ST. PAUL, Minn. Environmental restoration is about more than plants and animals. In a newly released book, Restoring Nature: Perspectives from the Social Sciences and Humanities, researchers explore the realm of human-nature interactions, of differing values and understandings about nature, and how that information can be effectively used to guide science and policy.
The book originated in 1996, during a Chicago controversy that led to moratoriums on restoration activities in 2 counties and a lawsuit to halt a major restoration demonstration project. The protests also served as a catalyst for the first concerted effort to examine the human aspects of environmental restoration.
"Restoring Nature was the natural outgrowth of the 1998 symposium to review the state of the art," stated Paul Gobster, co-editor and North Central Research Station scientist. "We began to see common threads among session participants working in diverse environments, from urban areas like Chicago to remote wilderness areas in the East and West," he continued. Co-editor Bruce Hull from Virginia Tech added, "environmental management is increasingly as much a human element as it is an ecological or technical one."
Contributors examine:
- moral and ethical questions regarding the practice of restoration
- conflicts over how nature is defined and who should be included in decisions about restoration and management
- how restoration projects can succeed given the various constraints and considerations that need to be taken into account
- how those involved in restoration play a critical role in sustaining projects over time
Ecological restoration is an inherently challenging endeavor. Not only is its underlying science still developing, but the concept itself raises complex questions about nature, culture, and the role of humans in the landscape.
The 321-page book is published by Island Press, and is available in cloth ($50) and paperback ($25) editions. You can order by phone at 1-800-828-1302 or via the web at http://www.islandpress.org/books/
About the Authors
Paul H. Gobster is Research Social Scientist with the USDA Forest Service, North Central Research Station in Chicago, Illinois. He may be reached by phone at 847-866-9311 ext. 16 or email at pgobster@fs.fed.us.
R. Bruce Hull is Associate Professor of Forestry in the College of Natural Resources at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Virginia. He may be reached by phone at 1 540-231-7272 or email at hullrb@vt.edu.
Additional Contributors include:
Susan C. Barro, USDA Forest Service, North Central Research Station-Chicago
Mark W. Brunson, Department of Forest Resources, Utah State University
Jane Buxton, Landscape Architect, San Francisco, CA
Cheryl Foster, Department of Philosophy, University of Rhode Island
Robert Grese, School of Natural Resources and Environment, University of Michigan
Reid M. Helford, Departments of Sociology and Environmental Studies, Whitman College
William R. Jordan III, New Academy for Nature and Culture
Rachel Kaplan, School of Natural Resources and Environment, University of Michigan
Eric Katz, Department of Humanities and Social Science, New Jersey Institute of Technology
Byoung-Suk Kweon, College of Architecture, Texas A&M University
Andrew Light, Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, New York University
Carol Raish, USDA Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station-Albuquerque
Robert Ryan, Department of Landscape Architecture and Regional Planning, University of Massachusetts
David Robertson, Department of Forestry, Virginia Tech
Herbert Schroeder, USDA Forest Service, North Central Research Station-Chicago
Elizabeth Tyler, Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Joanne Vining, Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign