How much can we use the environment without spoiling what we find so valuable about it? Determining the carrying capacity of parks and related areas is a perennial question whose urgency grows each year as the number of visits continues to increase. Parks and Carrying Capacity represents a comprehensive assessment of the issue, as it:offers a historical and conceptual treatment of carrying capacitydescribes and illustrates research approaches for assessing carrying capacity, ...

In the 1990s, influenced by the deconstructionist movement in literary theory and trends toward revisionist history, a cadre of academics and historians led by William Cronon began raising provocative questions about ideas of wilderness and the commitments and strategies of the contemporary environmental movement. While these critiques challenged some cherished and widely held beliefs -- and raised the hackles of many in the environmental community -- they also stimulated an important and ...

On the centennial of the National Park Service, this richly illustrated book offers invaluable advice on exploring America’s national park system.The book delves into issues affecting an array of parks: the iconic western national parks like Yellowstone; the urban parks such as Golden Gate National Recreation Area; historic sites including the Statue of Liberty National Monument and Gettysburg National Military Park; and cultural areas like Mesa Verde National Park...

Parks and People describes fifteen years of research at Maine’s Acadia National Park, conducted by Robert E. Manning, his colleagues, and students. The book is organized into three parts. Part I addresses indicators and standards of quality for park resources and the visitor experience. Part II describes efforts to monitor indicator variables. Part III outlines and assesses management actions designed to maintain standards of quality. The book concludes with a discussion of the implication...

Travel statistics say that baby boomers travel more than any other age group in America—and that an ever increasing number of them are looking for ways to spend their leisure time in substantial, meaningful ways. One especially fast-growing area of interest is the "experience-driven" or "wellness" vacation, a proactive approach based on the idea that true recreation involves positive engagement: acquiring a new skill or volunteering to share your own expertise; exercising your intellect or...

Tim Beatley has long been a leader in advocating for the "greening" of cities. But too often, he notes, urban greening efforts focus on everything except nature, emphasizing such elements as public transit, renewable energy production, and energy efficient building systems. While these are important aspects of reimagining urban living, they are not enough, says Beatley. We must remember that human beings have an innate need to connect with the natural world (the biophilia hypothesis). And ...

The award-winning author of The Experience of Place delivers an "upbeat and engaging account of the remarkable progress being made to preserve vast wild spaces for animals to roam" (The Wall Street Journal)—and an urgent call to protect 50 percent of the earth's land by 2050—thereby saving millions of its species.Beginning in the vast North American Boreal Forest that stretches through Canada, and roving across the continent, from the Northern Sie...

A naturist and historian for the National Parks Service offers a lively history of the giant sequoias of California and the love of nature they inspired.Former park ranger William C. Tweed takes readers on a tour of some of the world's largest and oldest trees in a narrative that travels deep into the Sierra Nevada mountains, across the American West, and all the way to New Zealand. Along the way, he explores the American public's evolving relationship with sequoia...

What if, even in the heart of a densely developed city, people could have meaningful encounters with nature? While parks, street trees, and green roofs are increasingly appreciated for their technical services like stormwater reduction, from a biophilic viewpoint, they also facilitate experiences that contribute to better physical and mental health: natural elements in play areas can lessen children's symptoms of ADHD, and adults who exercise in natural spaces can experience greater reduct...

This history chronicles the 19th century plan to reintroduce wild bison into Western Montana and the rise of Roosevelt's conservation movement.In the late 1800s, the rapid depletion of the American bison population prompted calls for the preservation of wildlife and wild lands in North America. Following a legendary hunt for the last wild bison in central Montana, Dr. William Hornady sought to immortalize the West's most iconic species. Activists like Theodore Roos...

“An inspiring reminder of the incredible resource that is our public lands.” —Brendan Leonard, author of The Camping Life and Surviving the Great OutdoorsAcross 193 million acres of forests, mountains, deserts, watersheds, and grasslands, national forests provide a multitude of uses as diverse as America itself. They welcome 170 million visitors each year to hike, bike, paddle, ski, fish, and hunt. But “the people’s lands” offer more than just rec...

The second book in the Immersion Travel USA series offers a one-of-a-kind examination of volunteer immersion opportunities throughout the US.Volunteer immersion means grounding oneself completely in the place, the tasks, and the people you meet along the way, while keeping your own goals in mind. Kayne profiles over 200 volunteer programs throughout the U.S., highlighting the personal stories of volunteers, and offering essential logistical information on the progr...