Although anthropologists and cultural geographers have explored "place" in various senses, little cross-cultural examination of "kinds of place," or ecotopes, has been presented from an ethno-ecological perspective. In this volume, indigenous and local understandings of landscape are investigated in order to better understand how human communities relate to their terrestrial and aquatic resources. The contributors go beyond the traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) literature and offer valuable insights on ecology and on land and resources management, emphasizing the perception of landscape above the level of species and their folk classification. Focusing on the ways traditional people perceive and manage land and biotic resources within diverse regional and cultural settings, the contributors address theoretical issues and present case studies from North America, Mexico, Amazonia, tropical Asia, Africa and Europe.

" The editors] have brought together many of the most innovative thinkers and field workers to ponder how local communities make sense of the landscapes in which they live, and upon which they depend. This volume is rich with insights about how cultures perceive the spaces, landforms and habitats which nourish them." . Gary Paul Nabhan, PhD., author, Singing the Turtles to Sea and Cultures of Habitat

"This landmark volume is bound to become a theoretical touchstone and wellspring for assessing the unity and diversity of human conceptualizations of landscape. It deftly combines a rigorous review of cross-cultural theories of landscape perception and classification with richly-detailed ethnographic examples of landscape ethnoecology." . Thomas F. Thornton, School of Geography and Environment, University of Oxford

Although anthropologists and cultural geographers have explored "place" in various senses, little cross-cultural examination of "kinds of place," or ecotopes, has been presented from an ethno-ecological perspective. In this volume, indigenous and local understandings of landscape are investigated in order to better understand how human communities relate to their terrestrial and aquatic resources. The contributors go beyond the traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) literature and offer valuable insights on ecology and on land and resources management, emphasizing the perception of landscape above the level of species and their folk classification. Focusing on the ways traditional people perceive and manage land and biotic resources within diverse regional and cultural settings, the contributors address theoretical issues and present case studies from North America, Mexico, Amazonia, tropical Asia, Africa and Europe.

Leslie Main Johnson is Associate Professor in the Centre for Work and Community Studies and the Centre for Integrated Studies, Athabasca University, Alberta, Canada. Her publications include Trails of Story, Traveller's Path: Reflections on Ethnoecology and Landscape (Athabasca University Press, 2009) and articles in Human Ecology, Journal of Ethnobiology, Ecology of Food and Nutrition, Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine, and Botany.

Eugene S. Hunn is Professor Emeritus in the Department of Anthropology at the University of Washington, Seattle. His books include Tzeltal Folk Zoology: The Classification of Discontinuities in Nature (Academic Press, 1977), Resource Managers: North American and Australian Hunter-Gatherers, co-edited with N. M. Williams (Westview, 1981), Nch'i-Wana, 'The Big River' Mid-Columbia Indians and their Land (University of Washington Press, 1990), and A Zapotec Natural History: Trees, Herbs, and Flowers, Birds, Beasts, and Bugs in the Life of San Juan Gbee (University of Arizona Press, 2008)."

Trail of Story, Traveller's Path examines the meaning of landscape, drawn from Leslie Main Johnson's rich experience with diverse environments and peoples, including the Gitksan and Witsuwit'en of northwestern British Columbia, the Kaska Dene of the southern Yukon, and the Gwich'in of the Mackenzie Delta. With passion and conviction, Johnson maintains that our response to our environment shapes our culture, determines our lifestyle, defines our identity, and sets the tone for our relationships and economies. She documents the landscape and contrasts the ecological relationships with land of First Nations peoples to those of non-indigenous scientists. The result is an absorbing study of local knowledge of place and a broad exploration of the meaning of landscape.

"I listened to my mum, my dad, my gramma, that is why I am still here. That is how you stay alive." -Mida Donnessey Wisdom Engaged demonstrates how traditional knowledge, Indigenous approaches to healing, and the insights of Western bio-medicine can complement each other when all voices are heard in a collaborative effort to address changes to Indigenous communities' well-being. In this collection, voices of Elders, healers, physicians, and scholars are gathered in an attempt to find viable ways to move forward while facing new challenges. Bringing these varied voices together provides a critical conversation about the nature of medicine; a demonstration of ethical commitment; and an example of building successful community relationships. Contributors: Alestine Andre, Janelle Marie Baker, Robert Beaulieu, Della M. Cheney, Stakawas, Katsawa, Mida Donnessey, Mabel English, Christopher Fletcher, Fort McKay Berry Group, Annie B. Gordon, Celina Harpe-Cooper, Inuvialuit Regional Corporation, Leslie Main Johnson, Thea Luig, Art Mathews, Sim'oogit T'enim Gyet, Linda G. McDonald, Ruby E. Morgan, Bernice Neyelle, Morris Neyelle, Keiichi Omura, Mary Teya, Nancy J. Turner, Walter Vanast, Darlene Vegh.

Tools of the Trade: Methods, Techniques and Innovative Approaches in Archaeology presents a collection of academic papers from the 2005 Chacmool archaeological conference, which includes a wide range of contributions from international archaeologists, senior professors, and students alike. Each chapter focuses on the discussion and application of unique and innovative 'tools' for archaeological analysis and interpretation, including micro- and macro-botanical analysis, experimental study, off-site survey, lithic use-wear, ceramic petrography, DNA analysis, chaA (R)ne opA (c)ratoire, space syntax, and Geographic Information Systems. As a collective volume, Tools of the Trade: Methods, Techniques and Innovative Approaches in Archaeology also covers an impressive diversity of geographic regions and time periods, such as Precolumbian Mesoamerica, Plio-Pleistocene Africa, prehistoric and historic North America, and ancient Polynesia. Finally, this volume provides a somewhat introspective look at the origins of tool use, technological development, and the means by which we have become the only species to ask the questions: What does it mean to be us and how can we find out? With contributions by: Kristen Anderson Tobin C. Bottman Ryan T. Brady Susan Cachel Leslie G. Cecil Ruth Conroy Dalton Eugene M.Gryba Leslie Main Johnson Ciler Kirsan Purple Kumai E.G. Langemann Amber E. MacKenzie Go Matsumoto Maria Victoria Monsalve Jose Roberto Pellini Meaghan M. Peuramaki-Brown Jason W. Roe Michael J. Shott Nicholas Waber Joshua J. Wells Jayne Wilkins Pamela R. Willoughby D.Y. Yang Tobin C. Bottman Ryan T. Brady Susan Cachel Leslie G. Cecil Ruth Conroy Dalton Eugene M. Gryba Leslie Main Johnson Ciler Kirsan Purple Kumai E. Gwyn Langemann Amber E. MacKenzie Go Matsumoto Maria Victoria Monsalve Jose Roberto Pellini Meaghan M. Peuramaki-Brown Jason Roe Michael J. Shott Nicholas Waber Joshua J. Wells Pamela R. Willoughby Dongya Y. Yang