, ethics, and everyday life. Kellert's moving book provides exactly what is needed now: a fresh understanding of how much our essential humanity relies on being a part of the natural world.

Download or read book People in Nature written by Kirsten M. Silvius and published by Columbia University Press. This book was released on 2004 with total page 486 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 'People in Nature' highlights South and Central American approaches to wildlife conservation and management strategy and discusses threats caused by ranching, habitat fragmentation, fishing and hunting.

Download or read book Wonders written by Rhonda Rubenstein and published by Chronicle Books. This book was released on 2018-08-07 with total page 144 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Nature is full of fleeting wonders. This breathtaking collection of nature photography reveals rare creatures, transports us to distant landscapes, and captures uncommon moments of drama and beauty in the natural world. From a heart-pounding shot of the Wildebeest Migration to a glimpse of the elusive Pampas cat, each image tells a story about the diversity and grandeur of life on earth. Bold, surprising, and jaw-droppingly beautiful, these photographs are all winners of the California Academy of Sciences' BigPicture Natural World Photography Competition. With more than 100 photographs and captions explaining the scientific phenomena and photographic techniques behind each picture, this book will captivate nature lovers, science enthusiasts, photographers, and adventurers.

Download or read book People and Places of Nature and Culture written by Rod Giblett and published by Intellect Books. This book was released on 2014-05-27 with total page 282 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Using the rich and vital Australian Aboriginal understanding of country as a model, People and Places of Nature and Culture affirms the importance of a sustainable relationship between nature and culture. While current thought includes the mistaken notion—perpetuated by natural history, ecology, and political economy—that humans have a mastery over the Earth, this book demonstrates the problems inherent in this view. In the current age of climate change, this is an important appraisal of the relationship between nature and culture, and a projection of what needs to change if we want to achieve environmental stability.

Download or read book Nature by Design written by Eric Higgs and published by MIT Press. This book was released on 2003-04-25 with total page 368 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Ecological restoration is the process of repairing human damage to ecosystems. It involves reintroducing missing plants and animals, rebuilding soils, eliminating hazardous substances, ripping up roads, and returning natural processes such as fire and flooding to places that thrive on their regular occurrence. Thousands of restoration projects take place in North America every year. In Nature by Design, Eric Higgs argues that profound philosophical and cultural shifts accompany these projects. He explores the ethical and philosophical bases of restoration and the question of what constitutes good ecological restoration. Higgs explains how and why the restoration movement came about, where it fits into the array of approaches to human relationships with the land, and how it might be used to secure a sustainable future. Some environmental philosophers and activists worry that restoration will dilute preservation and conservation efforts and lead to an even deeper technological attitude toward nature. They ask whether even well-conceived restoration projects are in fact just expressions of human will. Higgs prefaces his responses to such concerns by distinguishing among several types of ecological restoration. He also describes a growing gulf between professionals and amateurs. Higgs finds much merit in criticism about technological restoration projects, which can cause more damage than they undo. These projects often ignore the fact that changing one thing in a complex system can change the whole system. For restoration projects to be successful, Higgs argues, people at the community level must be engaged. These focal restorations bring communities together, helping volunteers develop a dedication to place and encouraging democracy.

Download or read book Invisible Nature written by Kenneth Worthy and published by Prometheus Books. This book was released on 2013-08-06 with total page 396 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A revolutionary new understanding of the precarious modern human-nature relationship and a path to a healthier, more sustainable world. Amidst all the wondrous luxuries of the modern world—smartphones, fast intercontinental travel, Internet movies, fully stocked refrigerators—lies an unnerving fact that may be even more disturbing than all the environmental and social costs of our lifestyles. The fragmentations of our modern lives, our disconnections from nature and from the consequences of our actions, make it difficult to follow our own values and ethics, so we can no longer be truly ethical beings. When we buy a computer or a hamburger, our impacts ripple across the globe, and, dissociated from them, we can’t quite respond. Our personal and professional choices result in damages ranging from radioactive landscapes to disappearing rainforests, but we can’t quite see how. Environmental scholar Kenneth Worthy traces the broken pathways between consumers and clean-room worker illnesses, superfund sites in Silicon Valley, and massively contaminated landscapes in rural Asian villages. His groundbreaking, psychologically based explanation confirms that our disconnections make us more destructive and that we must bear witness to nature and our consequences. Invisible Nature shows the way forward: how we can create more involvement in our own food production, more education about how goods are produced and waste is disposed, more direct and deliberative democracy, and greater contact with the nature that sustains us.

Download or read book With People in Mind written by Rachel Kaplan and published by . This book was released on 1998-03 with total page 248 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Beginning with techniques for consulting the public, the authors describe and examine the natural areas, like parks and nature reserves, that so often vary in quality and show how to improve them in ways that are compatible with the environment.

Download or read book Human Nature written by James Trefil and published by St. Martin's Press. This book was released on 2005-05 with total page 276 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Uncommon and refreshing. Moreover, Trefil is right." -Michael Ruse, The New York Times Book Review As a prizewinning theoretical physicist and bestselling author, James Trefil has long been the public's guide to a better understanding of the world. Now, in this provocative and engaging book, Trefil looks squarely at our environmental future and finds-contrary to popular wisdom-reason to celebrate. For too long, Trefil argues, humans have treated nature as something separate from themselves-pristine wilderness to be saved or material resources to be exploited. What we need instead is a scientific approach to the environment. In Human Nature, Trefil exposes the benefits of genetically modified species, uncovers vital facts about droughts and global warming, and shows why putting humans first is the best path ahead. By taking advantage of explosive advances in the sciences, we can fruitfully manage the planet, if we rise to the challenge. Human Nature promises to awaken a new state of environmentalism and our relationship to the planet-and is filled with optimism, rather than alarm.

Download or read book Rewilding Agricultural Landscapes written by H. Scott Butterfield and published by Island Press. This book was released on 2021-04-08 with total page 290 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: As the world population grows, so does the demand for food, putting unprecedented pressure on agricultural lands. In many desert dryland regions, however, intensive cultivation is causing their productivity to decline precipitously. "Rewilding" the least productive of these landscapes offers a sensible way to reverse the damage, recover natural diversity, and ensure long-term sustainability of remaining farms and the communities they support. This accessibly written, groundbreaking contributed volume is the first to examine in detail what it would take to retire eligible farmland and restore functioning natural ecosystems. The lessons in Rewilding Agricultural Landscapes will be useful to conservation leaders, policymakers, groundwater agencies, and water managers looking for inspiration and practical advice for solving the complicated issues of agricultural sustainability and water management.

Download or read book Indigenous People and Nature written by Uday Chatterjee and published by Elsevier. This book was released on 2022-04-08 with total page 640 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Indigenous People and Nature: Insights for Social, Ecological, and Technological Sustainability examines today’s environmental challenges in light of traditional knowledge, linking insights from geography, population, and environment from a wide range of regions around the globe. Organized in four parts, the book describes the foundations of human geography and its current research challenges, the intersections between environment and cultural diversity, addressing various type of ecosystem services and their interaction with the environment, the impacts of sustainability practices used by indigenous culture on the ecosystem, and conservation ecology and environment management. Using theoretical and applied insights from local communities around the world, this book helps geographers, demographers, environmentalists, economists, sociologists and urban planners tackle today’s environmental problems from new perspectives. Includes in-depth case studies across different geographic spaces Contains contributions from a range of young to eminent scholars, researchers and policymakers Highlights new insights from social science, environmental science and sustainable development Synthesizes research on society, ecology and technology with sustainability, all in a single resource

Download or read book People Plants and Justice written by Charles Zerner and published by Columbia University Press. This book was released on 2000-07-18 with total page 473 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In an era of market triumphalism, this book probes the social and environmental consequences of market-linked nature conservation schemes. Rather than supporting a new anti-market orthodoxy, Charles Zerner and colleagues assert that there is no universal entity, "the market." Analysis and remedies must be based on broader considerations of history, culture, and geography in order to establish meaningful and lasting changes in policy and practice. Original case studies from Asia, Latin America, Africa, and the South Pacific focus on topics as diverse as ecotourism, bioprospecting, oil extraction, cyanide fishing, timber extraction, and property rights. The cases position concerns about biodiversity conservation and resource management within social justice and legal perspectives, providing new insights for students, scholars, policy professionals and donor/foundations engaged in international conservation and social justice.

Download or read book Nature Wars written by Mark L. Winston and published by Harvard University Press. This book was released on 1999 with total page 232 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A compelling book about ethics and choices, Nature Wars shows us the difference between protecting ourselves from real pests and poisoning ourselves and the planet.

Download or read book The Laws of Human Nature written by Robert Greene and published by Penguin. This book was released on 2018-10-23 with total page 626 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From the #1 New York Times-bestselling author of The 48 Laws of Power comes the definitive new book on decoding the behavior of the people around you Robert Greene is a master guide for millions of readers, distilling ancient wisdom and philosophy into essential texts for seekers of power, understanding and mastery. Now he turns to the most important subject of all - understanding people's drives and motivations, even when they are unconscious of them themselves. We are social animals. Our very lives depend on our relationships with people. Knowing why people do what they do is the most important tool we can possess, without which our other talents can only take us so far. Drawing from the ideas and examples of Pericles, Queen Elizabeth I, Martin Luther King Jr, and many others, Greene teaches us how to detach ourselves from our own emotions and master self-control, how to develop the empathy that leads to insight, how to look behind people's masks, and how to resist conformity to develop your singular sense of purpose. Whether at work, in relationships, or in shaping the world around you, The Laws of Human Nature offers brilliant tactics for success, self-improvement, and self-defense.

Download or read book The Pub and the People written by Mass Observation and published by Faber & Faber. This book was released on 2011-11-03 with total page 270 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Mass Observation was founded in 1937 with the aim of researching the everyday lives of ordinary people in Britain. One of its best-loved publications is The Pub and the People (1943), a unique study of one of Britain's best-loved pastimes, describing how people behaved in pubs, what and how much they drank, and the decor and layout of the average pre-war alehouse. Alongside sociological interest it offers amusing insights into an era when supping pints was only for the roughest customers, and beer was considered helpful not only to general health ('There is no bad ale, so Grandma said') but also (contra the porter in Macbeth) to the act of love. 'The authors of this book have unearthed much curious information.' George Orwell, Listener 'Anyone with an interest in the history of beer and pubs in Britain ought to read it.' Boak and Bailey's Beer Blog

Download or read book Rivers for Life written by Sandra Postel and published by Island Press. This book was released on 2012-06-22 with total page 265 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The conventional approach to river protection has focused on water quality and maintaining some "minimum" flow that was thought necessary to ensure the viability of a river. In recent years, however, scientific research has underscored the idea that the ecological health of a river system depends not on a minimum amount of water at any one time but on the naturally variable quantity and timing of flows throughout the year. In Rivers for Life, leading water experts Sandra Postel and Brian Richter explain why restoring and preserving more natural river flows are key to sustaining freshwater biodiversity and healthy river systems, and describe innovative policies, scientific approaches, and management reforms for achieving those goals. Sandra Postel and Brian Richter: explain the value of healthy rivers to human and ecosystem health; describe the ecological processes that support river ecosystems and how they have been disrupted by dams, diversions, and other alterations; consider the scientific basis for determining how much water a river needs; examine new management paradigms focused on restoring flow patterns and sustaining ecological health; assess the policy options available for managing rivers and other freshwater systems; explore building blocks for better river governance. Sandra Postel and Brian Richter offer case studies of river management from the United States (the San Pedro, Green, and Missouri), Australia (the Brisbane), and South Africa (the Sabie), along with numerous examples of new and innovative policy approaches that are being implemented in those and other countries. Rivers for Life presents a global perspective on the challenges of managing water for people and nature, with a concise yet comprehensive overview of the relevant science, policy, and management issues. It presents exciting and inspirational information for anyone concerned with water policy, planning and management, river conservation, freshwater biodiversity, or related topics.

Download or read book Lake Biwa Interactions between Nature and People written by Hiroya Kawanabe and published by Springer Nature. This book was released on 2020-08-25 with total page 960 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Although, the first edition had a similar focus, more than five years have passed since its publication and the biological and social circumstances of the lake have drastically changed due to, for example, the further expansion of alien species, the decrease of indigenous species, the progress of integrated watershed management by the Union of the Kansai Government which was established in 2010, the legislation of the Conservation and Restoration Act of Lake Biwa in 2015 and more. The new edition will therefore feature updated and new information on the above and more topics as well as updated and revised data based on the latest research. Inventories of respective taxa, especially those of small animals, are also revised based on the latest studies. Furthermore, this volume covers the characteristics of the biota of this ancient lake, but at the same time, it will also approach it as a ‘culture ancient lake’. Other topics also include water pollution, lakeshore development, the effects of global warming in the past and present, the influence of people, and countermeasures by local and national governments. Moreover, the volume also provides a comprehensive view on the future of Lake Biwa and that of its residents. Miraculously enough, this ancient lake has kept its water quality clear even until today despite the fact of more than 1.4 million people living on its shores. Finally, the book also gives indispensable information to those engaged in improving and conserving water regimes of lakes and other water bodies all over the world and to those interested in the culture and history of Japan. Lake Biwa is not only one of the rarest ancient lakes of the world, but the people’s involvement with the lake also goes back a long way. This is shown in the diverse culture developed in this area and in the various archaeological finds that date back as early as the Jomon Period, nearly 10.000 years ago. Today Lake Biwa fulfills an important role as a water resource by providing domestic, commercial, industrial, and agricultural water for over 14 million residents living around the Lake Biwa-Yodo River drainage basin. This updated volume focuses on the geological and biological features of the lake as well as on the long-term interactions between the people and the lake.