Most Americans agree that our heritage--both natural and cultural--should be protected. Then why does development run rampant, aided--rather than limited--by government inaction? Tom King has been a participant in and observer of this system for decades, as a government worker, heritage consultant, and advocate for local communities. In this hard-hitting critique of the heritage-industrial complex, King points the finger at watchdogs who instead serve as advocates, unintelligible (often contradictory) regulations, disinterested government employees and power-seeking agencies, all of whom conspire to keep our heritage unprotected. His solution to this crisis will be uncomfortable to many in power, but may help save more of our cultural and natural treasures.

In Eating the Ocean Elspeth Probyn investigates the profound importance of the ocean and the future of fish and human entanglement. On her ethnographic journey around the world's oceans and fisheries, she finds that the ocean is being simplified in a food politics that is overwhelmingly land based and preoccupied with buzzwords like "local" and "sustainable." Developing a conceptual tack that combines critical analysis and embodied ethnography, she dives into the lucrative and endangered bluefin tuna market, the gendered politics of "sustainability," the ghoulish business of producing fish meal and fish oil for animals and humans, and the long history of encounters between humans and oysters. Seeing the ocean as the site of the entanglement of multiple species-which are all implicated in the interactions of technology, culture, politics, and the market-enables us to think about ways to develop a reflexive ethics of taste and place based in the realization that we cannot escape the food politics of the human-fish relationship.

This book is focused on the marine mammalian groups the Otariidae and the Odobenidae, otherwise known as fur seals, sea lions and the walrus. In 30 chapters, more than 60 authors from 30 institutions and 13 nationalities, discuss a broad suite of topics from maternal care and mating behavior, through play, cognition and personality, to adaptation to life in the Anthropocene. The authors explore the behaviors that have allowed these semi-aquatic mammals to thrive in the marine realm. Many populations have recovered following historical decimation, with interesting evolutionary consequences which are explored. Detailed, selected, individual species descriptions are also provided, showcasing the behavioral diversity of this engaging, adaptive and highly successful group of marine mammals.

Blood Moon tells the tale of the extraordinary efforts to rescue rhinos from high-poaching zones in South Africa and save the species in secret locations in Botswana. Involving the help of military personnel, planes, helicopters, and private-sector gunboats, this is an action-packed story. The breathtaking images and riveting prose not only capture the never-before-seen rescue of rhinos, but also transcend wildlife publishing to celebrate the life of these elusive animals and the vanishing habitats of Africa. This book takes wildlife imagery to a new level. Here, the striking black-and-white photography is paired with the use of red, which has always been symbolic of wealth in the East, the largest market for rhino horns. Blood Moon is an inspiring demonstration of what humanity can do if we try to turn back extinction.

The number of protected areas has risen in recent years to over 110,000 covering over 20 million square kilometres, over 12% per cent of the planet's surface. How has this growth been achieved and why was so much of it undertaken in the last 15 years? What is the relationship between the massive rise in conservation initiatives, our economic system and corporate interests? What are the implications for the millions of people who live in or depend on protected areas? This groundbreaking volume is the first comprehensive examination of the rise of protected areas and their current social and economic position in our world. It examines the social impacts of protected areas, the conflicts that surround them, the alternatives to them and the conceptual categories they impose.The book explores key debates on devolution, participation and democracy; the role and uniqueness of indigenous peoples and other local communities; institutions and resource management; hegemony, myth and symbolic power in conservation success stories; tourism, poverty and conservation; and the transformation of social and material relations which community conservation entails. For conservation practitioners and protected area professionals not accustomed to criticisms of their work, or students new to this complex field, the book will provide an understanding of the history and current state of affairs in the rise of protected areas; introduce the concepts, theories and writers on which critiques of conservation have been built and provide the means by which practitioners can understand problems with which they are wrestling. For advanced researchers the book will present a critique of the current debates on protectedareas and provide a host of jumping off points for an array of research avenues.

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.

This book describes in fascinating detail the wildlife, wild places and wild personalities that occupied Angola’s conservation landscape through four decades of war and a decade of peace. Intrigues, assassinations, corruption, greed and incompetence ? during the colonial era, through the horrific war and most especially throughout the crony-capitalist kleptocracy of President Jose Eduardo dos Santos ? have resulted in the extinction of most of its formerly abundant wildlife populations and the decay and erosion of a once endless Eden. This is the first book to integrate the political, economic and environmental threads that account for the post-colonial tragedy of one of Africa’s most biologically diverse countries. A corrupt government has robbed the country of its vast oil and diamond wealth, of its environmental health, of its morality and of its soul. It was not always so. The author was appointed ecologist to Angola’s National Parks in 1971. But the vast open spaces, peaceful stillness and tropical luxuriance that he found during the four years they spent exploring and developing the country’s wildlife reserves was not to last. The powder keg of anger against centuries of colonial exploitation ? of slavery, of forced labour and of an abusive system of penal settlement ? could not be contained. Bloody nationalist uprisings led to the abandonment of Angola by Portugal and the transition from random guerrilla skirmishes with a colonial army into a brutal civil war that cost over one million lives. Despite its scarred history, the author believes the country can still rebuild its national parks and save much of its wildlife and wilderness. But this can only happen if the current ageing autocracy makes space for a new generation of Angolan conservationists.

This book has a broad scope and provides a comprehensive overview of the most up-to-date knowledge of the plant genus Baccharis. The book is organized into four major topics encompassing the evolution, ecology, chemistry, as well as environmental and medical applications of the genus. This publication is a major reference for an audience of practising researchers, academics, PhD students, and other scientists in a wide-ranging collection of fields, from Sociology to Medicine to bioeconomy.

This book analyzes empirical data from three specific Regional Fisheries Management Organizations (RFMOs) designed to establish rules for the conservation and management of fish stocks in the ocean, in order to assess their effectiveness in converting science into policy for the recovery and maintenance of fishery populations. The three RFMOs discussed are the CCAMLR (Convention for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources), the ICCAT (International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas) and the CCSBT (Commission for the Conservation of Southern Bluefin Tuna). The book seeks to understand when governments choose to listen to science, and establishes a framework to examine the institutional designs currently in place to accommodate RFMO policy suggestions and the conditions under which they are implemented successfully. The study will be of interest to academics and professionals broadly interested in global environmental governance and international relations, and will specifically appeal to policymakers, conservationists, and environmental researchers interested in fishery management and policy at the global and regional scale. Goncalves provides an accessible and comprehensive analysis of RMFOs. She offers valuable insights into the role of science and politics in shaping sustainable fisheries policies for the open oceans. ---Peter M Haas, Professor Department of Political Science, University of Massachusetts Amherst As envisaged by the UN Decade of Ocean proclamation, this book is an important and sincere effort, hopefully to be accompanied by many others to come during this promising decade, that will help to build a common framework to ensure that ocean science can support countries and the international community in creating improved conditions for the sustainable development of our cherished Ocean. ---Fabio H. Hazin - Professor at Federal Rural University of Pernambuco, Brazil

In This Together explores how we can harness our social networks to make a real impact fighting the climate crisis. Against notions of the lone environmental crusader, Marianne E. Krasny shows us the power of "network climate action"-the idea that our own ordinary acts can influence and inspire those close to us. Through this spread of climate-conscious practices, our individual actions become collective ones that can eventually effect widespread change. Weaving examples of everyday climate-forward initiatives in with insights on behavioral and structural change, Krasny demonstrates how we can scale up the impact of our efforts through leveraging our community connections. Whether by inviting family, friends, or colleagues to a plant-rich meal or by becoming activists at climate nonprofits, we can forge the social norms and shared identities that can lead to change. With easy-to-follow dos and don'ts, In This Together shows us a practical and hopeful way forward into our shared future.

This stunningly beautiful and informative book celebrates the Arctic, one of the last great wildernesses on the planet; a place where animals have survived for thousands of years protected only by fur and feathers. Humans also survive in the Arctic, but only those who have adjusted to the climate over millennia and who clad themselves in the skins of the animals they hunt. For the casual visitor, this is a place where survival for any extended period requires taking advantage of the best that modern technology can offer. But the rewards are immense: the Arctic can be harsh, but it is also stunningly beautiful - days during which the sun glints on ice, nights illuminated by the ethereal dancing light of the aurora and with a glimpse of some of the most remarkable animals on the planet. Many travel to the Arctic to see the animals, the land mammals, the whales and seals, and the birds. However, the Arctic also has an absorbing human history. The origins of the Inuit in North America, and the array of Eurasian northern peoples, from the Sami of Scandinavia to the Yuppik hunters from Asia's Bering Sea coast, are still debated, while the discovery, just a year or so ago, of the second ship of Franklin's doomed expedition to find the North-West Passage has reopened the arguments over exactly what did happen to more than 100 Royal Navy seamen. The Arctic provides not only an understanding of the formation of the Arctic but the science of snow and ice including the phenomena of aurora and parhelia, and the way in which the area's wildlife contends with the chilling harshness of its climate. This fascinating, magnificent area is now under severe threat. Global warming is causing the sea ice to shrink, in both area and volume. This allows easier access to its probable resources and, ironically, this access merely adds to the threats to the area and its wildlife. Due to feedback mechanisms, the Arctic warms about twice as fast as the Earth. The area therefore acts in the way that canaries once acted in coal mines, giving an early warning of danger: melting sea ice not only threatens the local wildlife but indicates the threat to the Earth as a whole. This is a truly remarkable book encompassing the diverse facets of this magnificent area and its vital importance as an indicator of the planet's health.

How can we save our planet and survive the 21st century? How can you argue with deniers? How can we create positive change in the midst of the climate crisis?

Professor Mark Maslin has the key facts that we need to protect our future.

Global awareness of climate change is growing rapidly. Science has proven that our planet and species are facing a massive environmental crisis. How to Save Our Planet is a call to action, guaranteed to equip everyone with the knowledge needed to make change. Be under no illusion the challenges of the twenty-first century are immense. We need to deal with: climate change, environmental destruction, global poverty and ensure everyone's security.

How to Save Our Planet is your handbook of how we together can save our precious planet. From the history of our planet and species, to the potential of individuals and our power to create a better future, Maslin inspires optimism in these bleak times.

We stand at the precipice. The future of our planet is in our hands. It's time to face the facts and save our planet from, and for, ourselves.

A lyrical celebration of birdsong, and the rekindling of a deep passion for nature. 'At this time of year, blackbirds never simply fly: instead, like reluctantly retired officers, they're always "on manoeuvres", and it's easy to see from their constant agitation that for them every flower bed is a bunker, every shed a redoubt and every hedge-bottom a potential place of ambush' As the world went silent in lockdown, something else happened; for the first time, many of us started becoming more aware of the spring sounds of the birds around us. Birdsong in a Time of Silence is a lyrical, uplifting reflection on these sounds and what they mean to us. From a portrait of the blackbird - most prominent and articulate of the early spring singers - to explorations of how birds sing, the science behind their choice of song and nest-sites, and the varied meanings that people have brought to and taken from birdsong, this book ultimately shows that natural history and human history cannot be separated. It is the story of a collective reawakening brought on by the strangest of springs.

"The powerful origin story of one of Yellowstone's greatest and most famous wolves." -Washington Post "[The Rise of Wolf 8] is a goldmine for information on all aspects of wolf behavior and clearly shows they are clever, smart, and emotional beings." -Marc Bekoff, Psychology Today Yellowstone National Park was once home to an abundance of wild wolves-but park rangers killed the last of their kind in the 1920s. Decades later, the rangers brought them back, with the first wolves arriving from Canada in 1995. This is the incredible true story of one of those wolves. Wolf 8 struggles at first-he is smaller than the other pups, and often bullied-but soon he bonds with an alpha female whose mate was shot. An unusually young alpha male, barely a teenager in human years, Wolf 8 rises to the occasion, hunting skillfully, and even defending his family from the wolf who killed his father. But soon he faces a new opponent: his adopted son, who mates with a violent alpha female. Can Wolf 8 protect his valley without harming his protege? Authored by a renowned wolf researcher and gifted storyteller, The Rise of Wolf 8 marks the beginning of The Alpha Wolves of Yellowstone series, which will transform our view of wolves forever.

Wrenched from the Land features sixteen interviews with some of the most iconic eco-warriors to put themselves on the line for their beliefs. The activists featured in this book are inspired by the late Edward Abbey, one of America's uncompromising and irascible defenders of wilderness. The book includes interviews with Terry Tempest Williams, the late Charles Bowden, Sea Shepherd Society founder Paul Watson, Jack Loeffler, Doug Peacock, Ingrid Eisenstadter, John De Puy, Bob Lippman, Derrick Jensen, Shonto Begay, Ken Sanders, Ken Sleight, the late Katie Lee, Executive Director of the Center for Biological Diversity Kieran Suckling, Earth First! cofounder Dave Foreman, and climate activist Tim DeChristopher. Some were among Abbey's closest friends and were the inspiration for his irreverent comedic masterpiece, The Monkey Wrench Gang. Here are mesmerizing stories about how they adapted Abbey's monkeywrenching ideas into a radical blueprint for direct action. Their achievements--as ingenious and fierce as the individuals in this book--will encourage readers to discover their own pathways toward positive change.

This book aims to quantify and discuss how societies have directly and indirectly benefited from ecosystem services in Patagonia; not only in terms of provisioning and cultural services, but also regulating and supporting services. Patagonia, a region that stretches across two countries (ca. 10% in Chile and 90% in Argentina), is home to some of the most extensive wilderness areas on our planet. Natural grasslands comprise almost 30% of the Americas, including the Patagonian steppe, while Patagonian southern temperate forests are important for carbon sequestration and storage, play a pivotal role in water regulation, and have become widely recognized for their ecotourism value. However, profound changes are now underway that could affect key ecosystem functions and ultimately human well-being. In this context, one major challenge we face in Patagonia is that ecosystem services are often ignored in economic markets, government policies and land management practices. The book explores the synergies and trade-offs between conservation and economic development as natural landscapes and seascapes continue to degrade in Patagonia. Historically, economic markets have largely focused on the provisioning services (forest products, livestock) while neglecting the interdependent roles of regulating services (erosion and climate control), supporting services (nutrient cycling) and cultural services (recreation, local identity, tourism). Therefore, the present work focuses on ecosystem functions and ecosystem services, as well as on trends in biodiversity and the interactions between natural environments and land-use activities throughout Patagonia.

Of the world's seven continents, Asia is the largest. Its physical landscapes, political units, and ethnic groups are both wide-ranging and many. Southwest, South and Middle Asia are highly populated regions which, as a whole, cover an extremely large area of varied geography. In total, this domain is unique in its plant diversity and large vegetation zones with different communities and biomes. It is rich in endemics, with specific and intraspecific diversity of fruit trees and medicinal plants, including a number of rare, high value, species. At the same time, much of the land in the region is too dry or too rugged, with many geographical extremes. Overgrazing, oil and mineral extraction, and poaching are the major threats in the area. This two-volume project focuses on the dynamic biodiversity of the region with in-depth analysis on phytosociology, plants, animals and agroecology. There are also chapters that explore new applications as well as approaches to overcome problems associated with climate change. Much of the research and analysis are presented here for the first time. We believe this work is a valuable resource for professionals and researchers working in the fields of plant diversity and vegetation, animal diversity and animal populations, and geo-diversity and sustainable land use, among others. The first volume guides our readers to West Asia and the Caucasus region, while volume two focuses on issues unique to South and Middle Asia.

How do you record the wildlife in a wood? This book explains ways to record the flora and fauna found in woodland and outlines the sources you can use to find out more about the history and management of an area. Whether you have just a few hours, or a few years, there are examples that you can follow to find out more about this important habitat. Woods include some of the richest terrestrial wildlife sites in Britain, but some are under threat and many are neglected, such that they are not as rich as they might be. If we are to protect them or increase their diversity we need first to know what species they contain, how they have come to be as they are, to understand how they fit into the wider landscape. Conservation surveys are the bedrock on which subsequent protection and management action is based. There is not one method that will be right for all situations and needs, so the methods discussed range from what one can find out online, to what can be seen on a general walk round a wood, to the insights that can come from more detailed survey and monitoring approaches. Fast-evolving techniques such as eDNA surveys and the use of LiDAR are touched on.

Very little is known about the issue of wildlife conservation within China. Even China specialists get a meager ration of stories about pandas giving birth in zoos, or poachers in some remote setting being apprehended. But what does the future hold for China's wildlife? In this thoughtful work the leading U.S. expert on wildlife projects in Western China presents a multi-faceted assessment of the topic. Richard B. Harris draws on twenty years of experience working in China, and incorporates perspectives ranging from biology through Chinese history and tradition, to interpret wildlife conservation issues in a cultural context. In non-technical language, Harris shows that, particularly in its vast western sections where most species of wildlife still have a chance to survive, China has adopted a strongly preservationist, "hands-off" approach to wildlife without confronting the larger and more difficult problem of habitat loss. This policy treats wildlife conservation as a strictly technical problem - and thus prioritizes captive breeding to meet the demand for animal products - while ignoring the manifold cultural, social, and economic dimensions that truly dictate how wild animals will fare in their interaction with the physical and human environments. The author concludes that any successes this policy achieves will be temporary.

In a time of climate change, environmental degradation, and social injustice, the question of the value and purpose of human life has become urgent. What are the grounds for hope in a wounded world? This Sacred Life gives a deep philosophical and religious articulation of humanity's identity and vocation by rooting people in a symbiotic, meshwork world that is saturated with sacred gifts. The benefits of artificial intelligence and genetic enhancement notwithstanding, Norman Wirzba shows how an account of humans as interdependent and vulnerable creatures orients people to be a creative, healing presence in a world punctuated by wounds. He argues that the commodification of places and creatures needs to be resisted so that all life can be cherished and celebrated. Humanity's fundamental vocation is to bear witness to God's love for creaturely life, and to commit to the construction of a hospitable and beautiful world.

Most ecological risk assessments consider the risk to individual organisms or organism-level attributes. From a management perspective, however, risks to population-level attributes and processes are often more relevant. Despite many published calls for population risk assessment and the abundance of available scientific research and technical tools assessing risks to populations, risk assessors worldwide still have difficulty determining how population level considerations can be integrated into environmental decision-making. Population-Level Ecological Risk Assessment establishes a framework for goals, methods, and data needs for different assessment applications and for integrating population-level risk assessment into risk management decisions. Beginning with a summary of legal, regulatory, business, and other contexts, the book presents population-level ecological risk assessment as an internationally recognized, science-based tool and offers specific recommendations for using this tool to support environmental management decisions. It gives clear, explicit, operational population assessment definitions and explains the relevance of density dependence, genetics, and spatial considerations, as well as applicable lessons from conservation biology and natural resource management. The authors provide a "tool box" of empirical and modeling methods and describe the general approaches, assumptions, data requirements, strengths, and limitations of each method. They establish a working foundation for designing and conducting population-level ecological risk assessments consistent with North American, European, and Japanese risk management approaches. The book concludes by highlighting key considerations needed to improve the scientific quality and interpretation of assessments. Detailed appendices include examples of population-level assessment approaches applicable to specific environmental management contexts, a modeling case study, and a supplemental reading list.

The Systems Ecology Paradigm (SEP) incorporates humans as integral parts of ecosystems and emphasizes issues that have significant societal relevance such as grazing land, forestland, and agricultural ecosystem management, biodiversity and global change impacts. Accomplishing this societally relevant research requires cutting-edge basic and applied research. This book focuses on environmental and natural resource challenges confronting local to global societies for which the SEP methodology must be utilized for resolution. Key elements of SEP are a holistic perspective of ecological/social systems, systems thinking, and the ecosystem approach applied to real world, complex environmental and natural resource problems. The SEP and ecosystem approaches force scientific emphasis to be placed on collaborations with social scientists and behavioral, learning, and marketing professionals. The SEP has given environmental scientists, decision makers, citizen stakeholders, and land and water managers a powerful set of tools to analyse, integrate knowledge, and propose adoption of solutions to important local to global problems.

Global challenges ranging from climate change and ecological regime shifts to refugee crises and post-national territorial claims are rapidly moving ecosystem thresholds and altering the social fabric of societies worldwide. This book addresses the vital question of how to navigate the contested forces of stability and change in a world shaped by multiple interconnected global challenges. It proposes that senses of place is a vital concept for supporting individual and social processes for navigating these contested forces and encourages scholars to rethink how to theorise and conceptualise changes in senses of place in the face of global challenges. It also makes the case that our concepts of sense of place need to be revisited, given that our experiences of place are changing. This book is essential reading for those seeking a new understanding of the multiple and shifting experiences of place.