Nature's Best Hope by Douglas W. Tallamy

Nature’s Best Hope, says Doug Tallamy, is us. We humans are the best hope for the planet we have so badly wounded. Tallamy, an entomologist by training, and a passionate conservationist, has been inspired by E.O. Wilson’s Half-Earth message: the idea that if we are to save humanity, then we must save biodiversity, and if we are to save biodiversity, we must protect half of the earth. Tallamy asks how we can do this, and has come up with a revolutionary solution: start in your own backyard. Homegrown National Park is his project to encourage people to do just that — to convert parts of their lawns and gardens to native plant meadows. As an entomologist, he sees the devastation of native insect populations, which are often very specifically dependent on native plants. Monarch butterflies, completely reliant on milkweed to complete their life cycle, are the best-known example, but there are hundreds of others. This book lays out his argument and gives us practical advice on how to change the world, one backyard at a time. Our own.

Recommended by Liz Thompson

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How to Do Nothing by Jenny Odell

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Vermont Almanac: Stories From and For the Land, Volume IV