Geography, Environment, Earth Sciences & Planning Books

‘My favourite book about the wilderness’ Cheryl Strayed, author of WildIn this shimmering masterpiece of American nature writing, Edward Abbey ventures alone into the canyonlands of Moab, Utah, to work as a seasonal ranger for the United States National...

Fifty savvy skills for outdoor adventurers. This trusty guide teaches you all the essential skills you need to survive in the wild, from building a shelter to making a fire. Forest school practitioner Richard Skrein shares his expertise and enthusiasm...

In the tradition of The Perfect Storm and Into Thin Air, Rachel Slade’s Into the Raging Sea is a nail-biting account of the sinking of the container ship El Faro, the crew of thirty-three who perished onboard, and the destructive forces of globalisation...

A fact-packed fun book of sea themed puzzles. Test your knowledge and get thinking with this fact-packed National Geographic Kids fun book of under the sea themed puzzles. Sharks, whales, clown fish, starfish, dolphins and more – all the ocean...

A new edition to mark the centenary Ernest Shackleton's epic 1916 journey across 1300 kms of hostile ocean in a tiny, leaking boat and unmapped ice and snow to reach a rescue station by British-Australian explorer Tim Jarvis,...

*CBCA 2022 Notable Book: Eve Pownall Award*Age range 6 to 9Seal has made his home in the waters of a coastal village, but he often finds himself trapped and ensnared in the plastic rubbish filling the Bay. Fortunately, he is rescued by Lizzie and Grandpa...

Treasures of the Natural World catalogue accompanies an exhibition at the Melbourne Museum. A collection of some of the most fascinating and rare treasures from the Natural History Museum, London and enriched by the addition of First Peoples' narratives,...

Australia is a big place. It covers 7.7 million square kilometres. You would think it would be easy to find, but it stayed hidden from everyone but its First People for a very long time. Australia’s coastline was discovered piece by piece. Mapping the...

Climate change has arrived, and it's not going away. In the absence of effective world action, global warming is certain to continue. The Handbook is not another book about climate change science or politics. Rather it is an...

Successive governments have claimed that despite (or because of) Australia's 'droughts and flooding rains', we are a world leader in water management. They have highlighted such successes as the 2004 National Water Initiative, robust water rights,...

The impacts of climate change keep getting worse, but the typical framing of the problem and the solutions so far being pursued are seriously insufficient. As a result, the steps we're taking to build a clean energy economy and move beyond fossil fuels...

Why does Australia go through cycles of public policy boldness and timidity? The COVID-19 crisis has shown that the Australian political system has much more tolerance for policy innovation than appeared to be the case on the evidence of the previous...

As the many nations of the Pacific deal with the threat of climate change, including rising sea levels and lessening access to fresh water, they are also suffering from some of the slowest rates of development of any region on earth. Now more than ever,...

In the face of escalating water scarcity, effective water management has become a central concern globally. The MurrayDarling Basin, spanning over a million square kilometres across four states and one territory, is a lifeline for Australian agriculture...

The Climate Crisis and Other Animals is a must-read for anyone who cares about the future of our planet and the animals who live on it. Twine examines the impact of the climate crisis on non-human animals and argues for the importance of a climate and...

Beaches of the Northern Australian Coast covers beaches between Broome and Cooktown, and includes all beaches in the Kimberley region, the Northern Territory and Cape York in all, 3,489 beaches spread along 11,869 km of tropical coast.This book has two...

The second edition of Beaches of the New South Wales Coast has been rewritten and expanded. It covers all of the state's 757 open coast beaches, as well as 120 beaches in five large bays, including Sydney Harbour, and the 15 beaches on Lord Howe Island...

Beaches of the Tasmanian Coast and Islands covers the beaches of the Tasmanian coast, together with those on Maria, Bruny, King, Robbins, Walker and Flinders islands in all, 1,617 beaches spread along 3,030 km of coast.This book has two aims. First, to...

Journal of a Tour of Discovery Across the Blue Mountains in New South Wales in the Year 1813 was first published in 1823. It is a romantic and descriptive narrative of the journey to find a path across the Blue Mountains and received a great reception...

The natural resources of New Guinea and nearby islands have attracted outsiders for at least 5000 years: spices, aromatic woods and barks, resins, plumes, sea slugs, shells and pearls all brought traders from distant markets. Among the most sought-after...

'The studies range from the 19th century romantic getaways of picking flowers and picnicking to 21st century extreme sports such as canyoning and abseiling. Indigenous perspectives are included ... Helpfully many of the references are to unpublished...

Beaches of the Western Australian Coast covers the Western Australian coast between Eucla and Roebuck Bay, and includes Rottnest Island. It begins with three chapters that provide a background to the physical nature and evolution of the Western...

Beaches of the South Australian Coast and Kangaroo Island explores the beaches on the South Australian Coast, including those on Kangaroo Island and a few of the major islands.It begins by providing a background to the physical nature and evolution of...

Beaches of the Queensland Coast provides the first description of all Queensland's ocean beaches between Cooktown and Coolangatta, including beaches on 18 islands and in several large bays. It is based on the results of the Australian Beach Safety and...

Beaches of the Victorian Coast and Port Phillip Bay provides the first description of all Victorian ocean and Port Phillip Bay beaches. It is based on the results of the Victorian section of the Australian Beach Safety and Management Program.This book...

Landscapes in urban areas can be designed to maximise benefits to native wildlife, biodiversity and to make a healthier environment for residents. But the number of Carnaby's cockatoos visiting urban landscapes are declining and their future is uncertain...

The tropical rainforests of the Kimberley are among Australia's most biodiverse eco-systems - and, in many ways, its least understood.Kimberley rainforests are rich in species not found elsewhere in the region, have links to South-East Asia, and hold...

The cities Perth, Australia, and Aberdeen, Scotland have received relatively little attention as specific geographical-cultural locales. Often perceived as industrial, isolated and lacking romantic association, they nevertheless have rich historical,...

Housing in Australia is currently in a period of rapid change, even crisis, due to increasing environmental consciousness, demographic movements, affordability pressures, and new technologies in the building industry, in the workplace and in the house...

How can design processes assist in understanding the underlying and hybrid nature of water systems in our urban environments so that we can better prepare for the densification of cities and the impact of climate change? This book captures...

Since 2012, the fight to stop the opening of the vast Galilee coal basin has emerged as an iconic pivot of the Australian climate and environment movement.The Coal Truth: the fight to stop Adani, defeat the big polluters and reclaim our democracy...

The 1970s witnessed the emergence of a global environmental movement in response to rampant resource extraction. This moment gave rise to a celebrated 'green-black alliance' between environmentalists and Indigenous groups in Australia. However, in recent...

Possums in the roof, an echidna in the garden, or perhaps a python in the pantry? Living with Wildlife: A Guide for Our Homes and Backyards explores commonly asked questions and issues about encounters with wildlife. Taking a wildlife friendly approach,...

Quantifying Diets of Wildlife and Fish presents different techniques available to study animal diets. Ecologists determine animal diets to build natural history knowledge, test hypotheses in ecological theory and make informed management decisions for...

Victoria's South-West is an iconic region of Australia that includes the exceptional landscape features of the Grampians-Gariwerd, the Victorian Volcanic Plain with crater lakes and cones, the forests of the Great Dividing Range, and Melbourne...

Mayflies are one of the world's most diverse, abundant and important aquatic insects. Famous for their brief adult life spans, mayflies play a key role in the ecology of aquatic and associated terrestrial ecosystems, and are critical...

Many informal organisations around the world are making a positive impact on the environment and their communities by turning waste into a resource, increasing the social capacity of their community and reducing the amount of pollution in their...

The types of plants and animals that live on seashores in temperate regions are similar around the globe, but many of the individual species in south-eastern Australia are found only in this region.Field Guide to the Seashores of South-Eastern Australia...

The Australian wildfires of 201920 (Black Summer) were devastating and unprecedented. These megafires burnt more than 10 million hectares, mostly of forests in southern and eastern Australia. Many of the fires were uncontrollable. These megafires...

Volcanoes & Earthquakes features the earth sciences at their most spectacular. It reveals the massive internal forces that create and change the Earth's surface, with dramatic and sometimes beautiful consequences.The authors explain what fuels the...

The Action Plan for Australian Lizards and Snakes 2017 provides the first comprehensive assessment of the conservation status of Australian squamates in 25 years. Conservation assessments are provided for 986 species of Australian lizards and snakes...

Advances in Reintroduction Biology of Australian and New Zealand Fauna is a timely review of our understanding of translocation from an Australasian perspective, ensuring translocation becomes an increasingly effective...

The Australian continent provides a unique perspective on the evolution and ecology of carnivorous animals. Since European settlement, Australia has seen the extinction of one large marsupial predator (the thylacine),...

Australia's coral reefs stretch far and wide, covering 50 000 square kilometres from the Indian Ocean in the West to the Pacific Ocean in the East. They have been viewed as a bedrock of coastal livelihoods, as uncharted and perilous nautical...

*CBCA 2022 Notable Book: Eve Pownall Award*Age range 6 to 9A conservation tale of the Gilbert's Potoroo Australia's rarest mammal.When a bushfire destroys Potoroo's home, he becomes one of the last surviving Gilbert's Potoroos at Two Peoples Bay in...

**Shortlisted for the 2023 Environment Award for Children's Literature**Age range 5 to 9The Plains-wanderer is unlike any other bird on Earth it's one of a kind!On the Trail of the Plains-wanderer tells the true story of one of Australia's most...

Global food security is dependent on ecologically viable production systems, but current agricultural practices are often at odds with environmental sustainability. Resolving this disparity is a huge task, but there is much that can be learned from...