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This book offers to a wide readership the opportunity to understand, consider and plan strategies that aim to conserve forest ecosystems across the world. This book presents ten chapters written by renowned researchers from Brazil, Argentina, Tunisia and Germany, offering to the scientific community as well as to human society as a whole important concepts, methods and gaps that we need to fill if we wish to preserve Earths forests.The authors begin this collection by demonstrating how rare tr...

Tropical deforestation and rural poverty are among the major apprehensions of developing nations in the 21st century. The protectionist paradigm that had dominated nature conservation since the 19th century is replaced by a strong notion that poverty reduction and environmental protection should go hand in hand. Decentralization is among the key polices devised to achieve these dual objectives of forest governance. This book presents the role decentralized forest governance can contribute to add...

Ecology is the study of the interrelationships between organisms and their environment, including the biotic and abiotic components. There are at least six kinds of ecology: ecosystem, physiological, behavioural, population, and community. Specific topics include: Acid Deposition, Acid Rain Revisited, Biodiversity, Biocomplexity, Carbon Sequestration in Soils, Coral Reefs, Ecosystem Services, Environmental Justice, Fire Ecology, Floods, Global Climate Change, Hypoxia, and Invasion. This new book...

This book provides a manual for undertaking research into the role of people in commonly shared resources, like forests, water bodies, fisheries and grazing pastures. The method in this book constructs indicators for the level of participation, net benefits from participating, forest dependence, forest quality, inequality, wealth and social differences. It can be concluded that (1) the studied organisations for forest management vary considerably in their effectiveness and (2) voluntary particip...

A unique and beautiful approach to understanding the plastic problem with practical actions to help protect the planet. Every single minute, a dump-truck’s worth of plastic is emptied into the ocean, trashing beaches, killing wildlife, making food supplies dangerous, and contributing to climate change.  Most plastic can remain in the environment for hundreds of years. And almost half of it is single use. Why are we doing this? Why don't we stop? Can we undo the damage we’ve already done? Why...

Trees and forests are crucial to life on our planet: they generate oxygen, play host to a spectacular variety of wildlife and provide us with raw materials and shelter. They offer us tranquillity, inspire us and refresh our souls. "Exploring Woodland" is a series of guides from The Woodland Trust that describe and illustrate 101 beautiful woodland sites in different regions and countries throughout the UK. Fully illustrated with site maps and photographs, these are the essential woodland guides...

Rainforests are the lungs of our planet - regulators of the earth's temperature and weather. They are also home to 50 per cent of the world's animals and plants - which for centuries have been the source of many of our key medicines. And yet we've all heard of their systematic destruction; the raising of trees to make way for plantations of oil palms or cattle, the disenfranchisement of indigenous peoples, and the corruption that leads to illegal logging and pollution. But this is the full sto...

In this book the authors convey the shifting character of the Amazon frontier. They document and discuss the largest and the most analytically complete data set ever produced on the economic variables that influence small farmers' deforestation in the Amazon.

Forest conservation has become one of the most important environmental issues currently facing humanity, as a result of widespread deforestation and forest degradation. Pressures on remaining natural forests continue to intensify, leading to high rates of biodiversity loss. Understanding how human activities influence ecological processes within forests is essential for developing effective conservation action. This book describes research methods and techniques relevant to understanding forest...

While tropical rainforests have received much conservation attention and support for their protection, temperate and boreal rainforests have been largely overlooked. Yet these ecosystems are also unique, supporting rainforest communities, rich in plants and wildlife and containing some of the most massive trees on Earth. "Temperate and Boreal Rainforests of the World" brings together leading international scientists to describe the ecology and conservation of these lesser-known rainforests in an...

This book focuses on urban "green infrastructure" – the interconnected web of vegetated spaces like street trees, parks and peri-urban forests that provide essential ecosystem services in cities. The green infrastructure approach embodies the idea that these services, such as storm-water runoff control, pollutant filtration and amenities for outdoor recreation, are just as vital for a modern city as those provided by any other type of infrastructure. Ensuring that these ecosystem services are in...

This extensive reference writes a modern history of forestry in Japan, Indonesia, the Solomon Islands, and other Asian countries, reflecting industrial and colonial exploitation, periods of excessive deforestation, and the alienation of local residents from natural resources. Drawing on their experience as "participant observers" in local practice, the authors suggest new, "inclusive" approaches to forestry governance that support sustainable development, environmental preservation, and producti...

For thirty years David Campbell has been conducting ecological studies in the Brazilian Amazon. It is a place of extraordinary abundance: in the eighteen hectares of rainforest Campbell has studied are 20,000 individual trees of about 2,000 species - three times as many species of trees as there are in all of North America. And each tree is an ecosystem in itself, bearing fungi, lichens, mosses, reptiles, mammals, birds, spiders, scorpions, beetles and uncountable legions of insects. Campbell kn...

This series takes an in-depth look at some of the major social and political issues that feature on the front pages of today's newspapers

The demand for ecotourism and outdoor recreation is increasing, and the pressures on land use are becoming more obvious. A large part of the experience of ecotourism and recreational landscape depends on the maintenance of forested land. Effective management of tourism and recreation in forests can provide extra income to help offset the costs of sustainable timber production and encourage biodiversity conservation.This multi-author book considers the compatibility between tourism, forestry and...

A world expert on how trees chemically affect our environment, Diana Beresford-Kroeger has woven together ecology, ancient myth, horticulture, spirituality, science and alternative medicine in The Global Forest to capture their enormous significance to us - and our future. From enormous native Savannah trees that create their own sunscreen to hedgerows that contain and entire chain of life, this book shows us the power of the global forest. Trees absorb pollutants from the ground, comb particu...

From the bestselling author of THE GIRL OF INK & STARS comes a gorgeous wintry folk tale for young and old alike - an exciting adventure to the frozen north, perfect for fans of Philip Pullman. 'This gorgeous story of bravery, sisterhood, goodbyes and beginnings is a must for everyone.' JESSIE BURTON 'The Way Past Winter is a masterclass in exquisite storytelling.' CATHERINE DOYLE 'Gorgeous, heartfelt and incredibly exciting. Her best yet, and that's...

The papers in this volume highlight in various ways the complex articulations of local processes and global forces in tropical forest struggles. Taken together, they show how social science research has come of age, moving beyond the crude 'tragedy of the commons' and 'prisoner's dilemma' approaches of the 1970s and early 1980s.