As an issue, the environment is complicated. First, it is layered. Secondly, it is multifaceted. As a result, political scientist John A. Duerk has assembled an interdisciplinary anthology composed of accessible studies to generate conversations that will yield greater understanding of the many environmental challenges that we face. The layers explored herein are philosophy, politics, and policy. Philosophy concerns the ideas that inform our values. Politics involves the conflicts that emerge amid the conditions we must navigate. Lastly, policy encompasses how public and private actors respond to everything from regulation of greenhouse gas emissions to changes in consumer attitudes. Regarding the different facets, this work is intended to be an entry point for anyone who would like to learn more about issues such as the land ethic, the environmental impact of clothing production, climate change, the placement of bike lanes in cities, water usage, and artist depictions of the wilderness. Let the conversations begin...

Joe "Duff" McBride's new book, A Tale of Two Gimps: "Such Is Life," tells the eye-opening and, at times, sidesplitting story of his misadventures as a self-titled "gimp"--the result of a car accident as a teenage boy that left him physically disabled, but with his sense of humor fully intact. His witty perspective on life, especially the difficulties of his new situation, is shared and even amplified by his friendship with "Mouse," another teenage boy who finds himself in a similar predicament. When the two teens become acquainted at a rehabilitation hospital in Philadelphia, they are both also becoming acquainted with the tremendous challenges forced upon them by their spinal cord injuries. These problems are more than just the physical handicaps, but the emotional and psychological ones as well, as the two boys manage to keep the spirits of others high as well as their own, at the same time they struggle daily with the kinds of basic activities that most people take for granted. Even thought the book is intended to entertain the reader with unblinking honesty and biting humor, it also presents a remarkable account of two young men doing the best they can. A Tale of Two Gimps is a unique work, offering a glimpse into a world many can't imagine. It is sad, touching, hilarious, filled with hope, disgusting, shocking, crude and raw. Just like life. It shows how, for these two indomitable young men, 'it was the worst of circumstances, and it was the best of circumstances.'

As an issue, the environment is complicated. First, it is layered. Secondly, it is multifaceted. As a result, political scientist John A. Duerk has assembled an interdisciplinary anthology composed of accessible studies to generate conversations that will yield greater understanding of the many environmental challenges that we face. The layers explored herein are philosophy, politics, and policy. Philosophy concerns the ideas that inform our values. Politics involves the conflicts that emerge amid the conditions we must navigate. Lastly, policy encompasses how public and private actors respond to everything from regulation of greenhouse gas emissions to changes in consumer attitudes. Regarding the different facets, this work is intended to be an entry point for anyone who would like to learn more about issues such as the land ethic, the environmental impact of clothing production, climate change, the placement of bike lanes in cities, water usage, and artist depictions of the wilderness. Let the conversations begin...