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Intimate in size yet quietly breathtaking in scope, this graceful
gift book will forever change how you think, and how you feel,
about trees. In poetically sparse scientific observations, renowned
conservation biologist Gretchen Daily narrates the evolution,
impact, and natural wonder of trees. Alongside photographs by Chuck
Katz, the text and images form a quiet and moving meditation on The
Power of Trees.
Twenty-six duotone black and white photographs illustrate the
development of trees: how trunks were formed, what tree rings tell
us about human societies, and how trees define the future of
humanity. Pictures of trees threading through the landscape -
dotting mountainsides, braiding along the sides of glassine rivers
- bear witness to the lyrical force and clarity of Daily's
observations.
Recreating the authors' hike together through the landscape of the
Skagit River in Washington State, the balletic movement between
Daily's commentary and Katz's vision reaches out to readers,
inviting them to enjoy the landscape through a scientific
understanding of trees. At once emotional and intellectual, The
Power of Trees is the first collection of nature photographs that
invites the reader to not only delight in the gorgeous play between
light and shadow, but also the fascinating natural mechanisms that
create such striking natural beauty.
An ecologist by training, Gretchen Daily is an internationally
acclaimed conservancy advocate and scholar. Her role as a National
Trustee for The Nature Conservancy will feature prominently in the
national marketing campaign to bridge the gap between scientific
educators and the general nature reader.
Life itself as well as the entire human economy depends on goods
and services provided by earth's natural systems. The processes of
cleansing, recycling, and renewal, along with goods such as
seafood, forage, and timber, are worth many trillions of dollars
annually, and nothing could live without them. Yet growing human
impacts on the environment are profoundly disrupting the
functioning of natural systems and imperiling the delivery of these
services."Nature's Services" brings together world-renowned
scientists from a variety of disciplines to examine the character
and value of ecosystem services, the damage that has been done to
them, and the consequent implications for human society.
Contributors including Paul R. Ehrlich, Donald Kennedy, Pamela A.
Matson, Robert Costanza, Gary Paul Nabhan, Jane Lubchenco, Sandra
Postel, and Norman Myers present a detailed synthesis of our
current understanding of a suite of ecosystem services and a
preliminary assessment of their economic value. Chapters consider:
major services including climate regulation, soil fertility,
pollination, and pest control philosophical and economic issues of
valuation case studies of specific ecosystems and services
implication of recent findings and steps that must be taken to
address the most pressing concerns "Nature's Services" represents
one of the first efforts by scientists to provide an overview of
the many benefits and services that nature offers to people and the
extent to which we are all vitally dependent on those services. The
book enhances our understanding of the value of the natural systems
that surround us and can play an essential role in encouraging
greater efforts to protect the earth's basiclife-support systems
before it is too late.
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