Environment and Society: Human Perspectives on Environmental Issues, Third Edition (July 15, 2003)
by Charles L. Harper
This integrative book about human-environment relations connects many issues about human societies, ecological systems, and environments with data and perspectives from different fields of study. While the viewpoint is primarily sociological, coverage is specifically designed to relate to a diverse audience and encompass viewpoints from a variety of natural and social science approaches. KEY TOPICS Chapter topics include environmental problems and ecosystems; the resources of the earth: sources and sinks; global climate change, scientific uncertainty, and risk; population, environment, and food; energy and society; transforming structures: markets, politics, and policy; environmentalism: ideology, and collective action; and globalization: trade, environment, and the third revolution. For individuals with an interest in— and concern for—the environment.
The publisher, Prentice-Hall Humanities/Social Science
This text looks at the connections between human societies, ecosystems and the geophysical environment. While the perspective is mostly sociological, coverage is specifically designed to be relevant to a wide range of readers and to encompass viewpoints from an assortment of disciplines.

Sociology and the Environment: A Critical Introduction to Society, Nature, and Knowledge
by Alan Irwin
Environmental sociology, February 22, 2003
Reviewer: pushyam "pushyam" (Mumbai,India)
It is a very good book on environmental sociology. It documents relationships of environment, sociology and science / technology.
First, it discusses realist and constructist's point of view. According to realist, environmental problems are simply impact upon society. According to constructivism, environmental problems are social construction.
Secondly, it explains important aspact of environment 'sustainable development'. It is the development which meets the needs of present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. It requires changes in a number of systems e.g. political, social, technological to achieve harmony among humanbeing.humanity and nature.
Thirdly, it explains Ulrich Beck's 'Risk Society'.
Just as modernisation dissolved the structure of society in the 19th century and produced the industrial society, the modernisation today is dissolving industrial society and other modernity 'late modernity' or 'risk society' is coming into being. The proccess of modernity is becoming reflexive. Problems find constraints of everyday life are no longer externallt imposed, we enter a secondary phase of modernity, raising new challenges, scientifically induced risk and also problems (loneliness'anomie etc.) The reflexive modernisation , the proccess is 'automatic operation of autunomous modernisation process'.
Then it shows how science plays a significant role within the social construction of environmental threat. Here science,risk and environmental issues are explained by means of giving examples of chemical hazards, civil nuclear power and BSE.
Lastly, technology which is a vital for sociological analysis for
environmental sociology is explained. Here sustainable technology and role of technology for construction of alternative environmental future is explained. Relationship of sociology, technology and environment is given.
It is a book for a student of sociology, environment and any sincere reader. It shows how late modernity gives rise to risk society and further theories if risk society and ultimately reflexive modernisation concept.

Environmental Sociology: A Social Constructionist Perspective (Environment and Society)
by John A. Hannigan, Routledge
1997 Environment/Planning
"A convenient and useful survey of a growing subdiscipline. Students looking for an overview of environmental sociology will find it here."--This text refers to the Library Binding edition.
Hannigan explores the links between sociology and the environment, discusses the rise of eco-politics, the concept of the risk society, the media study of the environment and specific environmental case study issues - eg acid rain, agriculture and food production.

The Sociology of Energy, Buildings and the Environment : Constructing Knowledge, Designing Practice (Global Environmental Change)
by Simon Guy, Elizabeth Shove
Focusing upon energy conservation and the built environment, this book engages with areas of debate and policy currently dominated by technologists and natural scientists. Based upon empirical research, the book develops a sociological analysis of the science and technology of sustainability and energy efficiency.
(Taylor and Francis) A text offering a sociological perspective on today's environmental debates, on subjects such as energy consumption, environmental policy, and energy research. Three case studies support the main argument. For students, sociologists, and environmentalists. DLC: Energy conservation.

Environment and Community Empowerment (Research in Community Sociology , Vol 7) (Hardcover)
by Danesh A. Chekki (Editor)

Environment and Global Modernity (SAGE Series in International Sociology)
by Gert Spaargaren (Editor), Arthur P J Mol (Editor), Frederick H Buttel (Editor)
This accomplished book argues that we can only make sense of environmental issues if we consider them as part of a more encompassing process of social transformation. It asks whether there is an emerging consensus between social scientists on the central issues in the debate on environmental change, and if concerns about the environment constitute a major prop to the process of globalization? The book provides a thorough discussion of the central themes in environmental sociology, identifying two traditions: ecological modernization theory and risk society theory.

The Ecology of Place: Planning for Environment, Economy, and Community
by Timothy Beatley, Kristy Manning
Current patterns of land use and development are at once socially, economically, and environmentally destructive. Sprawling low-density development literally devours natural landscapes while breeding a pervasive sense of social isolation and exacerbating a vast array of economic problems. As more and more counties begin to look more and more the same, hope for a different future may seem to be fading. But alternatives do exist.
The Ecology of Place, Timothy Beatley and Kristy Manning describe a world in which land is consumed sparingly, cities and towns are vibrant and green, local economies thrive, and citizens work together to create places of eduring value. They present a holistic and compelling approach to repairing and enhancing communities, introducing a vision of "sustainable places" that extends beyond traditional architecture and urban design to consider not just the physical layout of a development but the broad set of ways in which communities are organized and operate.

Human Impact on the Natural Environment: Past, Present, And Future - 6th edition (December 30, 2005) by Andrew Goudie

Mexican Americans And The Environment: Tierra Y Vida (The Mexican American Experience) (Paperback) (March, 2005)
by Devon Gerardo Pena
Addressing the struggle for environmental justice, grassroots democracy, and a sustainable society from a variety of Mexican American perspectives, this book draws on the ideas and experiences of people from all walks of life--activists, farmworkers, union organizers, land managers, educators, and many others--who provide a clear overview of the most critical ecological issues facing Mexican-origin people today. Peña provides an environmental history for both sides of the border and shows how contemporary environmental justice struggles in Mexican American communities have challenged dominant concepts of environmentalism.
From the Back Cover
Mexican Americans have traditionally had a strong land ethic, believing that humans must respect la tierra because it is the source of la vida. As modern market forces exploit the earth, communities struggle to control their own ecological futures, and several studies have recorded that Mexican Americans are more impacted by environmental injustices than are other national-origin groups. In our countryside, agricultural workers are poisoned by pesticides, while farmers have lost ancestral lands to expropriation. And in our polluted inner cities, toxic wastes sicken children in their very playgrounds and homes. This book explores the relationship between ecology and culture in the Mexican American experience, showing students its relevance in the context of environmental risks that affect all of us. It addresses the struggle for environmental justice, grassroots democracy, and a sustainable society from a variety of Mexican American perspectives, drawing on the ideas and experiences of people from all walks of life--activists, farmworkers, union organizers, land managers, educators, and many others--who provide a clear overview of the most critical ecological issues facing Mexican-origin people today. The text is organized to first provide a general introduction to ecology, from both scientific and political perspectives. It then presents an environmental history for Mexican-origin people on both sides of the border, showing that the ecologically sustainable Norteño land use practices were eroded by the conquest of El Norte by the United States. It finally offers a critique of the principal schools of American environmentalism and introduces the organizations and struggles of Mexican Americans in contemporary ecological politics. Devon Peña contrasts tenets of radical environmentalism with the ecological beliefs and grassroots struggles of Mexican-origin people, then shows how contemporary environmental justice struggles in Mexican American communities have challenged dominant concepts of environmentalism.

Sociological Theory and the Environment (January 28, 2002)
Riley E. Dunlap (Editor), Frederick H. Buttel, Peter Dickens, August Gijswijt
This comprehensive survey and assessment of sociological theories of the relations between societies and their natural biophysical environment touches on and addresses virtually all of the major perspectives, focal points, and debates in environmental sociology today. At the same time, the book aims to go beyond an inventory of environmental sociological theory by stressing how new ground can be broken in the articulation of environmental sociology with major classical and contemporary sociological theories. Visit our website for sample chapters!
Riley E. Dunlap is Boeing Distinguished Professor of Environmental Sociology at Washington State University and Past President of the International Sociological Association's Research Committee on Environment and Society. Frederick H. Buttel is Professor of Rural Sociology and Environmental Studies at the University of Wisconsin, Madison. He is currently President of the Environment and Society Research Committee of the International Sociological Association. Peter Dickens is Senior Research Fellow, Faculty of Social and Political Sciences, University of Cambridge, UK. He is also Fellow and Director of Studies at Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge. August Gijswijt retired as an environmental sociologist from the University of Amsterdam in 1998. In 1990 he and Gyorgy Szell founded the Research Committee on Environment and Science.

Risk, Environment and Society: Ongoing Debates, Current Issues and Future Prospects (Issues in Society) (June 14, 2002)
by Piet Strydom
“Risk, Environment and Society is an inventive and core text within the framework of risk studies, and should be read first by any scholar interrested in that field. If you are a newcomer in that field, this is the book to begin with, because it is clear and extensive. … Among recent books, I can't think of a more useful scholarly achievement in risk studies, making Piet Strydom one of the true leading theorists in his discipline."
Sociological Research On-Line
How and why have the closed expert debates of past decades become an open public discourse about nuclear, environmental and biotechnological risks?
What can a cultural and institutional analysis reveal about risks and their social construction?
Is it possible to develop a new critical theory of the risk society?
This book offers an overview and analysis of nuclear, global environmental and biotechnological dangers, threats and hazards in the context of public debates about risk from the 1950s to the present. It considers what impact these risks and debates are having on society, transforming underlying cultural assumptions (for example about nature) but also public communication, social institutions, and even the way society is organized. Piet Strydom reconstructs public debates and social scientific theories to provide a fresh approach to the risk society. From this comes a new theoretical perspective for studying the emerging social conditions of the twenty-first century. The result is a penetrating and essential text for students and researchers across a range of areas including sociology, environmental studies, politics, and cultural and communications studies.
Book Info
Offers an overview and analysis of nuclear, global environmental and biotechnological threats and hazards in the context of public debates about risk from the 1950s to the present.

Environment and Social Theory (Routledge Introductions to Environment)
by John Barry
Environment and Social Theory provides a concise introduction to the relationship between the environment and social theory, both historically and within contemporary social theory.

Rural Sociology and the Environment
by Donald R. Field, William R. Burch
Rural Sociology and the Environment traces the origin and development of the sociology of natural resources practiced by Rural Sociologists since the turn of the century. The 135 page book is a recognition of the interplay of environment and human behavior as a basis for understanding of rural life, its problems and opportunities. An ecological perspective which permeates Rural Sociology is described and a contemporary ecological framework for examining natural resource issues of the day is introduced. An exhaustive and user friendly bibliography accompanies each chapter.
William Burch is the Hixon Professor of Natural Resource Management in Forestry and Environmental Studies and the Institute of Social and Policy Studies at Yale University.
Donald Field is a professor in the Department of Forest Ecology and Management and the Department of Rural Sociology at the University of Wisconsin.

Sociology of Environment (Hardcover) by Pawar, Patil

The Sociology of the Environment (International Library of Critical Writings in Sociology, 3 Volume Set) (Hardcover)
by Graham Woodgate, Michael Redclift (Editor)

Women Pioneers for the Environment
by Mary Joy Breton
From Publishers Weekly
Breton effectively profiles 42 19th- and 20th-century women from around the world who broke with traditional subservient roles as housewives and mothers and became dynamic environmental activists. A few of her subjects worked behind the scenes, such as Harriet Hemenway, a founder of the Massachusetts Audubon Society, and Katharine Ordway, preserver of tallgrass prairies. Most, however, have been outspoken and highly visible: Lois Gibbs mobilized the Love Canal Homeowners' Association; Cathy Hinds fought for the cleanup of a toxic-waste dump site in Maine; Michiko Ishimuri crusaded for the victims of methyl mercury near Minamata Bay in Japan; Hazel Henderson, an authority on global economics and human development issues, was labeled by corporate CEOs the "most dangerous woman in America." Some?such as Judi Bari, crippled by a car bomb while fighting to save the California redwood forests, and Dai Qing, imprisoned for her opposition to the Three Gorges Dam in China?have risked their lives. Breton, a former vice-president of the National Audubon Society, has created stirring portraits that describe the ecological problems that motivated these women, show how they challenged male-dominated power structures and emphasize the special insights they brought as women to the issues. They are inspirations for anyone bucking the odds to protect the environment. Photos. Editors, Scott Brassart and John Weingartner.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From School Library Journal
YA-An introduction to women who struggled to maintain and improve the environment during the last 300 years. Each one is briefly profiled in a larger chapter of similar activists. An effort is made to show the political and social context in which each individual had to work. Amrita Devi, for instance, clung to a tree to prevent a maharajah's soldiers from destroying a sacred forest. She was axed to death along with her three daughters and 350 other protesters before the day ended. Rachel Carson and her present-day counterpart, Theo Colborn, are given full treatment, as are Lois Gibbs and Bella Abzug. Breton also describes Tatyana Artyomkina's quest to educate the Russian people in eco-issues and Dai Qing's efforts to prevent the building of an ecologically destructive dam in China. A readable book that introduces important issues.
Carol DeAngelo, Kings Park Library, Burke, VA
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.