Research Resources for Environmental Studies

Find books

Wellesley College Library catalog - In addition to books, you'll find journal titles (NOT individual articles), videos, and more.in the Wellesley College Libraries. To find journal articles on your topic, visit the section, "Find articles and essays."

Nearby library catalogs.
Links to other local libraries.

WorldCat (via FirstSearch)^WC
OCLC catalog of books and other materials available in libraries worldwide. WorldCat Help.

National Academies Press (NAP).
More than 3,500 full-text books are readable and searchable here. Browse recent online studies in categories such as Environment & Environmental Studies.

Find background information

Columbia Guide to American Environmental History. Clapp Reference GF501 .M47 2002.
CQ Researcher Online Well-documented reports on environmental topics like environmental protection. 1991+.
Dictionary of Environmental Quotations Science Ref PN6084.N2 D53 1998.
Encyclopedia of Environmental Issues. Clapp Ref GE10 .E52 2000.
Environmental Encyclopedia. Clapp Ref GE10 .E38 2003.
Environmental Movements in Minority and Majority Worlds: a Global Perspective. ^WC (eBrary book).
Global Environment Year Book 2006.
State of the world : a Worldwatch Institute Report on Progress Toward a Sustainable Society. Latest edition: Clapp Ref HC59 .S734 2006; earlier editions in Clapp stacks.

Find articles and essays

The following databases provide either full-text articles or citations (information about when and where the article was published).

Once you have an article citation,

• Use the Find It! @ Wellesley link from each citation to reach one or more electronic journal sources.
• If Find It! @ Wellesley does not automatically identify an electronic source, search for the source through the Wellesley College Library Catalog. Use the name of the journal as the title.
• If Wellesley does not own the title, you can request it via Interlibrary Loan (ILL).

  ^WC = Wellesley College users only.

ArticleFirst ^WC(via FirstSearch)
Multidisciplinary database of citations of articles in all fields, including popular culture. Daily updating. ArticleFirst Help.

Google Scholar.
Multidisciplinary coverage of peer-reviewed literature— journal articles, theses, books, preprints, and more. Complements, but does not replace, searching in other databases. Advanced Scholar Search Tips.

will show up in Google Scholar. Go to Google Scholar, and click on "Scholar Preferences" to the right of the search box. Search for Wellesley in the library links box. Make sure you check it and save your preferences. Go back and do a search.

Humanities Abstracts. ^WC (via WilsonWeb) 1984+.
Includes citations and/or abstracts to English-language articles about the environment, from the early 1980's onward. Selected items are available online, from early to mid-1990's onward. For all available recent coverage, select Humanities Abstracts, Social Sciences Full Text, and OmniFile Full Text Mega Edition. (For pre-1983 coverage, select Humanities and Social Sci Retro as well.)

InfoTrac OneFile ^WC (via Infotrac) 1980's+ (citations / some abstracts); 1990's+ (selected full-text articles).
Great starting point for scholarly & popular articles in every discipline.

JSTOR ^WC
Contains articles in selected scholarly journals written prior to the last few years. JSTOR is an archive of older issues of selected journals. Advanced Search. allows you to focus on specific subject clusters of interest (e.g., architecture, education, general science, history, political science, etc.) Search Tips.

LexisNexis Academic News ^WC - Full-text news from international, national, or regional news sources.

LexisNexis Environment Abstracts ^WC
Abstracts of environmental journal articles and conference papers. (Part of LexisNexis Environmental Universe which also contains environmental news and commentary, and codes and regulations.)

National Library of the Environment - Publishes the Congressional Research Service Reports online. Browse by subject or search by keyword.

Periodicals Index Online ^WC - Index to articles published in more than 4,500 periodicals in the humanities and social sciences.

Project Muse ^WC (via Johns Hopkins University Press). Current 2-6 yrs. Academic journals in humanities, social and life sciences. Search Hints.

Other databases may be useful for you, depending on your specific topic and approach. Ask Us! for some customized suggestions or contact the library liaison for an appointment.

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Go to a guide tailored for your class

Environmental Studies 100: Humans and Nature

Internet links

Environment Canada - The Green Lane - Offers publications and information about a variety of environmental topics.

Earth Trends is a "comprehensive online database, maintained by the World Resources Institute , that focuses on the environmental, social, and economic trends that shape our world." Ten topic areas are analyzed, and each is offered as thematic articles, country profiles, searchable database, data tables, and maps.

Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Network (U.S. Department of Energy). details the agency's programs, news, and popular energy topics.

Environmental Agencies of the World - This site was created by David Shaman of the World Bank. It lists agencies responsible for environmental issues by country. To get to the contact information by country you must first search by region. Each country's entry lists contact information and a web address if one is available.

Environmental Jobs and Careers - Links to environmental opportunities in the USA and Canada.

Environmental Literacy Council - Provides high-quality web resources to assist its users in their search for a fundamental understanding of major environmental issues.

Environmental News - Contains current news from the Environmental News Network (ENN). You can browse through their predetermined categories or create your own search strategy with the Search News or News Archive links.

Electronic Green Journal - Is a peer-reviewed online journal which publishes scholarly review articles on international environmental themes. Flora Shrode at the University of Tennessee has a regular column which focuses on environmental information resources.

Environmental Working Group - Publishes investigative content online for use by public interest groups and citizens campaigning to protect the environment. Broad environmental scope includes topics such as pesticides, drinking water and air pollution.

Friends of the Earth - Provides both informative press releases and ways for individuals to "take action" to help save the environment.

United Nations Environmental Programme's UNEP.Net - Delivers authoritative environmental information from an international perspective. Major topics include climate change, biodiversity, water, and the Arctic.

United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) - Search this official U.S. federal government site by key topic or browse current issues. EPA-related laws and regulations are also available online.

Window to my Environment - Search the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) website by zip code in order to see a "window" and environmental map of a specific area. The map can be "re-drawn" to display various environmental characteristics of the area including hazardous waste and superfund sites.

World Resources Institute - A globally-oriented think tank, whose goal is to assist people in conducting their lives in individually and collectively responsible ways which protect the environment. Many of their publications (example: A Guide to World Resources 2005) are available free in pdf format.

Contact the departmental Library liaison

For help with your research, or to schedule a Library research session for your class, contact Irene Laursen, Library research liaison.

To discuss acquiring particular resources, contact Lisa Brainard or Graham Henderson, library collections liaisons to Environmental Studies.

Go to related Wellesley College academic departments

Environmental Studies

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• Irene Laursen
• Wellesley College Library
• Date created: August 16, 2001
• Date Modified: September 20, 2006
• Expires: September 1, 2007