Feral: Rewilding the Land, the Sea, and Human LifeAn optimistic approach to environmentalism that focuses on the wonders of rewilding, not just the terrifying consequences of climate change. To be an environmentalist early in the twenty-first century is always to be defending science and acknowledging the hurdles we face in our efforts to protect wild places and fight climate change. But let’s be honest: hedging has never inspired anyone. So what if we stopped hedging? What if we grounded our efforts to solve environmental problems in hope instead, and let nature make our case for us? That’s what George Monbiot does in Feral, a lyrical, unabashedly romantic vision of how, by inviting nature back into our lives, we can simultaneously cure our “ecological boredom” and begin repairing centuries of environmental damage. Monbiot takes readers on an enchanting journey around the world to explore ecosystems that have been “rewilded”: freed from human intervention and allowed—in some cases for the first time in millennia—to resume their natural ecological processes. We share his awe as he kayaks among dolphins and seabirds off the coast of Wales and wanders the forests of Eastern Europe, where lynx and wolf packs are reclaiming their ancient hunting grounds. Through his eyes, we see environmental success—and begin to envision a future world where humans and nature are no longer in conflict, but are part of a single, healing world. |
From inside the book
Results 1-5 of 58
Page i
... ecological problems.” —Sunday Times “Monbiot's book is wadded full with stories and facts aplenty, but the quality that most endures are his descriptions of the bigger world. . . . The tangible, almost perfume-heavy descriptions of the ...
... ecological problems.” —Sunday Times “Monbiot's book is wadded full with stories and facts aplenty, but the quality that most endures are his descriptions of the bigger world. . . . The tangible, almost perfume-heavy descriptions of the ...
Page ii
... ecological horrors perpetrated by sheep and the perverse defence of their depredations by assorted conservation bodies are not just persuasive but powerfully affecting. He is brilliant, too, at pre- senting statistics in readable form ...
... ecological horrors perpetrated by sheep and the perverse defence of their depredations by assorted conservation bodies are not just persuasive but powerfully affecting. He is brilliant, too, at pre- senting statistics in readable form ...
Page xiv
... ecological processes which permit so many other species to survive. The plan is wildly ambitious, but it might not be as implausible as some people assume. As Foreman points out, even in Florida, where the human population has been ...
... ecological processes which permit so many other species to survive. The plan is wildly ambitious, but it might not be as implausible as some people assume. As Foreman points out, even in Florida, where the human population has been ...
Page xvii
... ecological destruction: greed and denial. The basis on which the stocks were managed was the opposite of the Precautionary Principle: the Providential Principle. This means that if there's even a one percent chance that our policy will ...
... ecological destruction: greed and denial. The basis on which the stocks were managed was the opposite of the Precautionary Principle: the Providential Principle. This means that if there's even a one percent chance that our policy will ...
Page xx
... ecology, which show that you cannot safely disaggregate an ecosystem. The loss of one species often has severe consequences for species and sys- tems to which it appears at first to be unconnected ... ecological boredom. xx Introduction.
... ecology, which show that you cannot safely disaggregate an ecosystem. The loss of one species often has severe consequences for species and sys- tems to which it appears at first to be unconnected ... ecological boredom. xx Introduction.
Contents
| 1 | |
| 14 | |
Chapter 3 Foreshadowings | 23 |
Chapter 4 Elopement | 40 |
Chapter 5 The Neverspotted Leopard | 49 |
Chapter 6 Greening the Desert | 62 |
Chapter 7 Bring Back the Wolf | 90 |
Chapter 8 A Work of Hope | 121 |
Chapter 10 The Hushings | 167 |
Chapter 11 The Beast Within Or How Not to Rewild | 186 |
Chapter 12 The Conservation Prison | 209 |
Chapter 13 Rewilding the Sea | 228 |
Chapter 14 The Gifts of the Sea | 258 |
Chapter 15 Last Light | 267 |
Notes | 269 |
Index | 303 |
Other editions - View all
Feral: Searching for Enchantment on the Frontiers of Rewilding George Monbiot No preview available - 2013 |
Common terms and phrases
Alan America animals appears areas aurochs beach Beast beavers began big cats birch birds boat breeding Britain British Caledonian Forest Cambrian Mountains Cardigan Bay cattle cent century coast conservation creatures Dafydd deer ecological ecosystem elephants environmental estuary Eurasian lynx Europe European extinction farmers farming feet Feral fish Fisheries forest Forestry Forestry Commission George Monbiot grass grasslands grazing ground grouse habitats heather hills human hunting Ibid kayak killed land landscape lion live looked lynx Mammals Mesolithic miles Mountains National Ecosystem Assessment native natural world North numbers once paddle Park perhaps pine places plankton plants population predators prey protect red grouse reintroduction rewilding Ritchie river rocks salmon Scotland seen sheep shore Slovenia soil species square kilometres straight-tusked elephant subsidies suggests survive told trees trophic cascades uplands valley Wales walked waves Welsh whales Wildlife Trust wind wolf wolves woodland woods Yalden Zimov