Autori Vari / Maccheariachefa - Fumetti e satira a difesa dell’ambiente

This unusual collection of comics on the subject of ecology and the environment began as the catalogue of a recent exhibit, produced by Claudio Colombo in collaboration with Società Umanitaria and the publisher Raccolto. Summing up the best of Italian comics and satire, this book is a fun and direct way for everyone to familiarize themselves with the discipline of ecology.

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Published

George Levine / Darwin Loves You - La selezione naturale e il reincanto del mondo

In this book, whose title evokes the ongoing diatribe between creationists and evolutionists, Levine interprets Darwin as a model for an enchanted secularism. He places Darwin into context by considering the narrative of disenchantment as well as various «uses» of Darwin’s ideas, and finds in Darwin’s writing and in his life a form of enchantment alternative to the one offered by religion, revealing not a mechanical, dog-eat-dog world, but one filled with value and meaning. Through the unusual but powerful interpretation, “Darwin loves you” strongly affirms a naturalistic ethic that can provide the basis for a new relationship between man and nature.

Published

Brian Goodwin / Dovuto alla Natura - Riflessioni sulla complessità biologica e culturale

In this remarkable book, Brian Goodwin rethinks and extends scientific understanding by viewing nature and culture as part of a continuous, creative and unified process, rather than two separate spheres. Goodwin argues that our traditional way of knowing and relating to the world has reached its limits, as consistency, wholeness and meaning are notions as relevant in nature as they are in culture, describing similar creative processes. Supported by substantial evidence, the books makes a strong case for a holistic view with far-reaching consequences, one being the need to rethink our place in the living process of which we, as human beings, are an integral part.

Published

Stephan Harding / Terra Vivente Scienza, Intuizione e Gaia

Terra vivente, the Italian translation of Animate Earth (Green Books 2007), is the first book in a new series published by Aboca and dedicated to the themes of planetary ecology and of the relationship between man and nature. In this book, Stephan Harding takes us on a fascinating journey into the earth’s bio-geological system of relations.
From the stance of deep ecology, seeking an intimate form of contact with the environment that is at once scientific, intuitive and direct, Harding enables us to discover the most hidden and complex mechanisms governing the Earth’s self-regulating ability.
The major objective of Harding’s research is to show the interconnectedness of life and the need for us to interact with the environment from within, refuting the skeptical approach of those who mistake natural evolution for the inevitable destruction of the world, and thus relinquish all responsibility, condemning future generations to a non-future.

Published in May 2008

Fritjof Capra / La Botanica di Leonardo Un discorso sulla scienza delle qualità

From the author of Tao of Physics, and following the remarkable success of his latest book The Science of Leonardo, this work offers a detailed analysis of Da Vinci’s approach to botany. From his observation and painstaking depiction of plants, Leonardo drew extremely interesting insights. These insights are analyzed here according to the perspective of that science of qualities thanks to which the great protagonist of the Renaissance captured nature in its natural process of development.

The book, enriched by plates of beautiful drawings from the world’s major museums, retraces Leonardo’s botanical studies, showing how his drawing had a solid “scientific” base, and faithfully portrayed a reality in constant evolution. The dynamism of Da Vinci’s art bears witness to his particular approach to the understanding of nature, and provides the ground for a reflection on the science of complexity, of which Leonardo can be considered, in every respect, a precursor.

Published in 2008