Environmental Science: Working with the Earth

Part I Humans and sustainability - an overview: environmental problems, their causes, and sustainability living sustainably growth and the wealth gap resources pollution environmental and resource problems - causes and connections cultural changes and sustainability is our present course sustainable?: economics, politics, ethics, and sustainability economic systems and environmental problems economic growth and external costs solutions - using economics to improve environmental quality solutions - reducing poverty solutions - converting to earth-sustaining economies politics and environmental policy environmental worldviews - clashing values and cultures solutions - living sustainably. Part II Scientific principles and concepts - science, systems, matter and energy science, technology, environmental science, and critical thinking: models and behaviour of systems matter - forms, structure, and quality energy - forms and quality physical and chemical changes and the law of conservation of matter nuclear changes the two ironclad laws of energy connections - matter and energy laws and environmental problems ecosystems and how they work - connections in nature ecology and life earth's support systems ecosystem concepts and components connection - food webs and energy flow in ecosystems connections - matter cycling in ecosystems how do ecologists learn about ecosystems?: ecosystem services and sustainability evolution, biodiversity, and community processes - life and its origins evolution and adaptation speciation, extinction, and biodiversity niches and types of species species interactions ecological succession ecological stability and sustainability climate, weather, and biodiversity weather and climate - a brief introduction biomes - climate and life on land desert and grassland biomes forest and mountain biomes saltwater life zones freshwater life zones population dynamics, carrying capacity, and conservation biology population dynamics and carrying capacity reproductive strategies and survival conservation biology - sustaining wildlife populations human impacts on ecosystems - learning from nature solutions - working with nature to help heal ecosystems risk, toxicology, and human health risks and hazards - toxicology, chemical hazards physical hazards - earthquakes and volcanic eruptions biological hazards - disease in developed and developing countries. (Part contents)