The University of Florida has an ambitious goal: to harness the power of its faculty, staff, students, and alumni to solve some of society’s most pressing problems and to become a resource for the state of Florida, the nation, and the world.Florida has 51,858 miles of rivers and streams, more than 2 million acres of lakes and ponds, 11.4 million acres of wetlands, 4,437 square miles of bays and estuaries, and 8,436 miles of coastline. But these water resources face myriad threats.

***Goodreads Choice Award Winner for Best Science & Technology Book of the Year*In this scientifically informed account of the changes occurring in the world over the last century, award-winning broadcaster and natural historian shares a lifetime of wisdom and a hopeful vision for the future.**See the world. Then make it better.I am 93. I've had an extraordinary life. It's only now that I appreciate how extraordinary.As a young man, I felt I was out there in...

"A fascinating glimpse into our origins. Meave Leakey is a great storyteller, and . . . gives us a book that is informative and captivating." —Jane Goodall, PhD, DBE, Founder of the Jane Goodall InstituteMeave Leakey's thrilling, high-stakes memoir—written with her daughter Samira—encapsulates her distinguished life and career on the front lines of the hunt for our human origins, a quest made all the more notable by her stature as a woman in a highly competitive, m...

Eloquent, practical and wise, this book by one of the world’s most important scientists—and two time Pulitzer Prize winner—should be read and studied by anyone concerned with the fate of the natural world. It "makes one thing clear ... we know what we do, and we have a choice" (The New York Times Book Review).E.O. Wilson assesses the precarious state of our environment, examining the mass extinctions occurring in our time and the natural treasures we are a...

The ecologist and author of Do We Need Pandas? "presents a stimulating challenge to our perceptions of nature" and non-native species (George Monbiot).You may be surprised to learn that camels evolved and lived for tens of millions of years in North America—and also that the leek, national symbol of Wales, was a Roman import to Britain, as were chickens, rabbits and pheasants. These classic examples highlight the issues of "native" and "invasive" species. ...

'A hugely useful and fascinating resume of rewilding - what it means, where it came from, why it's important and where it's going. Jepson and Blythe have done a masterly job, explaining the science behind rewilding in an accessible, honest and compelling way. It deserves to be widely read and become a book of great influence.' Isabella Tree, author of Wilding'Compelling ... [a] succinct and objective account' Financial Times...

Human activity has irreversibly changed the natural environment. But the news isn't all bad.It's accepted wisdom today that human beings have permanently damaged the natural world, causing extinction, deforestation, pollution, and of course climate change. But in Inheritors of the Earth, biologist Chris Thomas shows that this obscures a more hopeful truth -- we're also helping nature grow and change. Human cities and mass agriculture have created new place...

A beloved natural historian and biologist explores how climate change is driving evolution.**“Hanson is an affable guide and storyteller., with a knack for analogy, a sense of humor and the natural curiosity of a scientist.” ―**New York TimesIn Hurricane Lizards and Plastic Squid, biologist Thor Hanson tells the remarkable story of how plants and animals are responding to climate change: adjusting, evolving, and sometimes ...

“An eye-opening and enchanting book by one of our major scientist-explorers.” —Diane Ackerman, author of The Zookeeper’s WifeNicknamed the “Real-Life Lorax” by National Geographic, the biologist, botanist, and conservationist Meg Lowman—aka “CanopyMeg”—takes us on an adventure into the “eighth continent” of the world's treetops, along her journey as a tree scientist, and into climate actionWelcome to the eighth con...

A compelling global exploration of nature and survival as seen via a dozen species of trees, offering “extensive insight into the ways in which humans and trees are interconnected” (BookPage), revealing the challenges facing our planet and how scientists are working urgently to save our forests and our future.The world today is undergoing the most rapid environmental transformation in human history—from climate change to deforestation. Scientists, ethnobot...

How much do we really know about the species that make up the natural world?All over the world, biodiversity is gravely threatened – by overfishing, habitat destruction, pollution and climate change. Yet life on Earth has previously experienced five episodes of mass extinction, and nature has repeatedly proved itself to be a resilient, regenerative force.In this fascinating book, ecologist Dr. Ken Thompson surveys the Earth's biodiversity, its origins and s...

Since the dawn of human civilization, forests have provided us with food, resources, and energy. The history of human development is also one of forest loss and transformation, and yet even in our increasingly urbanized societies we remain surprisingly dependent on forests for a wide range of goods and services. Moreover, forests still retain a remarkable hold on our environmental values. In an era of continuing tropical deforestation and temperate forest resurgence, and in the midst of un...