Star-shaped flowers, short-tempered snapping turtles, and clusters of chicken-flavored mushrooms are just a few of the many fascinating things awaiting discovery just beyond the typical North American backyard. In Heartland Habitats: 265 Midwest Nature Walks, Mary Blocksma guides readers through North American terrain, introducing them to the land and its thriving wildlife of Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, Wisconsin, Illinois, Michigan, Indiana, and Ohio. From birds of all kinds to fungi of both the tasty and deadly varieties—Chicken of the Woods, Death Caps, Jack-O-Lanterns—Blocksma gradually uncovers a world rich with breathtaking beauty. Adventures filled with swan-on-goose battles, squirrel squabbles, and forays into forests all lead to a deeper understanding of the world around us. A lively and detailed guide in befriending the great outdoors, Heartland Habitats showcases the natural wonders thriving just outside our homes with full-color illustrations and vivid descriptions.

**Heartland Homesteading A Comprehensive Guide to Sustainable Living in Iowa** Discover the keys to self-sufficiency and environmental stewardship with "Heartland Homesteading," your ultimate guide to sustainable living in the heart of America. This essential resource is designed for individuals and families looking to embrace a lifestyle that harmonizes with the unique environment of Iowa. **Introduction to Heartland Homesteading** Begin your journey with an insightful introduction to homesteading and sustainable living, tailored specifically for the rich lands of Iowa. Uncover the environmental challenges and opportunities that Midwest homesteaders face, and set achievable goals for a sustainable lifestyle. **Building a Sustainable Home** Learn how to construct an eco-friendly home using sustainable materials and energy-efficient techniques. Delve into the benefits of solar and wind energy, tailored for the Midwest climate, to reduce your carbon footprint and energy costs. **Water Management Strategies** Master the art of water conservation with comprehensive guides on rainwater harvesting, greywater recycling, and other vital water management techniques crucial for any homesteader in Iowa's varied weather conditions. **Sustainable Agriculture Practices** Transform your gardening skills with organic, permaculture, and crop rotation strategies that enrich soil health and ensure bountiful harvests. These sustainable agriculture practices are the backbone of a thriving homestead. **Raising Livestock Sustainably** Equip yourself with knowledge on selecting and managing livestock compatible with Iowa’s climate. Learn about pasture management, rotational grazing, and integrating livestock into your homestead to create a balanced ecosystem. **Food Preservation Methods** Extend the bounty of your harvest through expert food preservation methods, including canning, fermentation, dehydrating, freezing, and root cellaring. Never let a single crop go to waste. **Natural Pest and Weed Control** Adopt natural pest and weed control techniques, such as companion planting and homemade organic pesticides, to maintain a healthy and chemical-free garden. **Native Plant Landscaping** Cultivate a thriving garden with native plants that support local wildlife and enhance biodiversity. Discover the benefits and beauty of establishing a native plant garden in your homestead. **Waste Reduction and Recycling** Implement effective composting methods and recycling practices to reduce waste and promote a cleaner environment. Learn tips for minimizing single-use plastics, crucial for a sustainable homesteading life. **Alternative Transportation Solutions** Explore the benefits of biking, walking, and community car sharing as part of a greener, more sustainable lifestyle. Utilize public transportation options available in your area to reduce your carbon footprint. **Supporting Local Economies** Strengthen your community by supporting local economies through farmers' markets, community-supported agriculture (CSA), and local businesses. Foster a circular economy that benefits everyone. **Community Involvement and Education** Get involved in sustainable living groups, community education programs, and collaborations with local schools to spread the knowledge and benefits of sustainable practices throughout your community. **Sustainable Practices for Families** Involve every family member in homesteading activities and create lasting sustainability goals together. Teach the next generation the values and practices of a sustainable lifestyle. **Seasonal Activities for Sustainable Living** Engage in seasonal activities that align with sustainable living, from spring planting to fall preservation. Prepare your homestead for every season with practical tips and activities. **Overcoming Challenges in Sustainable Living** Face the inevitable challenges of homesteading with confidence. Learn how to navigate Iowa’s weather extremes, manage time and resources efficiently, and stay motivated on your sustainable living journey. "Heartland Homesteading" is your go-to manual for transforming your life into one of sustainability and self-reliance. Embrace the power of sustainable living in Iowa today!

Now a feature-length documentary on the Discovery channel narrated by Tom Brokaw. “Lush, gorgeously written…A profoundly hopeful book.” —Tina Rosenberg, winner of the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award A Kirkus Best Book of 2016 Many of the men and women doing today’s most consequential environmental work—restoring America’s grasslands, wildlife, soil, rivers, wetlands, and oceans—would not call themselves environmentalists; they would be too uneasy with the connotations of that word. What drives them is their deep love of the land: the iconic terrain where explorers and cowboys, pioneers and riverboat captains forged the American identity. They feel a moral responsibility to preserve this heritage and natural wealth, to ensure that their families and communities will continue to thrive. Unfolding as a journey down the Mississippi River, Rancher, Farmer, Fisherman tells the stories of five representatives of this stewardship movement: a Montana rancher, a Kansas farmer, a Mississippi riverman, a Louisiana shrimper, and a Gulf fisherman. In exploring their work and family histories and the essential geographies they protect, Rancher, Farmer, Fisherman challenges pervasive and powerful myths about American and environmental values.

This book is about a unique program that was created at the University of Michigan School of Natural Resources and Environment in 1972, the Environmental Advocacy Program now known as the Environmental Justice Program. Its pedagogical creed differed significantly from traditional teaching within the University. Those involved de-emphasized the role of teacher as the locus of control and endeavored to serve more as facilitators of the learning process. Authority-dependent relations were discouraged. The classroom was student-centered to emphasize student participation and symmetrical relations between student and faculty, thus fostering self-affirmation and empowerment. This education philosophy created an atmosphere that allowed students to take charge of their own learning. It is hoped that by having a few graduates relate their educational and professional experiences in this volume, we might influence some of our colleagues in academia to build similar programs--Introduction and p. [4] of cover.

This book reconstructs the settlement patterns of thirty-three immigrant groups and confirms the emergence of discrete culture regions and regional way stations. Meyer argues that midcontinental Illinois symbolizes a historic test-strip of the diverse population origins that unfolded during the Great Migration.

A riveting portrait of the cultural struggles and political conflicts of proposed copper-nickel mines in Minnesota’s Iron Range On an unseasonably warm October afternoon in Saint Paul, hundreds of people gathered to protest the construction of a proposed copper-nickel mine in the rural northern part of their state. The crowd eagerly listened to speeches on how the project would bring long-term risks and potentially pollute the drinking water for current and future generations. A year later, another proposed mining project became the subject of a public hearing in a small town near the proposed site. But this time, local politicians and union leaders praised the mine proposal as an asset that would strengthen working-class communities in Minnesota. In many rural American communities, there is profound tension around the preservation and protection of wilderness and the need to promote and profit from natural resources. In Mining the Heartland, Erik Kojola looks at both sides of these populist movements and presents a thoughtful account of how such political struggles play out. Drawing on over a hundred ethnographic interviews with people of the region, from members of labor unions to local residents to scientists, Kojola is able to bring this complex struggle over mining to life. Focusing on both pro- and anti-mining groups, he expands upon what this conflict reveals about the way whiteness and masculinity operate among urban and rural residents, and the different ways in which class, race, and gender shape how people relate to the land. Mining the Heartland shows the negotiation and conflict between two central aspects of the state's culture and economy: outdoor recreation in the Land of Ten Thousand Lakes and the lucrative mining of the Iron Range.

With a few notable exceptions, sociological studies of poor, native-born, non-ethnic whites in rural areas are rare. This book corrects this oversight with an ethnographic study of a small, poor, white, heartland community that the author calls "Potter Addition." The community consists of some 100 families and is located on the rural-urban fringe of a medium-sized Midwestern city. Poverty, Family, and Kinship in a Heartland Community is the story of three generations of rural families who, one after another, have been driven from the land during the last seventy-five years. Harvey argues against the grain of a number of recent studies that "Potter Addition's" poverty, like much modern poverty, has its origins in the productive contradictions of late capitalism. It is not the result of some moral or motivational defect of the poor themselves. At the same time he shows, even as they struggle to survive their uncertain niche and learn how to adapt, these families play an active role in reproducing the everyday material and cultural details of their poverty from the substance of their daily experiences. Working from this premise, Harvey provides a detailed ethnographic description of "Potter Addition" and its people. The volume focuses especially on the family and kinship structures that have developed in "Potter Addition" and shows how they fit into the overall response of the poor to their uncertain and unpredictable class situation. This is a unique effort by a knowledgeable researcher who, in this work, boldly steps outside conventional realms of discourse in sociology and geography.

"How do we imagine and engage with the agricultural heartlands of Australia? In the city and the bush, how do we see ourselves in relation to the farmland that nourishes us all? Heartland explores the cultural and historical foundations of ecological change and disorder across the southwest slopes of New South Wales, a rich and productive agricultural region. Rural places are today calling everyone, George Main suggests, into relationships of mutual care."--BOOK JACKET.