"A land ethic changes the role of Homo sapiens from conqueror of the land-community to plain members and citizens of it. It implies respect for fellow members, and also respect for the community as such.." Aldo Leopold.

Soil can be understood for the science of its properties and processes. It is also possible, and probably essential, to understand the holistic role soil plays in maintaining the quality, integrity, stability, and beauty of the environment as a whole. In this regard, soil is critically connected to a complex order of events supporting life on this planet. History has taught us that people attach powerful meaning to the land. Most indigenous societies accord it various levels of respect, some even worship the earth as being connected to their soul. Ancient societies recognized the need for soil stewardship, and the degree to which peoples have protected this resource has played a significant role in world history.

Every powerful country has commanded, and even fought for, sufficient soil resources to feed their inhabitants. When the quantity or quality of their soil resources declined, so did the country. The standard of living of an area is highly related to the soil resources available and the stewardship applied. As these cycles and events are still at work today, an intelligent study of soil should include all these aspects.

References

During this semester you may want to read a book "whose principal topic centers on a land ethic". I have included a starter list of such books here.

As a guide when reading these books, consider;
1. the central theme(s) of the book in the context of your land ethic,
2. the book's impact, on formulating and/or changing your beliefs and behaviors, especially regarding soil, water, and natural resources, and
3. how knowledge of the "science of soils", as being covered in our class, is necessary to apply the "ethics of soils", as presented in the book.

Suggested Book Titles

Title. Author, Publisher, Publication Date. (Call no.)

• Altars of Unhewn Stone. Wes Jackson, North Point Press, 1987. (S441 .J248)
• A Sand County Almanac. Aldo Leopold, Oxford University Press, 1949. (QH81.L56)
• Companion to A Sand County Almanac. J. Baird Callicott, Univ. of Wisconsin Press. 1987. (QH81.L563 C66)
• Down to Earth: Environment and Human Needs. Erik P. Eckholm, Norton Publ., 1982. (GF41.E24)
• Dust Bowl. Donald Worster, 1979. (F786.W87)
• The Dust Bowl: Men, Dirt, Depression. Paul Bonnefield, University of New Mexico Press, 1979. (F595.B73)
• Earth in the Balance: Ecology and the Human Spirit. Al Gore, Houghton Mifflin Co., 1992.
• Edaphos: Dynamics of a Natural Soil System. Paul D. Sachs, The Edaphic Press. 1993
• Erosion and Environment. Milos Holy, Pergamon Press, 1980. (S623.H72) Book is mostly technical.
• Farming the Dust Bowl. Lawrence Svobida, University of Kansas Press, 1986. (S417.S94 A3)
• Farmland or Wasteland: A Time to Choose. Neil Sampson. Rodale Press. 1986.
• Forever The Land. Russell and Kate Lord, Harper and Brothers, 1950. (S441.L62)
• Green Fields Forever. Charles E. Little, Island Press Publ., 1987. (S604.L57)
• The Human Impact on the Natural Environment. Andrew Goudie, Basil Blackwell Ltd. 1990. (GF75.G68)
• In Praise of Nature. Stephanie Mills, Island Press. 1991?
• Let the Mountains Talk, Let the Rivers Run. David Brower, Harper Collins Publ. 1995
• Losing Ground: Environmental Stress and World Food Prospects. Erik P. Eckholm, Norton Publ., 1976.(S601.E24)
• Man's Responsibility for Nature. John Passmore, Charles Scribner's Sons Publ. 1974. (GF75.P34)
• Meeting the Expectations of the Land. Wes Jackson, Wendell Berry, Bruce Coleman,
• North Point Press, 1984. (S441.M43)
• Mother Earth or Letters on Soil. Gilbert W. Robinson, T. Murby and Co. Publ., 1937.
• Nature's Economy: The Roots of Ecology. Donald Worster, Sierra Club Books. 1977.
• New Roots for Agriculture. Wes Jackson, University of Nebraska Press, 1980. (S493.J14)
• Nothing But Conservation. Roy Dingle, R. H. Dingle Publ. 1993.
• One Earth, One Future. Cheryl Silver, National Academy Press, 1990. (GF75.S55)
• Our Margin of Life. Eugene M. Poirot, Vantage Press, 1964. (S624.A1P6)
• Our Sustainable Table. Robert Clark, North Point Press, 1990. (S441.A483)
• Out of the Earth. Daniel J. Hillel, Free Press, 1991. (S591.H61)
• Plowman's Folly. Edward Faulkner, University of Oklahoma Press, 1943. (S631.45 Fp)
• A Respect for Nature. Paul Taylor, Princeton University Press, 1986. (GF80.T39)
• The Rights of Nature. R. E. Nash, University of Wisconsin Press, 1989. (GF80.N36)
• Silent Spring. Rachel Carson, ,1962. (SB959.C3)
• The Spirit of the Soil: Agriculture and Environmental Ethics. Paul Thompson, Routledge Publ., 1995. (S589.75.T48)
• Soil and Survival. Joe Paddock, Nancy Paddock, and Carol Bly, Sierra Club Books, 1986. (HD256.P32)
• The Dream of the Earth. Thomas Berry, Sierra Club Books. 1988.
• The Earth is the Lord's: Essays on Stewardship. Mary E. Jegen and Bruno V. Manno, Paulist Press, 1978.
• The Earth Spirit: Its Ways, Shrines, and Mysteries. John Mitchell, Thames and Hudson, 1975.
• The End of Nature. Bill McKibben, Random House, 1989. (GF75.M38)
• The Great Lakes Forest: An Environmental and Social History. Susan Flader, Univ. of Minnesota Press, 1983.
• The Human Impact: Man's Role in Environmental Change. Andrew Goudie, MIT Press, 1982.
• The One-Straw Revolution. Masanobu Fukuoka, Rodale Press, 1978. (S604.F8413)
• The Unsettling of America: Culture and Agriculture. Wendell Berry, Avon Publ. 1977. (HD1761.B47)
• The Vanishing Land. Robert W. Howard, Ballantine Books, 1985. (S441.H725)
• Topsoil and Civilization. Vernon G. Carter and Tom Hale, Univ. of Oklahoma Press, 1974. (S419.D3)
• Touch the Earth. T.C. McLuhan, Pocket Books, 1972. (E98.C9M16)
• The Vanishing Farmland Crisis. John Baden, University of Kansas Press, 1984. (HD256.V36)
• Who Will Feed China? Lester Brown, W. W. Norton and Co., 1995
• Wilderness and Plenty. Frank Darling, Houghton Mifflin Co., 1995. (GF75.D3)
• Wilderness and the American Mind. Roderick Nash, Yale University Press, 1982.
• Will the Bounty End? Garry L. Fairbairn, Western Producer Prairie Books, 1984. (S451.5.A1F35)
• Wisdom of the Elders. David Suzuki and Peter Knudtson, Bantam Books, 1992