Dr. Michael Charles Tobias and Jane Gray Morrison are world-renowned ecological philosophers and activists, interdisciplinary social and environmental scientists and broad-ranging, deeply committed humanists. This collection of fifty essays and interviews comprises an invigorating, outspoken, provocative and eloquent overview of the ecological humanities in one highly accessible volume. The components of this collection were published in the authors’ "Green Conversations" blog series, and pieces in the Eco News Network from 2011 to 2013 and feature luminaries from Jane Goodall to Ted Turner to the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution to the former head of the UN Convention on Biological Diversity. Stunning color photographs captured by the authors and contributors make Why Life Matters: Fifty Ecosystems of the Heart and Mind a feast for the eyes as well as the mind and soul.

In this book, an easily understandable account of modelling methods with artificial neuronal networks for practical applications in ecology and evolution is provided. Special features include examples of applications using both supervised and unsupervised training, comparative analysis of artificial neural networks and conventional statistical methods, and proposals to deal with poor datasets. Extensive references and a large range of topics make this book a useful guide for ecologists, evolutionary ecologists and population geneticists.

This book covers several innovative alternative livelihoods based on mangrove floral resources with their respective SWOT analysis. True mangrove flora and their associates in Indian Sundarbans are noted for their wide spectrum of ecosystem services in which livelihoods of the region are one of the most important components. Many alternative mangrove-centric livelihoods are in the pipeline of startup. However, due to difficulty in marketing and lack of clarity over ownership of natural resources, the values of the mangrove-based products have not been fully realized. Natural resources of several categories in Indian Sundarbans like oysters, seaweeds, medicinal mangrove flora, vitamin-rich mangrove fruits, etc. are still lying untapped. These untapped resources have been spun with the livelihood sectors of the Sundarban people backed up with sound business models to make the venture sustainable. The carbon foot prints associated with each of these livelihoods have been studied in details and steps have been suggested for net zero carbon livelihood programmes along with their sustainability. The book provides the readers about several mangrove-based cutting-edge researches and technologies in the domain of climate resilient livelihood, which if implemented can lead to food and economic security of the region.

The water policy issues are well- documented in a large set of reports and studies, completed over time showing that the policy prescription and its implementation has been weak in the past as this book reveals. The key reforms initiated were lost due to a lack of government’s will and commitment and more so by pervasive political economy of water. Given this background, each chapter in the book follows a balanced approach in seeking and evaluating alternate solutions to water management issues, especially improvements in water governance and tackling new challenges emerging from the climate change in the short and long term. This approach underpins the importance of moving from the culture of piloting projects to actual implementation on an impact-oriented scale. The book would also highlight that most of the water solutions lie outside the water sector such as agriculture, population, economy, etc. Post COVID-19 policies are exploring new food-health nexus that calls for nature based solutions for our future agriculture growth. The book would show case pioneer work underway in Pakistan on how new policy discourse can reduce water use in agriculture without investing in expensive water technology and infrastructure, thus saving enough water for other competing purposes.

THE SUNDAY TIMES’ BESTSELLER AND SCIENCE AND ENVIRONMENT BOOK OF THE YEAR
WINNER OF THE SUNDAY TIMES YOUNG WRITER OF THE YEAR AWARD
SHORTLISTED FOR THE BAILLIE GIFFORD PRIZE
SHORTLISTED FOR THE WAINWRIGHT CONSERVATION AWARD
SHORTLISTED FOR THE BRITISH ACADEMY BOOK PRIZE
SHORTLISTED FOR THE HIGHLAND BOOK PRIZE

This new edition of Fungal Associations focuses on mycorrhizas, lichens and fungal-bacterial symbioses. It has been completely revised, updated and expanded. Renowned experts present thorough reviews and discuss the most recent findings on molecular interactions between fungi and plants or bacteria that lead to morphological alterations and novel properties in the symbionts. New insights into the beneficial impact of fungal associations on ecosystem health are provided and documented with striking examples.

Sex in Cetaceans provides an up-to-date review of multi-faceted aspects related to mating and reproduction in toothed and baleen whales. This open access book begins with discussions of sexual selection and anatomical traits related to mating and diversity between the sexes. The functions of non-conceptive copulations are reviewed as are different research techniques applied to explore sex in cetaceans. Authors and editors build knowledge of female and male social, mating, and parental strategies and tactics for several specific toothed dolphin/porpoise/whale species and baleen whale species. It concludes with a discussion of potential conservation efforts and ways to help especially beleaguered species and populations the world over.