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 78
Page xiv
... ecosystems.14 In the United States, perhaps more rapidly than anywhere else, farming is retreating from marginal and unproductive land; forests are returning and con- servation easements and land trusts are proliferating.15 The ...
... ecosystems.14 In the United States, perhaps more rapidly than anywhere else, farming is retreating from marginal and unproductive land; forests are returning and con- servation easements and land trusts are proliferating.15 The ...
Page xviii
... ecosystem and told they could treat it as they wished. The forests would have fol- lowed the fishery to oblivion had it not been for a coalition of remarkable activists from the First Nations and beyond, who were prepared to lose their ...
... ecosystem and told they could treat it as they wished. The forests would have fol- lowed the fishery to oblivion had it not been for a coalition of remarkable activists from the First Nations and beyond, who were prepared to lose their ...
Page xix
... ecosystems of British Columbia, and collisions less likely. It also strikes me as symbolic: if the natural world stands in the way, we will erase it. Just as government and industry blamed and persecuted seals for the decline of cod in ...
... ecosystems of British Columbia, and collisions less likely. It also strikes me as symbolic: if the natural world stands in the way, we will erase it. Just as government and industry blamed and persecuted seals for the decline of cod in ...
Page xx
... ecosystem processes, it must feel like living in a country under enemy occupation. It must also be intensely embarrassing. Can- ada is becoming a pariah state, whose name now invokes images formerly associated with countries like ...
... ecosystem processes, it must feel like living in a country under enemy occupation. It must also be intensely embarrassing. Can- ada is becoming a pariah state, whose name now invokes images formerly associated with countries like ...
Page 7
... ecosystems shows us that whenever people broke into new lands, however rudimentary their technology and small their numbers, they soon destroyed much of the wildlife – especially the larger animals – that lived there. There was no state ...
... ecosystems shows us that whenever people broke into new lands, however rudimentary their technology and small their numbers, they soon destroyed much of the wildlife – especially the larger animals – that lived there. There was no state ...
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