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Informationen zum Autor Sara Dant is Professor of History at Weber State University, USA. Her work focuses on environmental politics in the United States with a particular emphasis on the creation and development of consensus and bipartisanism. She is the author of several prize-winning articles on western environmental politics and co-author of the two-volume Encyclopedia of American National Parks (2004). Her recent articles cover a wide range of environmental topics, including "LBJ, Wilderness, and the Land and Water Conservation Fund," "Going with the Flow: Navigating to Stream Access Consensus," and "Field Notes: Brigham Young's 'All the People' Quote Quandary." Klappentext Historical narratives often concentrate on wars and politics while leaving out the central role and influence of the physical stage on which history is carried out.In Losing Eden, expert scholar and professor Sara Dant traces the environmental history and development of the American West and explains how the land has shaped and been shaped by the people who live there.In a lively and accessible narrative, the text discusses the key events and topics in the environmental history of the American West, from the Beringia migration, Columbian Exchange, and federal territorial acquisition to post-WWII expansion, resource exploitation, and current climate change issues. It is structured around three important themes: balancing economic success and ecological destruction; avoiding "the tragedy of the commons;" and achieving sustainability. The text is the ideal supplement for a variety of college-level courses on US or environmental history and incorporates many student-friendly features, including definitions of key terms, suggested reading sections, and over 30 illustrations. Cohesive and compelling, Losing Eden recognizes the historical role of the natural world in the American West and provides important analysis on the continually evolving relationship between the land and its inhabitants. Zusammenfassung Losing Eden traces the environmental history and development of the American West and explains how the land has shaped and been shaped by the people who live there.* Discusses key events and topics from the Beringia migration, Columbian Exchange, and federal territorial acquisition to post-war expansion, resource exploitation, and climate change* Structures the coverage around three important themes: balancing economic success and ecological protection; avoiding "the tragedy of the commons"; and achieving sustainability* Contains an accessible, up-to-date narrative written by an expert scholar and professor that supplements a variety of college-level survey or seminar courses on US, American West, or environmental history* Incorporates student-friendly features, including definitions of key terms, suggested reading sections, and over 30 illustrations Inhaltsverzeichnis List of Figures viiiAcknowledgments xiiIntroduction - The Nature of the West 11 Losing "Eden" 72 The West Transformed 243 Claiming and Taming the Land 444 The Great Barbecue 655 The Pivotal Decade 826 Conservation and Preservation 1027 Roll On 1188 Booming the West 1359 Building Consensus 15310 Environmental Backlash and the New West 172Epilogue - Sustainability and the "Triumph of the Commons" 192Index 206...
List of contents
List of Figures viiiAcknowledgments xiiIntroduction - The Nature of the West 11 Losing "Eden" 72 The West Transformed 243 Claiming and Taming the Land 444 The Great Barbecue 655 The Pivotal Decade 826 Conservation and Preservation 1027 Roll On 1188 Booming the West 1359 Building Consensus 15310 Environmental Backlash and the New West 172Epilogue - Sustainability and the "Triumph of the Commons" 192Index 206
Report
"The Western landscape is in flux. In her latest book, Sara Dant brings perspective to these changes by examining the factors that precipitated them. That her book should arrive now, at a 180-degree pivot in presidential administrations and political philosophy, in many ways raises the importance of the book.We are living, and creating, environmental history on a daily basis in the West. Can we maintain connectivity between various genetic pools of both fauna and flora to help them flourish, or will development further strangle them on shrinking biological islands? Ms. Dant's book provides context and perspective to this ongoing change.Though barely 200 pages, and so only a scraping of the surface of the West's evolution, Ms. Dant does much justice...[and] ends each chapter with a robust list of suggested readings through which you can further bolster your understanding of the issues in play. The author leaves us without an illuminating panacea for how we can sustainably consume the West. Rather, she urges us to talk and compromise for what's best for this landscape we love." -National Parks Traveler
