Sad news came from the wilds of Mexico recently, with reports of the murder of environmental activist Isidro Baldenegro on January 15. Baldenegro was gunned down while visiting relatives, another casualty of the growing war against those who protect the land and its resources.

Baldenegro lived in the rugged Sierra Madre mountains of the southern Chihuahua. The region is home to the Tarahumara people, most of whom still practice a traditional lifestyle dependent on subsistence farming. In recent decades, the area has been subject to increasing logging followed by conversion of the forests, threatening the Tarahumaras’ existence and impacting the sustainable use of the forest. Controlling large-scale logging was the cause for which Baldenegro gave his life. 

This is a tragic story in itself, but the horror is multiplied over and over in the continuing murders of environmental activists around the world. According to Global Watch, 2015 was the bloodiest year on record for environmentalists, with a total of 185 environmental workers were murdered—about one every other day. Brazil was the most violent country, with 50 murders, followed by the Philippines and Colombia. Latin American was by far the most violent region, accounting for two-thirds of the murders.

The life and death of Isidro Baldenegro parallels that of another environmental hero who suffered a similar fate a generation ago, Chico Mendes. Mendes, who is one of eight great conservationists I profile in Nature's Allies, was a rubber-tapper in the far southwestern corner of Brazil’s Amazon basin. He became a union organizer and later an advocate for rainforest preservation. Fighting against the giveaway of public lands to rich land-barons who converted the forests to pastures, Mendes made powerful enemies. Eventually, those interests chose violence as a weapon against the peaceful, community-based actions that Mendes employed—and murdered him on his back porch a few days before Christmas, 1988.

Violence against nature is hard to understand—that humans can’t recognize the essential importance of working with nature, not against it, to assure our continued quality of life. But violence against those who protect nature, often the most gentle and giving of people, is impossible to understand. Sharing their stories and continuing to fight for the causes they gave their lives for is the surest way to honor their legacies. 

Given election results that have further empowered political leaders who deny climate change, it’s easy to feel powerless in the face of environmental challenges like massive deforestation, biodiversity loss, and dying oceans. At a time when it seems like we are moving backwards and progress is stalled by partisanship and bureaucracy, conservation success stories provide the inspiration and courage needed to move forward. Nature’s Allies, which tells the stories of eight great conservationists who overcame great odds to bring about astonishing change, supplies that inspiration. Here, author Larry A. Nielsen provides ten fun facts about these inspiring conservationists. 

• John Muir was not only an ardent conservationist, but he was also an obsessive inventor. As a young man, he designed and built a mechanical bed that tilted up and tossed him on the floor when it was time to start the day.
   
• Muir may have been the father of American conservation, but he never really thought of himself as an American. He considered that he owed his loyalty to the earth, not to any nation. He even “skedaddled” to Canada to dodge the draft during the Civil War.

  

• Ding Darling was a political cartoonist, and, as such, he held strong political beliefs. He greatly admired Herbert Hoover, but abhorred the policies and actions of Franklin Roosevelt. Nonetheless, he accepted Roosevelt’s offer to become Chief of the Biological Survey and reset America’s conservation direction.
   
• The first federal Duck Stamp was drawn by Darling—on the back of a shirt cardboard. Pressed for ideas and without drawing supplies, Darling slipped the cardboard from a freshly laundered shirt and sketched a pair of Mallard ducks landing in a marsh. The rest is history!
   
• Aldo Leopold is famous for his book of essays, A Sand County Almanac. But it was rejected repeatedly by publishers before Leopold’s son finally negotiated an agreement. And then it was largely ignored by the reading public when published in 1949. Only later, when a paperback edition was re-issued in the 1970s, did it become the ecological bible it is considered today.

  

• Today, we would call Rachel Carson a “shrinking violet,” extremely shy and private. So much so that when Silent Spring became a best-seller, she avoided almost all interviews and publicity. Yet it was her eventual appearance on the TV news program, CBS Reports, that convinced America she was right—and a new environmental era began.
   
• Chico Mendes, the Brazilian rainforest advocate and union leader, never had any money. So when he was invited to the U.S. to campaign for protecting Brazil’s forests, he had nothing to wear. A home-town charity provided the solution—a crumpled gray suit that more-or-less matched his rotund figure. Nonetheless, his charisma won the day, and a new future for the Amazon.
   
• Billy Frank Jr. was arrested more than fifty times in his battle for Native American treaty rights to catch salmon. But he never held a grudge. Instead, he made friends with everyone he met, whether a local game warden, a corporate CEO or the President of the United States.

  

• When Wangari Maathai’s husband divorced her because she wasn’t a good Kenyan wife—too independent and willful—she had a dilemma. She couldn’t keep her married name, Mathai, and didn’t want to revert to her maiden name. So, she ingeniously added another “a” to the spelling and became the Wangari Maaathai we know today.
   
• Gro Harlem Brundtland is known as the godmother of sustainability, but she greatly angered environmentalists everywhere when she reinstated commercial whaling as Norway’s prime minister. Her actions were consistent, she believed, because whales are renewable natural resources and Norway managed them sustainably.

In today’s divisive political climate, where meaningful change is often stalled by partisanship and bureaucracy, it’s easy to feel powerless in the face of environmental challenges like climate change, habitat loss, and disappearing species. But environmentalists are no strangers to opposition, and a look back at their stories may provide the inspiration needed to move forward. In Nature’s Allies, Larry A. Nielsen pens eight riveting biographies of great conservationists. Some famous and some little known, their diverse stories are a model for affecting positive, lasting change for the environment.

The subjects of Nielsen’s profiles—John Muir, Ding Darling, Aldo Leopold, Rachel Carson, Chico Mendes, Billy Frank Jr., Wangari Maathai, and Gro Harlem Brundtland—are a refreshing move beyond the mainstream of American conservation. These engaging narratives represent a fuller diversity of contributions, including stories from Africa, South America, and Europe. Beyond the value of their accomplishments, these individuals may seem to have little in common. But despite their varied personalities, methods, and causes, the conservationists of Nature’s Allies share one powerful thing in common—they all hail from modest backgrounds, and are a testament to the power of one person to bring about extraordinary change. Their stories are not just for environmentalists, scientists, or students. Nature’s Allies is a powerful, engaging read for anyone who wants to be inspired to make a difference.

Check out an excerpt from the chapter on Gro Harlem Brundtland, known as the godmother of sustainability, below.

February 12 marks the anniversary of one of the 20^th Century’s most important judicial decisions, made by Judge George Hugo Boldt in 1974. The decision allocated half of the annual catch of Pacific salmon to Native Americans. 

And with that decision, a new era of scientific fisheries management began. Along with 50 percent of the fish, the decision also awarded Native Americans co-management responsibility with state and federal agencies. From the ruling on, everyone needed to know how many fish existed and how many could be caught sustainably. Spurred on by the decision, fisheries scientists developed techniques for estimating population sizes, monitoring catches, and understanding the dynamics of population change over time. Today, Pacific salmon are the most studied and best understood fish populations in the world.

Why did Judge Boldt make such a revolutionary decision? It all began in 1854, when the new governor of the Washington Territory, Isaac Stevens, brokered a treaty with the local Native Americans. The treaty promised that the Native Americans could fish where and how they always fished, forever. For a century no one much cared, but in the 1950s, dams, pollution, and overfishing devastated salmon populations. That’s when state authorities, looking for a scapegoat, started hassling Native American fishermen.

Among those fisherman was Billy Frank Jr., one of the eight conservationists I profile in Nature's Allies. Frank was a young Nisqually Indian who followed in his father’s and grandfather’s waders as a salmon fisherman. He held strongly to his family’s belief that the treaty was sacred—and the law. Consequently, he was always in the middle of the fray: Billy Frank Jr. was arrested more than 50 times for just doing what the treaty had guaranteed. 

As the years passed and the arrests accumulated, the plight of Native Americans joined with other social causes in the turbulent 1960s—civil rights, feminism, anti-war, poverty. With the help of Hank Adams, a brilliant Native American strategist and communications savant, Billy Frank’s message reached into the living rooms of Americans across the nation. And when a particularly violent confrontation occurred in 1970, a disgusted federal attorney sued the state of Washington for violating the treaty. 

A few years and much legal wrangling later, Judge Boldt ruled for the Native Americans. Eventually, the U.S. Supreme Court also ruled in their favor. And today, because of the bravery and persistence of Billy Frank Jr. on the riverbank and the integrity of Hugo Boldt on the bench, Pacific salmon are again returning to abundance on our northwest Pacific coast.

The lesson here is obvious—never give up. When matters of principle are at stake, and especially when those principles involve sustaining our earth and sharing its resources fairly, never, ever give up.

Surprise! It's an Island Press flash sale! For three days only, from now until Sunday, April 23, you can get the e-book of Larry Nielsen's Nature's Allies for just $0.99, wherever e-books are sold. That's 272 pages of inspiration to stand up for nature for less than the cost of a vending machine snack. Still need convincing? Check out an excerpt from the book below.

Order your copy, and then don't forget to browse Island Press' collection of 1300+ other e-books on sale for $4.99, exclusively on the Island Press website until April 24. 

We revel in the glory of the African elephant, giant panda or Galapagos tortoise—the charismatic megafauna that gets most of attention, whether on television or at the zoo. But I think the group that deserves the award as the world’s number one animal group—perhaps we should call it the charismatic omnifauna—is the bird.

We all love birds. According to the 2011 Survey of Fishing, Hunting and Wildlife-Association Recreation, about 50 million Americans feed or observe birds at their homes, spending billions of dollars on sunflower seeds and the like. USA Today reports that eagles are the most common mascots of high school and college sports teams, virtually lapping the mascot in second place (tigers).  I won’t bore you with more statistics—suffice it to say that only a bird-brain wouldn’t agree that birds are the greatest.

One dedicated bird-lover was Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. On this day in 1784, Mozart went to the contemporary Viennese equivalent of a pet store. He was amazed by a bird that sang a variation on a work that he had just completed—Piano Concerto in G, K. 453—under the utmost secrecy. Bird behaviorists Meredith West and Andrew King have suggested that this particular bird probably had heard snatches of the folk tune on which Mozart’s concerto was patterned, but Mozart, known as a skillful and absent-minded whistler, probably might have stimulated the bird to respond. 

He bought the bird, a European Starling, and for the next three years, it was his companion and muse. When his pet died, Mozart mourned as if for a human—a funeral procession accompanied the grieving composer to the graveyard, sang hymns and listened to an elegy Mozart wrote for the occasion (“He was not naughty, quite, But gay and bright, And under all his brag A foolish wag…”).    

This day marks the birthday of another important bird lover—Rachel Carson was born on May 27, 1902. Carson started watching birds early and continued throughout her life, whether at the bird feeder in her backyard or on a Pennsylvania overlook as the annual hawk migration passed by.

As explored in Nature’s Allies, Carson’s love of nature expressed itself in her twin loves of science and writing.  For decades she nurtured the two loves simultaneously, becoming a leading scientific editor for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and a nationally acclaimed nature writer. But when her third book, The Sea Around Us, hit the New York Times best-seller list and stayed for 86 weeks, her fate was decided—she would be a writer, full-time.

Her next book, and her last, is the classic for which we universally praise Carson, Silent Spring. She began the book with a fable that laments the loss of bird song:

“On the mornings that had once throbbed with the dawn chorus of robins, catbirds, doves, jays, wrens and scores of other bird voices there was now no sound; only silence lay over the fields and woods and marsh.”

The cause of this silence?  The wanton aerial spraying of pesticides, whose impact Carson detailed in the body of the book. Her perseverance to get to the bottom of this problem and share it with the world, even as she gradually succumbed to breast cancer, has made our world immeasurably healthier and more beautiful.

So, on this final day in late May, let us praise the sounds that fill our lives with beauty and joy, and thank Rachel Carson and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart for bringing them to us.

Summer is here! Whether that means slathering on the sunscreen or seeking refuge from the heat in an air conditioned room, this season means one thing for all bookworms: summer reading lists. To help get yours started, our staff have shared their favorite Island Press books, past and present. Check out our recommendations, and share your favorite Island Press summer read in the comments below. 
 

1.) Nature's Allies by Larry A. Nielsen
 

In Nature's Allies, Larry Nielson shares eight riveting biographies of great conservationists. His profiles show how these diverse leaders—including a Native American who was arrested more than 50 times and the first African woman and environmentalist to win the Nobel Peace Prize—brought about extraordinary change for the environment. These stories are powerful, engaging reads for anyone who wants to be inspired to make a difference. But you don't have to take Island Press' word for it...Nature's Allies was also recently recommended as a New York Public Library staff pick. 
 

2.) River Notes by Wade Davis
 

In this remarkable blend of history, science, and personal observation, acclaimed author Wade Davis tells the story of America’s Nile, how it once flowed freely and how human intervention has left it near exhaustion. A beautifully told story of historical adventue and natural beauty, River Notes is a fascinating journey down the river and through mankind's complicated and destructive relationship with one of its greatest natural resources. Kyler Geoffroy, Online Marketing Manager of the Urban Resilience Project, says this book is the perfect summer read because "we need to stop and appreciate America’s most iconic waterway now more than ever."
 

3.) Bike Boom by Carlton Reid
 

As Vice President and Executive Editor Heather Boyer says, "there's no better time than summer to think about how to maintain the increase in interest in urban biking (and try to retain any funding for it in infrastructure budget)." A follow-up to his "fascinating" Roads Were Not Built for Cars, Bike Boom picks up where that story left off: immersing readers in cycling advocacy from 1906 to the doldrums of the 1980s. It is an extensively researched, at times humorous journey through time, flush with optimism for what could be the next, greatest bike boom of all.
 

4.) Natural Defense by Emily Monosson
 

Bugs and germs are big problems—and they’re evolving. But in the fight to protect our food and health, bugs and germs may also be part of the solution. Natural Defense by Emily Monosson is the first book to bring readers into this exciting new world, highlighting cutting-edge solutions such as pheromones that send crop-destroying moths into a misguided sexual frenzy, and proteins that promise targed destruction of infectious bacteria. Brooke Borel, contributing editor at Popular Science had this to say about the book: "With deft prose and fascinating anecdotes, Monosson’s survey of the latest scientific research leaves us in awe of humankind’s ingenuity."
 

5.) Immersion by Abbie Gascho Landis
 

If summer is the time for exploring neighborhood creeks and streams, Immersion by Abbie Gascho Landis is the summer read for you. A breathtaking journey into the world of freshwater mussels, Immersion explores the hidden lives of mussels in our rivers and streams, and asks whether our capacity to love these alien creatures can power us to protect freshwater for humans and nature alike. Blending science with artful storytelling, Immersion takes readers from perilous river surveys and dry riverbeds to laboratories where endangered mussels are raised one precious life at a time. Production Assistant Elise Ricotta says this is the perfect book to read at the beach or lake.
 

 6.) Seeking the Sacred Raven by Mark Jerome Walters
 

Associate Editor and Rights Manager Rebecca Bright picked up Seeking the Sacred Raven while she was preparing for an interview to intern at Island Press (we won't say how many years ago). The book tells the story of Hawaii's 'Alla, a member of the raven family that once flourished on the islands and now survives only in captivity. Mark Jerome Walters chronicles the history of the birds' interactions with humans throughout the centuries, painting a picture of one species' decline that resonates today, as many others face the same fate. The first Island Press book she ever read, Rebecca found the book to be "both fascinating and heartbreaking."
 

7.) Kitchen Literacy by Ann Vileisis
 

As you fire up the grill for summer barbeques and head to your local farmer's market, consider reading Kitchen Literacy by Ann Vileisis, a sensory-rich journey through two hundred years of making dinner. From eighteenth-century gardens and historic cookbooks to calculated advertising campaigns and sleek supermarket aisles, Vileisis chronicles profound changes in how Americans have shopped, cooked, and thought about their food for five generations. Revealing how knowledge of our food has been lost and how it might now be regained, Kitchen Literacy promises to make us think differently about what we eat.
 

8.) Water is for Fighting Over by John Fleck
 

Water is for Fighting Over by John Fleck makes for perfect reading while sitting by the pool, river, or ocean. In it, he offers a unique, fresh perspective on the catastrophe narrative of the West, showcasing how this region is less of a battlefield and more of a place where individuals and communities find common ground amid a changing geography. This book shows that even in the depths of the worst droughts, positive solution stories can still be found. Vice President and Director of Marketing & Sales Julie Marshall likes "John’s thoughtful and balanced approach to the issue. I also really appreciate the fact he has such deep knowledge based on his many years covering the issues in the west. It gives him great credibility but also makes his explanations of the issues and solutions seem solid based on 'all the facts' and not just a superficial assessment." 
 

9.) Within Walking Distance by Philip Langdon 
 

While walking around and enjoying the summer sunshine, don't forget to pack Within Walking Distance by Philip Langdon. In it, he takes an in-depth look at six walkable communities—and the citizens, public officials, and planners who are making them satisfying places to live. Civil Engineering said "Within Walking Distance shines...a warm, personal, and heartening depiction of our power to shape our communities in a positive way when we set our minds to it." 
 

10.) Tibet Wild by George B. Schaller
 

Hungry for adventure? Tibet Wild is George B. Schaller's account of three decades of exploration in the most remote stretches of Tibet: the wide, sweeping rangelands of the Chang Tang and the hidden canyons and plunging ravines of the southeastern forests. Throughout, it is an intimate journey through the changing wilderness of Tibet, guided by the careful gaze and unwavering passion of a life-long naturalist. Editor Courtney Lix loves the book because "it transports you to the wildest regions in Tibet, from describing the daily challenges of being a field biologist, to admiring breathtaking landscapes, and encounters with rare and beautiful creatures." 

What are your top Island Press reads? Share them below, so others can add them to their summer reading lists. 

This post originally appeared on Larry Nielsen's Today in Conservation blog and is reposted here with permission. 

On September 27, 1962, a highly-anticipated book hit the shelves. Reactions to it were immediate and strong. The author’s best friend called it “the poison book.” A spokesperson for the agricultural chemical industry called it “…gross distortions of the actual facts, completely unsupported by scientific, experimental evidence….” Supreme Court Justice William O. Douglas called it “…the most important chronicle of this century for the human race.” Today we call the book—Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring—the origin of the modern environmental movement.

Rachel Carson was an unlikely writer for a book that caused such commotion. Carson, born in 1907 in rural Pennsylvania, was a shy, reclusive woman, never interested in the spotlight. Taught by her mother to observe nature and find her own lessons from those observations, she grew to love both science and literature. Forgoing the usual educational path for young women at the time—go to college, become a teacher or nurse, get married—she studied biology. Not just biology, but marine biology. Once she found her way to the Atlantic coast, she was never again far from the shore.

She became the first scientist ever hired by the U.S. Biological Survey, precursor to today’s U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. But she never gave up on being a writer. Her fellow scientists marveled at her ability to combine scientific ideas and beautiful prose to tell the story of marine ecosystems. She eventually wrote three books about the sea, which met with both critical and commercial success. The New York Times recognized that “Once or twice in a generation does the world get a physical scientist with literary genius….”

Her third book, The Edge of the Sea, is the one that hooked me. As a teenage “nature nerd” growing up in Chicago, I was fascinated by her stories of the seashore and by the book’s drawings of strange and beautiful creatures. When I wrote Nature’s Allies—Eight Conservationists Who Changed Our World, I knew from the beginning that Rachel Carson would be one of the environmental leaders I profiled. She hooked me, just as she hooked an entire generation with Silent Spring.

She didn’t want to write Silent Spring. She wanted to keep writing about the beauty and wonder of nature. But friends kept telling her about the deaths of wildlife after airplanes sprayed their fields and forests with insecticides. Unable to find anyone else who would take up the challenge, Carson dug in. She spent years gathering information about pesticides and their impacts, doing the painstaking research to connect the dots. Her conclusion:  the wanton spraying of pesticides was poisoning the earth.

She told the story in Silent Spring. First published as a series of articles in The New Yorker, it became an instant best-seller in book form. Although agricultural interests worked hard to discredit Carson, their efforts were drowned by the overwhelming positive response to the book and the caution that it urged. The Modern Environmental Movement had been born.

Rachel Carson didn’t live long enough to witness her impact. She died 18 months after the book’s publication, consumed by breast cancer. Just as she always had, she sought understanding through nature, this final time through the monarch butterfly. “…For the Monarch, that cycle is measured in a known span of months. For ourselves, the measure is something else, the span of which we cannot know. But the thought is the same:  when that intangible cycle has run its course it is a natural and not unhappy thing that a life comes to its end.”

This post originally appeared on Larry Nielsen's Today in Conservation blog and is reposted here with permission.

This holiday season, consider the Icelandic tradition of gifting books. They don't go bad, are one-size-fits-all, and are sure to make anyone on your shopping list smile.With a library of more than 1,000 books, make Island Press your one-stop shop for book buying, so you can get back to enjoying the holidays. To help you out, we've compiled a list of staff selections and mentions on various best-of lists. 

Get any of these books at your favorite neighborhood bookstore or online retailer!

 

For the health nut in your life – Whitewash

Let me just say I am unequivocally a health nut; I am definitely that friend who will straight up say “you so should not eat, it is so unhealthy for you.” So If you have a friend or family member that is kind of like me and cares about the kind of food and chemicals they put in their body; Carey Gillam Whitewash is the book to have!  This riveting number exposes just how far one company is willing to go to line their pockets while showing total disregard for public health and safety. You think you know what is being sprayed on your food, well this book is here to say think again!

Whitewash is aslo one of Civil Eats' Favorite Food and Farming Books of 2017

 

For the Lego lover in your life – Design for Good

What good is building something if it doesn’t help the people it’s build for? In John Cary’s Design for Good, readers are presented with colorful, character-driven stories about project around that are designed with dignity in mind. Did we mention it also contains a ton of drool-worthy photos of architecture?

Design for Good is aslo featured on the San Francisco Chronicle's 2017 holiday books gift guide. Check it out!

 

For the peacekeeper in your life – The Spirit of Dialogue

Know someone who always serves as the conflict resolver for your friends or family? Give them some new ideas of masterful mediation with The Spirit of Dialogue which draws lessons from a diversity of faith traditions to transform conflict. Whether atheist or fundamentalist, Muslim or Jewish, Quaker or Hindu, any reader involved in difficult dialogue will find concrete steps towards meeting of souls. 

 

For the history buff in your life – Toms River

Toms River recounts the sixty-year saga that plagued this small New Jersey town. Your history-loving friend will meet industrial polluters and the government regulators who enabled them, the pioneering scientists who first identified pollutants as a cause of cancer, and the brave individuals who fought for justice. Longtime journalist Dan Fagin won the Pulitzer Prize for this page-turner, and gives us all a reason to think twice about what’s lurking in the water.

 

For the person in your life who thinks the environmental movement is made up of white outdoorsmen (or for the person in your life who thinks that the environmental movements doesn’t include them) – Energy Democracy

Energy Democracy frames the international struggle of working people, low-income communities, and communities of color to take control of energy resources from the energy establishment and use those resources to empower their communities—literally providing energy, economically, and politically. The diverse voices in this book show that the global fight to save the planet—to conserve and restore our natural resources to be life-sustaining—must fully engage community residents and must change the larger economy to be sustainable, democratic, and just.

 

For the lazy environmentalist in your life – Design Professionals Guide to Zero-Net Energy Building

We all know someone who really means well and cares about the environment, but cannot be bothered to change his lifestyle. With the Design Professionals Guide to Zero-Net Energy Building, you can introduce the zero-net energy building, which offers a practical and cost-effective way to address climate change without compromising quality of life.

 

For the foodie in your life – No One Eats Alone

For your favorite gourmand, give the gift of No One Eats Alone, an exploration of how to deepen connections to our food sources and to our own communities. Through over 250 interviews, Michael Carolan shows concerned food citizens opportunities for creating a more equitable and sustainable foodscape

 

For the conservation warrior in your life – Nature’s Allies

Worried about the state of nature in our divided world? Or know someone who is? Nature’s Allies is a refreshing antidote to helplessness and inertia. Within its pages Larry Nielsen brings alive stories of brave men and women around the world who have responded to the conservation crises of their time by risking their reputations, well-being, and even lives to stand up for nature when no one else would do so. These stories provide inspiration for a new generation of conservationists to step up in the face of adversity and challenge social and environmental injustice occurring today—and to assure them that they can make a difference by speaking out. This year, give a holiday gift of courage and inspiration: Nature’s Allies.

 

 

For the traveler in your life – Let Them Eat Shrimp

This book brings to life the importance of mangroves. Mangroves have many jobs: protecting coastlines, acting as nurseries for all kinds of fish, provide livlihoods and food for people. Kennedy Warne dives into the muddy waters of the mangrove world and shares the stories of the people who depend on them. The book is both a well-written travelogue and exploration of the science of the mangroves ecological service they provide.

Don't just take our word for it, check out these best-of lists:

 

For the nature-in-cities lover in your life – Handbook of Biophilic City Planning & Design

Featured on the ASLA's The Dirt Best Books of 2017

 

For the bike lover in your life – Bike Boom

One of Planetizen's Best Books of 2017 and one of the four books in Bicycle Times' Gift Guide Cycling Enthusiast

 

This blog originally appeared on Larry Nielsen's "Today in Conservation" blog and is reposted here with permission. 

For Valentine’s Day, and I couldn’t resist writing about nature’s faithful lovers. Besides, other than Captain John Fremont “discovering” Lake Tahoe on this date, nothing else really important in conservation happened on February 14.

Being a faithful lover is one way to say it; being monogamous is another. Monogamy is highly variable in nature. It is a life-history strategy that has some advantages, including a reliable and desirable mate, ability for parental care of young and maintenance of resources through time. It also has some downsides, including reduced reproduction after loss of a mate. So, species and entire groups of animals have chosen one way or another.

It is common among birds, with around 90% of species mating in pairs. Sometimes just for one year (serial monogamy), but sometimes for life. Bald Eagles roam around separately for most of the year, but come together for mating, usually with the same mate for decades. Swans, though, live together continuously, with the male doing a lot of the household work, including incubating eggs. The Albatross is picky about mating, sometimes delaying decisions for a few years while looking around for Mr. or Mrs. Right; after that, they are a pair forever.

Mammals, however, aren’t quite so faithful. Only about 5% of mammalian species are monogamous. Gibbons are famously faithful, pairing off and staying that way for their entire lifespan, 30 or more years. But, like humans, they sometimes discover irreconcilable differences and find that its better “the second time around.” Beavers are more faithful, and they have good reason to be—they spend a lot of time and effort building and maintaining a homestead together. A dam and lodge need lots of “sweat equity” that the pair puts in together.

Among fish, monogamy is pretty rare. Most fish are promiscuous to the extreme, often just letting the eggs and sperm loose into the water without so much as a first date. Australia’s thorny seahorse is different, though, pairing off for life. It seems that they get better as breeding as they get to know each other better, producing more offspring as the years pass. The French angelfish is faithful, too, swimming together for years in their coral reef neighborhood.

But my favorite of all is the Black Vulture. The species is faithfully monogamous, living in pairs throughout the year and for many years; they live up to 25 years in nature. They have strong families as well, feeding their young for many months and living in communal groups. If you are related, you are welcome to the roost, but don’t come around if you aren’t part of the clan. And, of course, Black Vultures, like all their fellow species, are ugly as sin.

Which just proves the old adage:  Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.  Happy Valentines Day!

This Valentine’s Day, we thought it would be fun for Island Press authors to share the love. We asked a few authors to choose their favorite Island Press book—other than their own, of course—and explain what makes it so special. Check out their responses below, and use code 4MAGICAL for 25% off and free shipping all of the books below, as well as books from participating authors.

What’s your favorite Island Press book? Share your answer in the comments.

My favorite IP book—not that I’ve read them all—is Mike Lydon’s Tactical Urbanism. This book shows how ad hoc interventions can improve the public realm, especially if they’re later made permanent. I discussed the concept on the latest Spokesmen podcast with architect Jason Fertig and illustrator Bekka “Bikeyface” Wright, both of Boston. 

—Carlton Reid, Bike Boom and Roads Were Not Built for Cars

Last year I wrote a cover story for SIERRA magazine about how Donald Trump's proposed wall along the US-Mexico border would all but eliminate any chance for recovering jaguar species in the Southwest. In the course of my research I came across Alan Rabinowitz's An Indomitable Beast. It's a great read, blending Rabinowitz's own experiences as a big cat biologist with cutting-edge findings on this amazing species. As a writer, this book and its amazing details helped me bring the jaguar to life for readers. 

—Jason Mark, Satellites in the High Country

This day is a time for reaching beyond data and logic to think about deeper ways of knowing. Love, specifically, but I would add to that faith, tradition and ethics. That's why I love Aaron Wolf's new book, The Spirit of Dialogue: Lessons from Faith Traditions in Transforming Conflict. Going beyond the  mechanical "rationality" of the typical public meeting is necessary if we are to address the big issues of global sustainability and the smaller issues of how we sustain our local communities. Aaron Wolf provides the experience, tools and promise of a better, deeper approach.

—Larry Nielsen, Nature's Allies

Like many others, I am indebted to to Island Press for not one but three books that profoundly influenced my thinking. Panarchy (2001, edited by Lance Gunderson and C.S. Holling) introduced me to the concept of socio-ecological systems resilience. Resilience Thinking (2006, by Brian Walker and David Salt) taught me what systems resilience really means. And the follow-up book Resilience Practice (2012) helped me start to understand how systems resilience actually works. The latter remains the most-consulted book on my shelf—by Island Press or any other publisher—and I was thrilled and frankly humbled when Brian and David agreed to write a chapter for our own contribution to the field, The Community Resilience Reader (2017).

—Daniel Lerch, The Community Resilience Reader

"A large percentage of my urbanism bookshelf is comprised of Island Press books, so it's very difficult to share my love for just one! So, I won't because the books we pull of the shelf most often these days are the NACTO Design Guides. Finally, a near complete set of highly usable and mutually supportive design standards that help us advocate for and build better streets, better places." 

—Mike Lydon, Tactical Urbanism

 

 

Nicols Fox's Against the Machine is a book that’s becomes more relevant each year as technology impinges ever further on our daily lives. It’s a fascinating, deeply researched look at how and why people have resisted being treated as extensions of machines.

—Phil Langdon, Within Walking Distance

Lake Effect by Nancy Nichols. I read this book several years ago. It is so important to hear the voices of those whose lives are impacted by industrial age pollutants, lest we slide into complacency. In this case, the story of the chemicals of Lake Michigan. It is a short, beautifully written, disturbing read.
—Emily Monosson, Natural Defense and Unnatural Selection

Peter Gleick’s series, The World’s Water, is one of the most useful surveys of the cutting edge of global waters there is. Each edition brings in-depth coverage of the issues of the day, always eminently readable and backed up by the crack research team that he puts together for each topic. I use it in my classes, always confident that students (and I) will be kept abreast of the best of The World’s Water.
—Aaron Wolf, The Spirit of Dialogue

Mark Jerome Walters' important book, Seven Modern Plagues, places great emphasis on linking emerging diseases with habitat destruction and other forms of modification natural processes. This book is a call for us to recognize that each new disease reflects an environmental warning.
—Andy Dyer, Chasing the Red Queen

My favorite Island Press book is The New Agrarianism: Land, Culture, and the Community of Life, edited by Eric T. Freyfogle. Perhaps it remains my favorite IP text because it is the first IP text I remember reading front to back, twice! I first encountered the book as a graduate student and was struck my its scope and tone. The book is thought provoking. But it's also a joy to read, which isn't surprising in hindsight given the award-winning contributors.   
—Michael Carolan, No One Eats Alone

Don't see your Island Press fave? Share it in the comments below!

Hundreds of thousands of people around the world raised their voices this week to demand action on climate change. The demonstrations, which happened as global leaders met for the UN General Assembly, showcased the growth and strength of the movement. It is still to be seen if governments and corporations will take timely action, but it is clear that activists and communities will continue mobilizing and demanding for change.   

The following four excerpts highlight leaders, organizations, and strategies from environmental movements in the past. From Gro Harlem Brundtland, the Godmother of Sustainable Development, to labor and environmental activist Chico Mendes, these activists offer lessons and inspiration for anybody who cares about our planet.

 

Nature’s Allies

It’s easy to feel powerless in the face of big environmental challenges—but we need inspiration now more than ever. In Nature’s Allies, Larry Nielsen presents the inspiring stories of eight conservation pioneers, John Muir, Ding Darling, Aldo Leopold, Rachel Carson, Chico Mendes, Billy Frank Jr., Wangari Maathai, and Gro Harlem Brundtland. They show that through passion and perseverance we can each make a difference, even in the face of political opposition.

Excerpt: Gro Harlem Brundtland, Godmother of Sustainable Development

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The Rebirth of Environmentalism

Over the past two decades, a select group of small but highly effective grassroots organizations have achieved remarkable success in protecting endangered species and forests in the United States. The Rebirth of Environmentalism tells for the first time the story of these grassroots biodiversity groups.

Excerpt: Boldness Has Genius: The Lessons of Grassroots Biodiversity Activism for the Campaign Against Global Warming

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Ignition

For anyone who feels compelled to do more than change their light bulbs or occasionally carpool, Ignition is an essential guide. Combining incisive essays with success stories and web resources, the book helps readers answer the most important question we all face: “What can I do?”

Excerpt: Let's Cause Trouble, Good Trouble, Necessary Trouble

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The Burning Season

Author Andrew Revkin artfully interweaves the moving story of Chico Mendes's struggle with the broader natural and human history of the world's largest tropical rain forest. "It became clear," writes Revkin, acclaimed science reporter for The New York Times, "that the murder was a microcosm of the larger crime: the unbridled destruction of the last great reservoir of biological diversity on Earth." In his life and untimely death, Mendes forever altered the course of development in the Amazon, and he has since become a model for environmental campaigners everywhere.

Excerpt: The Burning Season

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