The End of Eden: Wild Nature in the Age of Climate Breakdown

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"A book that goes deeper than any before into the meaning of the climate breakdown for all the rest of creation that shares this planet uneasily with us."--Bill McKibben A revelatory exploration of climate change from the perspective of wild species and natural ecosystems--an homage to the miraculous, vibrant entity that is life on Earth. The stories we usually tell ourselves about climate change tend to focus on the damage inflicted on human societies by big storms, severe droughts, and rising sea levels. But the most powerful impacts are being and will be felt by the natural world and its myriad species, which are already in the midst of the sixth great extinction. Rising temperatures are fracturing ecosystems that took millions of years to evolve, disrupting the life forms they sustain--and in many cases driving them towards extinction. The natural Eden that humanity inherited is quickly slipping away. Although we can never really know what a creature thinks or feels, The End of Eden invites the reader to meet wild species on their own terms in a range of ecosystems that span the globe. Combining classic natural history, firsthand reportage, and insights from cutting-edge research, Adam Welz brings us close to species like the moose of Northern Maine, the parrots of Puerto Rico, Namibias cheetahs and rare fish in Australia as they struggle to survive. The stories are intimate yet expansive and always dramatic. An exquisitely written and deeply researched exploration of wild species reacting to climate breakdown, The End of Eden offers a radical new kind of environmental journalism that connects humans to nature in a more empathetic way than ever before and galvanizes us to act in defense of the natural world before its too late.

Reviews

Adam Welz is a first-class observer of the natural world, usually found with binoculars around his neck. He's also a first-class reporter on the science of our environmental predicaments. Together, these traits have allowed him to produce a book that goes deeper than any before into the meaning of the climate breakdown for all the rest of creation that shares this planet uneasily with us. * Bill McKibben *
A book both celebratory and devastating, Adam Welz revels in the marvels of lifes diversity and delivers a devastating account of ecological crisis. He brings climate breakdowns effects on the more-than-human world to vivid life, revealing in the process the interconnectedness of all species. * David George Haskell, author of SOUNDS WILD AND BROKEN *
One of the great tricks the fossil fuel industry has pulled off in the last century is convincing the American public that 'nature' is something over there, separate from us. It is there only for us to extract value from, and thus respecting or wanting to protect nature, especially at the cost of profit, is something only out-of-touch elitists would do. Adam Welz blows this deeply entrenched narrative to pieces in a book that is as rigorously reported as it is beautifully written and, somehow, hopeful. * Amy Westervelt, host of Drilled *

Author Bio

Adam Welz is an enthusiastic naturalist and widely traveled environmental writer, photographer, and filmmaker. His work has appeared in The Guardian, Yale Environment 360, The Atlantic, Ensia, and many other outlets worldwide. Hes a recipient of a Middlebury Fellowship in Environmental Journalism and currently lives in Cape Town with his wife and triplet daughters. @adamwelz @adamwelz.wild