Subject Specialist:
Law, Political Science, International Affairs
814-863-1347
e-mail: hms2@psu.edu
Helen Sheehy
Title: Head Social Sciences Library
Subject Specialist:
Law, Political Science, International Affairs
814-863-1347
e-mail: hms2@psu.edu
The following is not meant to be an exhaustive list of databases but rather the most useful starting places. For additional resources consult other relevant Libraries' research guides
Ecology Abstracts — focuses on how organisms of all kinds — microbes, plants, and animals — interact with their environments and with other organisms. Also includes works on the impacts of environmental change
Environmental Engineering Abstracts — covers the world literature pertaining to technological and engineering aspects of air and water quality, environmental safety, and energy production.
Environmental Sciences and Pollution Management — provides abstracts and references to the environment literature covering all areas of air, land, water, and noise pollution as well as bacteriology, ecology, toxicology, risk assessment, environmental engineering, environmental biotechnology, waste management, and water resources from 1967 to the present.
GreenFile — a database focusing on the relationship between human beings and the environment with information on topics ranging from global warming to recycling to alternate fuel sources and ... the positive and negative ways humans affect the ecology.
GreenR — an interdisciplinary resource that offers content on the development of emerging green technologies and discusses issues on the environment, sustainability and more.
Environment and Energy Newsletters — Newsletters providing comprehensive, daily coverage of environmental and energy policy and markets. Consisting of 4 separate newsletters: Greenwire, Climatewire, Landletter, and Environment & Energy Daily. The newsletters cover legislative, regulatory, and policy issues.
GreenWire — provides daily coverage of environmental issues with the emphasis on energy, environment, and sustainability. Topics covered include: climate change issues; the development of wind, solar and other renewable energy; trends in fossil fuel resources and development; Clean Air Act regulation and litigation; electric utility regulation; biofuels development; new energy technologies; endangered species; public lands management; water resources; and many others
ClimateWire — provides daily coverage of the debate over climate policy and its effects on business, the environment and society
Land Letter — provides daily coverage of legislative, regulatory, and policy issues related to natural resources. Topics include forestry, oil and gas issues, public lands, wildlife, and more
BNA Environment Law Reporter — provides in-depth news and analysis of environmental law along with applicable statutes and court cases. Updated weekly.
Agricola articles — index to agricultural literature
Avery Index to Architectural Periodicals — includes green building design
Biological Abstracts — the primary index to literature in the biological sciences
Compendex (Engineering Village) — the primary index to engineering literature
NTIS [National Technical Information Service] — government technical reports, many of which relate to environmental issues
Encylcopedia of Global Warming and Climate Change. George S. Philander, ed., 2008
available online in the Gale Virtual Reference Library
Berkshire Encyclopedia of Sustainability
Berkshire Encyclopedia of Sustainability, 1: The Spirit of Sustainability by Willis Jenkins, Whitney Bauman, and Ray Anderson. 2010.
In The Spirit of Sustainability, religion [scholars] and other scholars assess the key ways in which religious ideas, beliefs, and practices have both promoted sustainability and served as roadblocks.
Encylcopedia of Sustainability. Robin Morris Collin. 2010
Green Politics - an A-Z Guide. Dustin Mulvaney. 2010
"some of the essential concepts, actors, institutions, and processes in green politics today"
Encyclopedia of Global Change
"Encompassing tsunamis, elephant conservation, ocean pollution, mining regulation, and permafrost melt, the 300 authoritative articles in this unique and wide-ranging encyclopedia investigate all types of phenomena that change life on Earth. The entries cover a range of general research categories: altered ecosystems, climate change, food and water supply, population, politics and global change, institutions and policies, biographies, and case studies."
Penn State Center for Sustainability
Penn State’s academic hub for student and faculty engagement around experiential, transformative sustainability education.
Penn State Sustainability Plan
A committee has been convened to create a plan for sustainability at Penn State. The goal of this plan is to document Penn State's unique contribution to a sustainable society and to envision a sustainable Penn State.
green.psu.edu
“PSU is Blue, White, and Green”
Campus Sustainability Office
Part of the Office of Physical Plant, it is responsible for improving the sustainability performance of the university.
e-Waste — Green efforts at the Penn State Computer Store
African American Environmentalist Association
"The African American Environmentalist Association (AAEA), founded in 1985, is a national, nonprofit environmental organization dedicated to protecting the environment, enhancing human, animal and plant ecologies, promoting the efficient use of natural resources, and increasing African American participation in the environmental movement."
Union of Concerned Scientists
"Citizens and Scientists for Environmental Solutions"
The Water Page
"The Water Page is an independent initiative dedicated to the promotion of sustainable water resources management and use. A particular emphasis is placed on the development, utilisation and protection of water in Africa and other developing regions."
International Organizations Search Engine
Search across hundreds of IGOs for a topic you are interested in researching.
2002 UN World Summit on Sustainable Development — papers and proceedings
UN journals and newsletters
Natural Resources Forum. A United Nations Sustainable Development Journal — covers research on policy issues related to the UN sustainable development agenda as well as current issues before of the United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD)
Sustainable Development Innovation Briefs — covers emerging research in sustainable development
Policy Briefs — from the UN Division for Sustainable Development
Sustainable Development Insights — Policy briefs written in conjunction with the Frederick S. Pardee Center for the Study of the Longer-Range Future
UN Agencies
United Nations Environment Programme — the main focus point within the UN for all environmental efforts
Commission for Sustainable Development. UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs
Home to the The United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD) which was established by the UN General Assembly in December 1992 to ensure effective follow-up to the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED), also known as the Earth Summit.
Sustainable development is a popular and important concept, but one that is open to a variety of interpretations. The Joint UNECE/Eurostat/OECD Working Group on Statistics on Sustainable Development (2005-2008) made a breakthrough in this area by reaching a common understanding on the principles of how to measure sustainability. It also started to develop a small core set of indicators that would be comparable between countries. The outcome of this work is presented in the publication on Measurement Sustainable Development issued in 2009.
Organization of American States (OAS)
“Ensuring and promoting sustainable development–which entails balancing economic growth, social equity and environmental protections–throughout the Western Hemisphere continues to be one of the chief objectives of the OAS. Through its Secretariat for Integral Development, the Organization oversees numerous projects and programs aimed at achieving concrete results. The OAS plays an important cooperation role in the Americas by helping member states formulate policies and execute projects aimed at improving the well being of its citizens.”
Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)
Worldwatch Institute
"Worldwatch was the first independent research institute devoted to the analysis of global environmental concerns. Worldwatch develops innovative solutions to intractable problems, emphasizing a blend of government leadership, private sector enterprise, and citizen action that can make a sustainable future a reality."
Sustainable Agriculture from the National Institute for Food and Agriculture
Research guide to sustainable agriculture resources from the National Agriculture Library
Energy Sources — including information on renewables, nuclear, and clean technologies
Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development
Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources
Clearwater Conservancy — they have an extensive list of links to other local sites!
Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful — an initiative of Keep America Beautiful, Inc.
Pennsylvania Environmental Council — resources and projects for the central Pennsylvania region
Appalachian Regional Commission — searching sustainable development pulls up a number of useful reports.
