Climate Refugees by
Collectif Argos (Author), Jean Jouzel (Introduction), Hubert Reeves
(Preface)
Climate Refugees presents facts via interviews with key people whose
homes are threatened or already compromised by rising water or
changing weather. Anecdotes and photos give the reader close up
views of nine ground-zero sites under siege by global warming. A
must read.
Heartbreaking stories and pictures documenting
the phenomenon of populations displaced by
climate change--homes, neighborhoods,
livelihoods, and cultures lost.
Collapse
How Societies Choose to
Fail or Succeed by Jared Diamond
From the Publisher "In his
Pulitzer Prize-winning bestseller Guns, Germs, and Steel, Jared
Diamond examined how and why Western civilizations developed the
technologies and immunities that allowed them to dominate much of
the world. Now, Diamond probes the other side of the equation: What
caused some of the great civilizations of the past to collapse into
ruin, and what can we learn from their fates?" As in Guns, Germs,
and Steel, Diamond weaves an all-encompassing global thesis through
a series of historical-cultural narratives. Moving from the
prehistoric Polynesian culture on Easter Island to the formerly
flourishing Native American civilizations of the Anasazi and the
Maya, the doomed medieval Viking colony on Greenland, and finally to
the modern world, Diamond traces a fundamental pattern of
catastrophe, spelling out what happens when we squander our
resources, when we ignore the signals our environment gives us, and
when we reproduce too fast or cut down too many trees. Environmental
damage, climate change, rapid population growth, unstable trade
partners, and pressure from enemies were all factors in the demise
of the doomed societies, but other societies found solutions to
those same problems and persisted.
Crude
World The Violent
Twilight of Oil by
Peter Maas
The catastrophic oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico
has brought new attention to the huge costs of
our oil dependence. In this stunning and
revealing book, Peter Maass examines the social,
political, and environmental impact of petroleum
on the countries that produce it.
Every unhappy oil-producing nation is unhappy in
its own way, but all are touched by the
“resource curse”—the power of oil to exacerbate
existing problems and create new ones. Peter
Maass presents a vivid portrait of the troubled
world oil has created. From Saudi Arabia to
Equatorial Guinea, from Venezuela to Iraq, the
stories of rebels, royalty, middlemen,
environmentalists, indigenous activists, and
CEOs—all deftly and sensitively presented—come
together in this startling and essential account
of the consequences of our addiction to oil.
Review
"Whatever we once thought Nature was--wildness, God, a simple place
free from human thumbprints, or an intricate machinery sustaining
life on Earth--we have now given it a kick that will change it
forever. Humanity has stepped across a threshold. In his
free-ranging and provocative book, Bill McKibben explores the
philosophies and technologies that have brought us here, and he
shows how final a crossing we have made." --James Gleick, author of
Chaos -- Review --This text refers to an out of
print or unavailable edition of this title.
Environment by Peter H. Raven
(Author), Linda R. Berg (Author), David M. Hassenzahl (Author)
From the Back Cover Environment, Third Edition is for the Environmental
Science, Environmental Studies, Natural Resources Conservation, or
Ecology and Mankind courses found in the biology, botany, zoology,
geology, agriculture, geography, or environmental departments. This
book was written to present today's students with the enormous
environmental challenges facing our world in the hope that they will
read, think, discuss, reach conclusions, and act on these issues. Environment, Third Edition is a serious science text with
an appealing writing style that is accessible to students from all
disciplines. Rather than preaching, it presents a balanced,
solutions-oriented approach to environmental problems. It provides
students with the information and critical thinking tools to reach
their own conclusions. Environment is filled with many
new and unique examples to support each subject as it is developed.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this
title.
Environmental Science
Working with the Earth
(Basic Select) by Jr., G. Tyler Miller
(Author)
How
can we sustain our environment? ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE, 11th Edition,
offers bias-free coverage of sustainability, along with the basic
science you need as a foundation for understanding environmental
issues. "How Would You Vote?" questions appear in the text and allow
you to go online to investigate 68 provocative environmental issues
and then cast your votes on the Web where the results are tallied
and you can see how your opinions compare to your classmates'.
You'll also receive online access to Environmental ScienceNow (a
powerful online learning tool built around your individual progress
that gives you a simple pre-test, and then focuses your learning
experience on your studying needs), "How Do I Prepare?" (which gives
you tips for test prep, and a review of basic math and chemistry).
This book and its online learning tools give you everything you need
for success in the course.
Eternal Frontier,
The An Ecological
History of North America and Its Peoples
by Tim Flannery (Author)
From Publishers Weekly
If Nature itself has a nature, it's the desire for balance. In a
fascinating chronicle of our continent's evolution, Flannery shows,
however, that this desire must forever be frustrated. Flannery
starts his tale with the asteroid collision that destroyed the
dinosaurs, ends with the almost equally cataclysmic arrival of
humankind and fills the middle with an engaging survey of invaders
from other lands, wild speciation and an ever-changing climate, all
of which have kept the ecology of North America in a constant state
of flux. We see the rise of horses, camels and dogs (cats are
Eurasian), the rapid extinction of mammoths, mastodons and other
megafauna at the hands of prehistoric man, and the even quicker
extinction of the passenger pigeon and other creatures more
recently. Flannery also spotlights plenty of scientists at work,
most notably one who tries to butcher an elephant as a prehistoric
man would have butchered a mastodon, and another who had the
intestinal fortitude to check whether meat would keep if a carcass
were stored at the bottom of a frigid pond, the earliest of
refrigerators. This material might be dense and academic in
another's hands, but Flannery displays a light touch, a keen
understanding of what will interest general readers and a good sense
of structure, which keeps the book moving, manageable and memorable.
(May)Forecast: Atlantic Monthly clearly intends to build on the
reputation Flannery attained with his previous, highly acclaimed
book, Throwim Way Leg and they may have a winner here. The first
printing will be 60,000 copies, with a $100,000 promotional budget
and a 21-city author tour.
Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this
title.
Despite the array
of groups and organizations working on global warming, we are still
missing a key element: the movement. Along with the hard work of
not-for-profit lobbyists, environmental lawyers, green economists,
sustainability-minded engineers, and forward-thinking entrepreneurs,
it’s going to take the inspired political involvement of millions of
Americans to get our country on track to solving this problem.
Linked up by the Internet and a common vision, we can start to make
change from the local level to the national and global. We hope this
book will give you the skills and inspiration you need to jump into
this growing movement. It’s hard work, but—take it from us—it can be
a lot of fun, too.
In 1968, observing the state of civil rights in America, Rev. Martin
Luther King Jr. said, “We are now faced with the fact, my friends,
that tomorrow is today. We are confronted with the fierce urgency of
now.” Today, we are feeling that fierce urgency again for two
reasons. The first is that scientists are telling us that we are
running out of time even faster than we thought. If we don’t act
within the next few years, we won’t be able to avoid the worst
effects of climate change. The second reason is a more hopeful one.
Recent political changes in Washington DC and around the country
have finally created an opportunity for genuine political action on
global warming. There is no guarantee that this situation will last.
If you’ve been a little paralyzed by the sheer size and horror of
global warming, now is the time to start moving forward, fast.
Fighting for Love in the Century of Extinction How Passion and Politics
Can Stop Global Warming by
Eban Goodstein (Author)
Review
"Goodstein provides a good nonscientific account of the global
climate change problem that is an informative read for nonscience
audiences at all levels." --Choice
"Fighting for Love radiates with Eban Goodstein's genuine awe at the
exquisite interconnectedness of our natural world. It focuses our
attention on our spiritual connections with all forms of life. And
it encourages us to engage in the rough and tumble realities of
American politics. This book moves Goodstein from being a pied-piper
of the climate movement to one of its prophets."--Ross Gelbspan,
author, The Heat Is On and Boiling Point
Fueling Our Future An Introduction to
Sustainable Energy by Robert L. Evans (Author)
One of the most important issues facing humanity today is the
prospect of global climate change, brought about primarily by our
prolific energy use and heavy dependence on fossil fuels. Fueling
Our Future: An Introduction to Sustainable Energy provides a concise
overview of current energy demand and supply patterns. It presents a
balanced view of how our reliance on fossil fuels can be changed
over time so that we have a much more sustainable energy system in
the near future. Written in a non-technical and accessible style,
the book will appeal to a wide range of readers without scientific
backgrounds.
"This is the most accessible of Lovelock's three Gaia
books...Lovelock is a brilliant writer."--New Scientist
"Brightly illustrated with color...on nearly every page, to appeal
to the general reader, armchair ecoterrorist, and science fiction
fan."--Book News, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of
this title.
Hot, Flat, and Crowded Why we need a green
revolution and how it can renew America
by Thomas L. Friedman
Pulitzer Prize-winning New York Times columnist Friedman (The World
Is Flat) is still an unrepentant guru of globalism, despite the
looming economic crisis attributable, in Friendman's view, to the
U.S. having become a "subprime nation that thinks it can just borrow
its way to prosperity." Friedman covers familiar territory (the need
for alternate energy, conservation measures, recycling, energy
efficiency, etc.) as a build-up to his main thesis: the U.S. market
is the "most effective and prolific system for transformational
innovation.... There is only one thing bigger than Mother Nature and
that is Father Profit." While he remains ostensibly a proponent of
the free market, he does not flinch from using the government to
create conditions favorable to investment, such as setting a "floor
price for crude oil or gasoline," and imposing a new gasoline tax
($5-$10 per gallon) in order to make investment in green
technologies attractive to venture capitalists: "America needs an
energy technology bubble just like the information technology
bubble." To make such draconian measures palatable, Friedman poses a
national competition to "outgreen" China, modeled on Kennedy's
proposal to beat the Soviets to the moon, a race that required a
country-wide mobilization comparable to the WWII war effort.
Recognizing the looming threat of "petrodicatorship" and U.S.
dependence on imported oil, this warning salvo presents a stirring
and far-darker vision than Friedman's earlier books.
Ignition
What You Can Do to Fight
Global Warming and Spark a Movement by Jonathan Isham (Editor),
Sissel Waage (Editor), Bill McKibben (Introduction)
From
Booklist
It is one thing for citizens to recognize a problem; it is quite
another for them to compel legislators to actually do something
about it. Like the civil rights and women's campaigns before it, the
climate movement, despite its so-called birth with the first Earth
Day celebration in 1970, is still in its nascency; and like its
forerunners, it, too, must rely heavily on the grassroots efforts of
individuals to pressure government at every level, from local to
international, to create and enforce the laws and regulations
critical to stopping the eco-destruction of the planet. To learn
what works and what doesn't in this basic form of activism, the
editors have assembled a veritable who's who of scholars, student
leaders, and civic officials that includes such environmental heavy
hitters as Bill McKibben, Ted Nordhaus, and Jared Duval. The goal is
to create a persuasive and constructive handbook designed to turn a
groundswell of environmental awareness into a tidal wave of
strategic initiatives specifically formulated for
twenty-first-century issues and opportunities. Haggas, Carol
Plan B 3.0 Mobilizing to Save
Civilization
by Lester R. Brown (Author)
Review
"How to build a more just world and save the planet... We should all
heed Brown's advice." Bill Clinton "This book provides excellent
insights for academics, students and lay readers alike... in
tackling a host of pressing issues in a single book, Plan B 2.0
makes for an eye-opening read." The Times Higher Education
Supplement "Brown is an effective Cassandra. His picture of
climate-change-induced chaos is terrifying and convincing." Andrew
Simms, New Scientist" --This text refers to the
Paperback edition.
Rare Earth Why Complex Life is Uncommon in the Universe by Peter D. Ward
From Library Journal
Renowned paleontologist Ward (Univ. of Washington), who has authored
numerous books and articles, and Brownlee, a noted astronomer who
has also researched extraterrestrial materials, combine their
interests, research, and collaborative thoughts to present a
startling new hypothesis: bacterial life forms may be in many
galaxies, but complex life forms, like those that have evolved on
Earth, are rare in the universe. Ward and Brownlee attribute Earth's
evolutionary achievements to the following critical factors: our
optimal distance from the sun, the positive effects of the moon's
gravity on our climate, plate tectonics and continental drift, the
right types of metals and elements, ample liquid water, maintenance
of the correct amount of internal heat to keep surface temperatures
within a habitable range, and a gaseous planet the size of Jupiter
to shield Earth from catastrophic meteoric bombardment. Arguing that
complex life is a rare event in the universe, this compelling book
magnifies the significance A and tragedy A of species extinction.
Highly recommended for all public and academic libraries. AGloria
Maxwell, Penn Valley Community Coll. Lib., Kansas City
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.--This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
Short
History of Nearly Everything, A by
Bill Bryson (Author)
From Publishers Weekly
As the title suggests, bestselling author Bryson (In a Sunburned
Country) sets out to put his irrepressible stamp on all things under
the sun. As he states at the outset, this is a book about life, the
universe and everything, from the Big Bang to the ascendancy of Homo
sapiens. "This is a book about how it happened," the author writes.
"In particular how we went from there being nothing at all to there
being something, and then how a little of that something turned into
us, and also what happened in between and since." What follows is a
brick of a volume summarizing moments both great and curious in the
history of science, covering already well-trod territory in the
fields of cosmology, astronomy, paleontology, geology, chemistry,
physics and so on. Bryson relies on some of the best material in the
history of science to have come out in recent years. This is great
for Bryson fans, who can encounter this material in its barest
essence with the bonus of having it served up in Bryson's
distinctive voice. But readers in the field will already have
studied this information more in-depth in the originals and may find
themselves questioning the point of a breakneck tour of the sciences
that contributes nothing novel. Nevertheless, to read Bryson is to
travel with a memoirist gifted with wry observation and keen insight
that shed new light on things we mistake for commonplace. To
accompany the author as he travels with the likes of Charles Darwin
on the Beagle, Albert Einstein or Isaac Newton is a trip worth
taking for most readers.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This
text refers to the Hardcover edition.
Silent Spring (Special Edition) by
Rachel Carson (Author)
From The WomanSource Catalog & Review: Tools for Connecting the
Community for Women; review by SH
In 1960, a woman noticed the birds had stopped singing and their
population had severely decreased in her neighborhood. She summoned
a friend, biologist/writer Rachel Carson, to investigate this
wildlife mystery. Subsequently, in 1962, Rachel's discoveries and
efforts were brought to the forefront in her book, Silent Spring,
which revealed the atrocities of pesticide poisoning. The
over-spraying of DDT, dieldrin and other pest killers was poisoning
the entire world of living things, humanity included. Rachel's work
not only left chemical companies casting about trying to discredit
her findings, but, most importantly, prompted an enormous
environmental movement which continues today. --This text refers
to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Earth
Ethics Institute •
An Earth Literacy Resource Center Serving MDC Administrators, Faculty,
Staff, and Students, as well as the South Florida Community
Miami Dade College
• 300 N.E. 2nd Avenue, Room 3506-11,
Miami, FL 33132-2204
• t: 305-237-3796
• f: 305-237-7724
