The Logic of Environmentalism: Anthropology, Ecology and Postcoloniality
Vassos Argyrou
New York: Berghahn Books, 2005
Call# GF21 .A74 2005

From Berghahn Books:

“Although modernity’s understanding of nature and culture has now been superseded by that of environmentalism, the power to define the meaning of both, and hence the meaning of the world itself, remains in the same (Western) hands. This bold argument is at the center of this provocative book that challenges the widespread assumption that environmentalism reflects a radical departure from modernity. Our perception of nature may have changed, the author maintains, but environmentalism remains a thoroughly modernist project. It reproduces the cultural logic of modernity, a logic that finds meaning in unity and therefore strives to efface difference, and to reconfirm the position of the West as the source of all legitimate signification.”

Wildlife Spectacles
Patricio Robles Gil, Russell A. Mittermeier, et al.
Agrupación Sierra Madre: Conservation International, 2003
Call# QL82 .W57 2003

From University of Chicago Press:

“Thousands of migratory birds’ wings silhouetted against a setting sun; vivid monarch butterflies draped over forest grove branches as living leaves of autumn hue: the mass gatherings of animal species are a powerful and all-too-rare sight. Wildlife Spectacles captures here in brilliant full-color photographs the force and mystery of these exceptional assemblages that have inspired and fascinated us throughout history.

The volume features thirty-six chapters written by some of the world’s most distinguished biodiversity scientists that engagingly explain the history, geographic distribution, and daily functions of various animal species, as well as the conservation efforts employed today to ensure their survival. The compelling core of the volume, however, lies in the wealth of beautiful and breathtaking images that documents these vast and magnificent gatherings and the raw power of the animals’ daily fight for survival. From thousands of penguins congregating on a rocky Antarctic beach to the brutal attack of a wildebeest by a Nile crocodile, the visual sequences here are a moving testament to the dramatic wonder of the natural world.

Continuing the successful tradition of Megadiversity, Hotspots, and Wilderness, Wildlife Spectacles presents an accessible and visually stunning examination of critical conservation issues today.”

Positive Ecology: sustainability and the ‘good life’
Gerald Schmidt
Aldershot, Hants, England: Ashgate, 2005
Call# GF21 .S356 2005

From Ashgate:

” Until recently, there has been a widespread view that we must give up amenities of modern life in order to achieve environmental sustainability. While newspapers and other popular media tend to focus on the negative aspects of environmental change, this volume examines the alternative notion of ‘positive ecology’. Initially gleaned from the orientation of ‘positive psychology’, this argues that environmental science has been all too focused on analysing negative ‘pathologies’ and forgetting to provide more positive analysis and activism for sustainability.

Bringing together a wide range of ‘positive ecology’ orientated case studies for the first time, the book discusses the wider contexts of how humanity is dependent on a functioning, biodiverse ecosphere of which we are only one part. It provides an original and previously undervalued approach to sustainability, and suggests that work towards sustainability is not only a necessity for our children’s future, but necessary, sensible and meaningful in the present.”

Effects of Urbanization on Stream Ecosystems
Larry R. Brown, ed.
Bethesda, Md. : American Fisheries Society, 2005
Call# QH541.5 .S7 E38 2005

American Fisheries Society:

“As human populations continue to grow, the effects of urbanization on streams and other habitats will become increasingly important to aquatic resource managers and land use planners. Urbanization of watersheds is almost invariably accompanied by loss and alteration of aquatic habitats, two of the most frequently mentioned causes for losses of aquatic biota.

This book includes a variety of case studies addressing the effects of urbanization on stream ecosystems at locations ranging from Brazil to Southern California to New York. Of special interest is a group of five papers resulting from an interdisciplinary comparative study of urbanization in Boston, Massachusetts, Birmingham, Alabama, and Salt Lake City, Utah. These papers address regional variations in study design and responses of habitat, benthic algae, benthic macroinvertebrates, and fish to urban development.”

New book:

Ancient Floods, Modern Hazards : principles and applications of paleoflood hydrology
P. Kyle House, ed.
Washington, DC : American Geophysical Union, 2002.
Call# QE39.5 .P27 A53 2002

From AGU.org:

“Ancient Floods, Modern Hazards: Principles and Applications of Paleoflood Hydrology is a milestone publication with contributions to basic and applied science. Studies in hydrology, climatology, hydraulics, geochronology, geomorphology, and stratigraphy highlight recent advances in tools, techniques, and methods for interpreting the physical evidence of` large floods. The papers in this volume illustrate a range of important topics, including:

• how paleoflood hydrology provides a basis for the estimation of flood magnitude and frequency for flood hazard analysis
• the relationship between climate variability and flood frequency
• advances in the hydraulic modeling of floods
• new applications of remote sensing technology
• superior understanding of the sedimentology, stratigraphy and chronology of flood deposits
• insight into geographic and geologic controls on floods.

A unique volume, this work offers a wealth of information to anyone involved in the study of flood science.”