Messy Death (A Vira Silk Novel Book 1)

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Oct 30, Release Day Launch: Ignite 1, Explosive Series. Love Between the Sheets. Oct 29, Blog Tour: Armentrout - Pure Covenant 2. Oct 28, Meatless Monday: My Favorite Vegan Recipe. Faith McKay - Prophecy Girl. Do you want to be featured next?

Come check out what Meatless Monday is all about! See this post for more info on our to participate. Rachel Brookes - Breathless Breathe 1. Barton and William S. The landscapes of North America, including eastern forests, have been shaped by humans for millennia, through fire, agriculture, hunting, and other means.

For over a century they have been the target of controversial diversion schemes designed to sell, send, or ship water to With the effects of climate change already upon us, the need to cut global greenhouse gas emissions is nothing less than urgent. A small set of energy What are the best transit cities in the US? The best Bus Rapid Transit lines? The most useless rail transit lines? In the US, the 25 largest metropolitan areas and many smaller cities have fixed guideway transit Melissa Bruntlett and Chris Bruntlett.

In car-clogged urban areas across the world, the humble bicycle is enjoying a second life as a legitimate form of transportation. City officials are rediscovering it as a multi-pronged or -spoked solution to acute, 21st-century problems, John Randolph and Gilbert M. Despite a glut in fossil fuel markets and decade-low fuel prices, the global transformation to sustainable energy is happening. Our ongoing energy challenges and solutions are complex and multidimensional, involving science, technology, Mangos from India, pasta from Italy, coffee from Colombia: Every day, we are nourished by a global food system that relies on our planet remaining verdant and productive.

But current practices are undermining both human and environmental health, Structures of Coastal Resilience presents new strategies for creative and collaborative approaches to coastal planning for climate change. In the face of sea level rise and an increased risk of flooding from storm surge, we must become Edited by Clint W. Boal and Cheryl R. Raptors are an unusual success story of wildness thriving in the heart of our cities—they have developed substantial populations around the world in recent decades.

But there are deeper issues around how these birds make their urban homes But vast areas in the same cities house thousands The strain of living in a poor neighborhood, with sub-par schools, lack of parks, fear The bicycle enjoyed a starring role in urban history over a century ago, but now it is back, stronger than ever. It is the single most important tool for improving our cities. Designing around it is the most efficient way to make our cities Edited by Jessica Eise and Ken Foster. By , we will have ten billion mouths to feed in a world profoundly altered by environmental change.

How can we meet this challenge? In How to Feed the World , a diverse group of experts from Purdue University break down this crucial The convergence of new shared mobility services with automated and electric vehicles promises to significantly reshape Kim Sorvig and J. Since the publication of the first edition in , Sustainable Landscape Construction has helped to spur a movement towards resilient outdoor environments, in the U. The third edition has been updated to Edited by Jason Beske and David Dixon. The suburban dream of a single-family house with a white picket fence no longer describes how most North Americans want to live.

The dynamics that powered sprawl have all but disappeared. Instead, new forces are transforming real estate markets, Hester , Jeffrey Hou , Laura J. Lawson , and Marcia J. Cities across the globe have been designed with a primary goal of moving people around quickly—and the costs are becoming ever more apparent. The consequences are measured in smoggy air basins, sprawling suburbs, unsafe pedestrian Edited by Denise Fairchild and Al Weinrub.

A global energy war is underway. It is man versus nature, fossil fuel versus clean energy, the haves versus the have-nots, and, fundamentally, an extractive economy versus a regenerative economy. National and global efforts have failed to stop climate change, transition from fossil fuels, and reduce inequality. We must now confront these and other We tend to approach conflict from the perspective of competing interests.

Messy Death

Clewell and James Aronson. National Association of City Transportation Officials. Streets make up more than 80 percent of all public space in cities, yet street space is often underutilized or disproportionately allocated to the movement of private motor vehicles.

Excess impervious surface contributes to stormwater runoff, For more than a century, we have relied on chemical cures to keep our bodies free from disease and our farms free from bugs and weeds.

Messy Death - A Vira Silk Novel (Paperback)

We rarely consider human and agricultural health together, but both are based on the same ecology, and both are Edited by Joseph M. Kiesecker and David E. Over the next several decades, as human populations grow and developing countries become more affluent, the demand for energy will soar. Parts of the energy sector are preparing to meet this demand by increasing renewable energy production, which Bicycling advocates envision a future in which bikes are a widespread daily form of transportation. While many global cities are seeing the number of bike commuters increase, this future is still far away; at times, urban cycling seems to be What does it mean to be a resilient city in the age of a changing climate and growing inequity?

As urban populations grow, how do we create efficient transportation systems, access to healthy green space, and lower-carbon buildings for all For five thousand years, human settlements were nearly always compact places. Everything a person needed on a regular basis lay within walking distance.

But then the great project of the twentieth century—sorting people, businesses, and Even those who find time for a family meal are cut off from the people who grew, harvested, Edited by Deanna H. Olson and Beatrice Van Horne. We owe much of our economic prosperity to the vast forested landscapes that cover the earth.

The timber we use to build our homes, the water we drink, and the oxygen in the air we breathe come from the complex forested ecosystem that many of us Earth education is traditionally confined to specific topics: But in the coming century, on track to be the warmest in human history, every aspect of human life will be affected by our Landis's book is as much call to action as paean to mesmerizing molluscs.

Wondolleck and Steven Lewis Yaffee. Julia Wondolleck and Steven Yaffee are hopeful. Rather than lamenting the persistent conflicts in global marine ecosystems, they instead sought out examples where managers were doing things differently and making progress against great odds What if, even in the heart of a densely developed city, people could have meaningful encounters with nature?

Messy Death: A Vira Silk Novel

While parks, street trees, and green roofs are increasingly appreciated for their technical services like stormwater reduction, from a For decades, landscape architecture was driven solely by artistic sensibilities. But in these times of global change, the opportunity to reshape the world comes with a responsibility to consider how it can be resilient, fostering health and Sanderson , William D. Solecki , John R. Waldman , and Adam S. Given the realities of climate change and sea-level rise, coastal cities around the world are struggling with questions of resilience. Resilience, at its core, is about desirable states of the urban social-ecological system and Buildings contribute to a changing climate and warming of the earth in ways that will significantly Annie Matan and Peter Newman.

He believes that good architecture is not about form, but about the interaction between form and life. Over the last 50 years Allan Savory with Jody Butterfield. Fossil fuels and livestock grazing are often targeted as major culprits behind climate change and desertification.

But Allan Savory, cofounder of the Savory Institute, begs to differ. The bigger problem, he warns, is our mismanagement of Palmer , Joy B. Zedler , and Donald A. Falk ; Foreword by Karen Holl. The practice of ecological restoration, firmly grounded in the science of restoration ecology, provides governments, organizations, and landowners a means to halt degradation and restore function and resilience to ecosystems stressed by climate Cities around the world are facing the same challenges as cities in the US, and many of Edited by Daniel Pauly and Dirk Zeller.

Until now, there has been only one source of data on global fishery catches: An extensive, ten-year study conducted by The Sea Around Us Stephanie Meeks and Kevin C. At its most basic, historic preservation is about keeping old places alive, in active use, and relevant to the needs of communities today. As cities across America experience a remarkable renaissance, and more and more young, diverse families Food waste, hunger, inhumane livestock conditions, disappearing fish stocks—these are exactly the kind of issues we expect food regulations to combat.

Yet, today in the United States, laws exist at all levels of government that actually Not a good city or a functional city but a Thirty years ago, the best thinking on urban stream management prescribed cement as the solution to flooding and other problems of people and flowing water forced into close proximity.

Urban streams were perceived as little more than flood Theobald , and S. Scientists have been warning for years that human activity is heating up the planet and climate change is under way. In the past century, global temperatures have risen an average of 1. Richard Heinberg and David Fridley.

By the end of the century and perhaps sooner , we will shift from Today, more than half of the global population—3. There is no question that cities are growing; the only debate is Traditional toxicology textbooks tend to be doorstops: Meanwhile, magazine and journal articles introduce students to timely topics such as BPA and endocrine disruption or Transit and cities grow together.

As cities work to become more compact, sustainable, and healthy, their work is paying dividends: There exists a category of American cities in which the line between suburban and urban is almost impossible to locate. These suburban cities arose in the last half of twentieth-century America, based largely on the success of the single-family Can nature—in all its unruly wildness—be an integral part of creative landscape design?

In her beautifully illustrated book, Wild by Design , award-winning designer Margie Ruddick urges designers to look beyond the rules often Steiner ; Foreword by Richard T. Humans have always been influenced by natural landscapes, and always will be—even as we create ever-larger cities and our developments fundamentally change the nature of the earth around us.

In Human Ecology , noted city planner and Ray Tomalty and Alan Mallach. The headlines about cities celebrating their resurgence—with empty nesters and Millennials alike investing in our urban areas, moving away from car dependence, and demanding walkable, transit-oriented neighborhoods. How long should a leaf live? When should blueberries ripen? Questions like these may seem simple or downright strange—yet they form the backbone of natural history, a discipline that fostered Keohane and Sheila M.

A clear grasp of economics is essential to understanding why environmental problems arise and how we can address them. So it is with good reason that Markets and the Environment has become a classic text in environmental studies since its Gabe Klein with David Vega-Barachowitz. There has been a revolution in urban transportation over the past five years—set off by start-ups across the US and internationally.

Sleek, legible mobility platforms are connecting people to cars, trains, buses, and bikes as never before, From New York City's urban forest and farmland in Virginia to the vast Sonoran Desert of Arizona and riverside parks in Vancouver, Washington, green infrastructure is becoming a priority for cities, counties, and states across America In New Mexico's Gila Wilderness, Mexican gray wolves may be some of the most monitored wildlife on the planet. Collared, microchipped, and transported by helicopter, the wolves are protected and confined in an attempt to appease ranchers Among twenty-four key trends, Vital Signs Volume 22 explores significant global patterns in production and consumption.

The result is a fascinating Google, Apple, Amazon, Uber: How often is the environmental movement characterized in the same terms? Sadly, conservation is frequently seen as a losing battle, waged In , adventurer and conservationist John Davis walked, cycled, skied, canoed, and kayaked on an epic month, 7,mile journey that took him from the keys of Florida to a remote seashore in northeastern Quebec.

Davis was motivated by a It's time to think differently about cities and nature. Understanding how to better connect our cities with the benefits nature provides will be increasingly important as people migrate to cities and flourish in them. All this urban growth, Peter Newman and Jeffrey Kenworthy. Cities will continue to accommodate the automobile, but when cities are built around them, the quality of human and natural life declines. Current trends show great promise for future urban mobility systems that enable freedom and connection, but Tercek and Jonathan S.

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What is nature worth? The answer to this question—which traditionally has been framed in environmental terms—is revolutionizing the way we do business. From the days of the American Frontier, the term "open spaces" has evoked a vision of unspoiled landscapes stretching endlessly toward the horizon, of nature operating on its own terms without significant human interference.

Prepared for the National Climate Assessment and a landmark study in terms of its breadth and depth of coverage, Great Plains Regional Technical Input Report is the result of a collaboration among numerous local, state, federal, and Jonathan Barnett and Larry Beasley. As world population grows, and more people move to cities and suburbs, they place greater stress on the operating system of our whole planet.

But urbanization and increasing densities also present our best opportunity for improving sustainability The average parking space requires approximately square feet of asphalt. Space devoted to parking in growing urban and suburban areas is highly Stuart Echols and Eliza Pennypacker. Stormwater management as art? Rain is a resource that should be valued and celebrated, not merely treated as an urban design problem—and yet, traditional stormwater treatment methods often range from ugly to forgettable. We think we understand environmental damage: But these problems are just the tip of the iceberg.

Food insecurity, financial assets drained of value by environmental damage, and a rapid rise in diseases A compelling look at the global food crisis, with particular emphasis on global innovations that can help solve a worldwide problem. State of the World not only introduces us to the latest agro-ecological innovations and their global State of the World Our Urban Future examines changes in the ways cities are managed, built, This much-anticipated edition of Vital Signs covers 35 global trends that are shaping our future.

From carbon emissions to loss of wetlands, each trend provides a brief status report on the topic plus graphs and charts that offer a visual Left unaddressed, we risk global disaster. But if we channel this wave, intentionally transforming our cultures to center on sustainability, we will not only State of the World provides a special focus on China and India and their impact on the world as major consumers of resources and polluters of local and global ecosystems. The report explains the critical need for both countries to " This report tracks and analyzes 44 trends that are shaping our future, and includes graphs and charts to provide a visual comparison over time.

Categories of trends include: It's New Year's Day, Somehow, humanity survived the worst of global warming—the higher temperatures and sea levels and the more intense droughts and storms—and succeeded in stabilizing the Earth's climate. In State of the World , Worldwatch researchers explore underlying sources of global insecurity including poverty, infectious disease, environmental degradation, and rising competition over oil and other resources.

Environmental issues were once regarded as irrelevant to economic activity, but today they are dramatically rewriting the rules for business, investors, and consumers. Around the world, innovative responses to climate change and other The challenges are still immense, of course, as the book also documents, but the building blocks for a historic reinvention of human civilization are now within reach. State of the World includes chapters on climate change, farming, toxic chemicals, sustainable tourism, population, resource conflicts and global governance. From the thinning of the Arctic sea ice to the invasion of the mosquito-borne West Nile virus, State of the World shows how the economic boom of the last decade has damaged natural systems.

The increasingly visible evidence of State of the World shines a sharp light on the great challenge our civilization faces: Written in clear and concise language, with easy-to-read charts and tables, State of the World presents a view of our changing world that we cannot afford to ignore. In this fifteenth edition of State of the World , Lester R. Brown and the Worldwatch research team look at the environmental effects of continuing economic growth as the economy outgrows the earth's ecosystem.

As the global economy has The new Vital Signs gives you more than charts, graphs and tables that show you the worldwide trends that are changing our lives, for better and for worse. It includes the latest data on critical global trends, presented in simple The global trends documented in Vital Signs —from a decline in nuclear power generating capacity to the proliferation of genetically modified crops—will play a large part in determining the quality of our lives and our The global trends documented in Vital Signs —from the rapid rise in the sales of energy-efficient compact fluorescent lamps to the worldwide overpumping of growndwater—will play a large role in determining the quality of The global trends documented in Vital Signs —from the rapid increase in the use of wind power to the continued warming of the planet—will play a large role in determining the quality of our lives and our children's The edition features more than 50 key indicators of long-term trends—from the growth of fish farms and bicycle production to the increase in solar cell and Internet use.

In the twenty-first century, cities worldwide must respond to a growing and diverse population, ever-shifting economic conditions, new technologies, and a changing climate. Short-term, community-based projects—from pop-up parks to open Can they solve problems, communicate, and navigate their surroundings? Or are they passive, incapable of independent action or social behavior? Philosophers and scientists have pondered these questions since ancient Greece Protected natural areas have historically been the primary tool of conservationists to conserve land and wildlife. These parks and reserves are set apart to forever remain in contrast to those places where human activities, technologies, and In one hundred years, or even fifty, the Arctic will look dramatically different than it does today.

As polar ice retreats and animals and plants migrate northward, the arctic landscape is morphing into something new and very different from what From Henry David Thoreau to Rachel Carson, writers have long examined the effects of industrialization and its potential to permanently alter the world around them. Today, as we experience rapid global urbanization, pressures on the natural Over the past century, we have developed increasingly potent and sophisticated pesticides, yet in , the average percentage of U. This trend presents a tremendous opportunity How can we plan and design stronger communities?

From New Orleans to Galveston to the Jersey Shore, communities struck by natural disasters struggle to recover long after the first responders have left. Globally, the average annual number of All are evolving, some surprisingly rapidly, in response to our chemical age. In Unnatural Selection , Emily Monosson shows how our drugs, pesticides, and pollution are exerting intense In the early s, the environmental movement was underway. The American West has a long tradition of conflict over water. But after fifteen years of drought across the region, it is no longer simply conflict: In the face of unprecedented declines in reservoir storage and groundwater Something new and important is afoot.

Nonprofit and philanthropic organizations are under increasing pressure to do more and to do better to increase and improve productivity with fewer resources. Social entrepreneurs, community-minded leaders, Plum and pear trees shade park benches in Kamloops, British Columbia. Tomatoes and cucumbers burst forth from planters at City Hall in Provo, Utah. Strawberries and carrots flourish along the sunny sidewalks of a Los Angeles neighborhood From the pioneering Bus Rapid Transit system Vital Signs Volume 21 is all about growth. From natural disasters to cars to organic farming, the two dozen trends examined here indicate both increasing pressure on natural resources and scaled up efforts to live more sustainably.

Few industries in the U. In the face of growing challenges from climate change and the need for energy security, a system and a business model that each took more than a century to evolve must now The jaguar is one of the most mysterious and least-known big cats of the world. The largest cat in the Americas, it has survived an onslaught of environmental and human threats partly because of an evolutionary history unique among wild felines, Concern over climate change and the ongoing challenges of managing degraded ecosystems have made the field of ecological restoration a growing focus in the agendas of national and international conservation organizations, including the United Winkler and Jeffrey A.

Developed to inform the National Climate Assessment, and a landmark study in terms of its breadth and depth of coverage and conducted under the auspices of the U. Joe Landsberg and Richard Waring. Scientists tell us that climate change is upon us and the physical world is changing quickly with important implications for biodiversity and human well-being. Forests cover vast regions of the globe and serve as a first line of defense against What would it mean to live in cities designed to foster feelings of connectedness to the ocean?

As coastal cities begin planning for climate change and rising sea levels, author Timothy Beatley sees opportunities for rethinking the relationship The intersection between geography and law is a critical yet often overlooked element of land-use decisions, with a widespread impact on how societies use the land, water, and biodiversity around them. Land Use and Society, Third Edition Yoram Bauman and Grady Klein. Climate change is no laughing matter-but maybe it should be. The topic is so critical that everyone, from students to policy-makers to voters, needs a quick and easy guide to the basics.

The Cartoon Introduction to Climate Change Water scarcity is spreading and intensifying in many regions of the world, with dire consequences for local communities, economies, and freshwater ecosystems. Current approaches tend to rely on policies crafted at the state or national level, The bridge collapse in Minneapolis-St. The extreme vulnerability of single Is the future of Earth to be fully domesticated, an What would it be like to live in a world with no predators roaming our landscapes? Would their elimination, which humans have sought with ever greater urgency in recent times, bring about a pastoral, peaceful human civilization?

Or in fact is Citizens expect their governments to lead on sustainability.

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But from largely disappointing international conferences like Rio II to the U. The United States is over eighty percent urbanized, yet over half of the population still lives in suburban settings, characterized by low-density, automobile-dependent development with separated land uses. These disconnected and isolated Completely re-designed with an accessible, four-color layout, this second edition continues to build upon the Hurricane Irene ruptured a Baltimore sewer main, resulting in million gallons of raw sewage flooding the local watershed.

Levee failures during Hurricane Katrina resulted in massive flooding which did not recede for months. Developed to inform the 3rd National Climate Assessment, and a landmark study in terms of its breadth and depth of coverage and conducted under the auspices of the U. Epidemiologists are braced for the big one: In recent years, we have experienced scares with a host of new influenza viruses: Produced biennially, The World's Water is the most comprehensive and up-to-to date source of information and analysis on freshwater resources.

Each new volume examines critical global trends and offers the best data available on a With over 80 percent of Americans now living in cities and suburbs, getting our communities right has never been more important, more complicated, or more fascinating. Longtime sustainability leader Kaid Benfield shares 25 enlightening and John Grim and Mary Evelyn Tucker.

Climate Change in the Northwest: Implications for Our Landscapes, Waters, and Communities is aimed at assessing the state of knowledge about key climate impacts and consequences to various sectors and communities in the northwest United Prepared for the National Climate Assessment and a landmark study in terms of its breadth and depth of coverage, Climate of the Southeast United States is the result of a collaboration among three Regional Integrated Sciences and Jan Gehl and Birgitte Svarre.

How do we accommodate a growing urban population in a way that is sustainable, equitable, and inviting? This question is becoming increasingly urgent to answer as we face diminishing fossil-fuel resources and the effects of a changing climate Across the country, communities are embracing a new and safer way to build streets for everyone—even as they struggle to change decades of rules, practice, and politics that prioritize cars.

They have discovered that changing the design of The best cities become an ingrained part of their residents' identities. Urban design is the key to this process, but all too often, citizens abandon it to professionals, unable to see a way to express what they love and value in their Despite an uncertain economy, the market for green building is exploding. The NACTO Urban Street Design Guide shows how streets of every size can be reimagined and reoriented to prioritize safe driving and transit, biking, walking, and public activity.

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Unlike older, more conservative engineering manuals, Sadhu Aufochs Johnston , Steven S. Nicholas , and Julia Parzen.

Superstorm Sandy sent a strong message that a new generation of urban development and infrastructure is desperately needed, and it must be designed with resilience in mind. As cities continue to face climate change impacts while growing in World Bank President Jim Yong Kim has vowed that his institution will fight poverty and climate change, a claim that World Bank presidents have made for two decades.

But if worldwide protests and reams of damning internal reports are any Vegan, low fat, low carb, slow carb: Every diet seems to promise a one-size-fits-all solution to health. But they ignore the diversity of human genes and how they interact with what we eat.

Prepared for the National Climate Assessment and a landmark study in terms of its breadth and depth of coverage, Oceans and Marine Resources in a Changing Climate is the result of a collaboration among numerous local, state, How do you achieve effective low-carbon design beyond the building level?

How do you create a community that is both livable and sustainable? More importantly, how do you know if you have succeeded? Harrison Fraker goes beyond abstract principles In , with support from the Wildlands Network, Davis traveled 7, miles in 10 months from Florida to Maine by foot, bicycle, skis, and Reid Ewing and Otto Clemente. What makes strolling down a particular street enjoyable? The authors of Measuring Urban Design argue it's not an idle question. Inviting streets are the centerpiece of thriving, sustainable communities, but it can be difficult to pinpoint In our increasingly polarized society, there are constant calls for compromise, for coming together.

For many, these are empty talking points—for Lucy Moore, they are a life's work. As an environmental mediator, she has spent the past From meat consumption to automobile production to hydropower, Vital Signs, Volume 20 documents over two dozen trends that are shaping our future in concise analyses and clear tables and graphs.

The twentieth volume of the Worldwatch Today, there are more than three parking spaces for every car in the United States. No one likes searching for a space, but in many areas, there is an oversupply, wasting valuable land, damaging the environment, and deterring development Prepared for the National Climate Assessment and a landmark study in terms of its breadth and depth of coverage, this report blends the contributions of experts in climate science, economics, ecology, engineering, geography, hydrology, Suburbs deserve a better, more resilient future.

June Williamson shows that suburbs aren't destined to remain filled with strip malls and excess parking lots; they can be reinvigorated through inventive design. Drawing on award-winning design When the national park system was first established in , the goal "to conserve unimpaired" seemed straightforward.

But Robert Keiter argues that parks have always served a variety of competing purposes, from wildlife protection and Edited by John L. Seventy percent of the oil America uses each year goes to transportation. That means that the national oil addiction and all its consequences, from climate change to disastrous spills to dependence on foreign markets, can be greatly reduced by With their elusive and solitary nature, tigers and snow leopards are a challenge for even the most seasoned field biologists to track and study.

Edited by Victoria Keener , John J. Finucane, Deanna Spooner, and Margaret H. Prepared for the National Climate Assessment and a landmark study in terms of its breadth and depth of coverage, Climate Change and the Pacific Islands was developed by the Pacific Islands Regional Climate Assessment, a collaborative Edited by Virginia Burkett and Margaret Davidson. Richard Alley ; Edited by Eban Goodstein.

The online seminars provide a forum for leading scientists, writers, and Hunter Lovins ; Edited by Eban Goodstein. Sarah Miles added it Nov 21, Stephanie Parent marked it as to-read Nov 21, Donnie Hibbard marked it as to-read Dec 06, Tracy Berry marked it as to-read Dec 11, Vanessa marked it as to-read Mar 08, Com marked it as to-read Nov 05, Tasha Turner marked it as to-read Feb 04, Sabrina Street added it Feb 28, Sandra Porath is currently reading it Dec 10, There are no discussion topics on this book yet. Jennifer Starks has been writing since the tender age of eight. She gets giddy at the thought of visiting a bookstore, loves that good ole Library smell, is most at home reading or at her desk writing.

She adores her family, even when they are preventing her from writing.

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