Find reference materials

Use the Library’s reference collections to consult specialized dictionaries, encyclopedias & yearbooks to find overviews or summaries, and definitions of terms and/or concepts. Note location codes of items held in Government Documents (MRR).

Encyclopedias

• Dictionary of ecodesign: an illustrated reference [15]
• REF NK1520.Y43 2010
• Youth Activism: an international encyclopedia [16]
• REF HQ799.2.P6Y648 2006
• Encyclopedia of environmental ethics and philosophy [17]
• REF GE42.E533
• Encyclopedia of Environment and Society [18]
• REF HM856.E53 2007

• State of the World [19]; a Worldwatch Institute report on progress toward a sustainable society
  REF HC59.A1S7
• Understanding Global Issues [20] (numbered series)
  MRR G1046.G1U52

Online Tools

• International Encyclopedia of Human Geography [21]
• GreenFILE [22]
• Sage Reference Online - 2011 Encyclopedia collection [23]

Sage Reference Series on Green Society includes:

• Green Culture [24]
• Green Education [25]
• Green Ethics and Philosophy [26]
• Green Health [27]
• Green Issues and Debates [28]
• Green Technology [29]

Useful Books

Taking Sides; Clashing views on Environmental Issues [30]

Design revolution: 100 products that empower people [31]

Biomimicry: innovation inspired by nature [32]

The state of China atlas: mapping the world's fastest-growing economy [33]

How bad are bananas? the carbon footprint of everything [34]

Sustainable communities: skills and learning for place making [35]

Green products: perspectives on innovation and adoption [36]

Not just a pretty face: the ugly side of the beauty industry [37]

Note: If a book is currently checked out, place a hold on it by clicking on the "Hold/Request" button. If a book is on term loan (120 days) it is subject to recall after 28 days.

Using the library catalogue

Searching the Catalogue

Use the Keyword [38] search to find books, e-books, videos, and  government documents in the Library’s collection.

Searching Tips

• Join concepts together using AND & OR
• Use AND when the concepts are not related, such as food AND communities. This will narrow your search.
• Use OR when the concepts are similar, such as youth OR adolescent. This broadens the search.
• Use the truncation symbol * when you want to allow for several spellings or variations on a word. For example, a serach for Canad* will return Canada, Canadian, Canadians.
• Key phrases are groups of words that always appear together.  Enclose key phrases in double quotation marks and if no matich is found, remove the quotation marks to search as individual words. For example, "green marketing"

Use the Subject [39] search to find books by the controlled vocabulary of the Library of Congress subject headings.

Here are recommended subject headingss to use when searching the topics for your essay:

Ecoliteracy/Environmental Education --> use Environmental Education [40]

Green Entrepreneurship --> use Green products [41]

Ecohealth --> use Environmental Health [42]

Permaculture/Sustainable agriculture --> use Agricultural ecology [43]

Community shared agriculture --> use Alternative agriculture [44] or use Sustainable agriculture [45]

Socially Repsonsible Business --> use  Social responsibility of business [46]

Relocalization --> use Sustainable living [47]

New Urbanism --> use Community development Canada [48]

Civil Society --> use Peace building [49] or Civil society [50]

Seed Banks --> use Genetic engineering [51] or Food crops [52] or Genetic resources conservation [53]

Wildlife Corridors --> use Corridors (Ecology) [54] or Wildlife conservation [55] or Wildlife management [56]

Food security/Food sovereignty --> use Food security [57] or Food supply [58]

Biomimicry --> use Biomimicry [59]or use Engineering design [60] or use Nature [61] or use Technological innovations [62]

Green Parenting --> use Parenting [63]

China's environmental impact --> use China Social Conditions - 2000 [64] or use China Environmental conditions [65] or use Environmental protection China [66]

Sustainable communities --> use Environmental policy - citizen participation [67]

Community Use --> use Community life [68] see also 6 Related subjects [69]

Cosmetics --> use Cosmetics industry [70] or use Beauty culture [71]

Environmental Citizenship --> use Citizenship [72] or use Environmental responsibility [73] or use Environmental protection-citizen participation [74]

Fair trade --> use Competition, Unfair [75]

Design Revolution --> use Industrial design [76]

Sustainable Lifestyles --> use Social ecology [77] or use Environmentalism-social aspects [78]

Hydrogen economy --> use Technological innovations [62]

Click on the Export to RefWorks button to save records in a Folder.

Learn more about using Refworks [13], or set up an account.

Find journal articles and periodicals

Why use Journal Articles?

• They are more up-to-date than most books.
• They are “peer reviewed” by other scholars in the field who check for academic integrity.
• They are concise and usually only 5-10 pages in length.
• Every article will contain cited references that appear as footnotes and/or bibliographies.
• Print journals cannot be signed out of the Library but many are now in electronic format. Check the date for online availability.

Databases to search for journal articles:

• Biological Sciences [79]
• CBCA Reference & Current Events [80]
• Environment Index [81]
• Environmental Sciences and Pollution Management [82]
• GEOBASE [83]
• Google Scholar [84]
• Scholars Portal Journals [85]
• Scopus [86]
• Social Sciences Full Text [87]
• Urban Studies & Planning [88]
• Web of Science [89]

Newspaper Sources:

• Factiva [90]
• Lexis Nexis Academic [91]

Maps and atlases

Atlases are located on Floor 2 and have the location code MPA. Please check with the Maps, Data and Government Information Centre staff for help in locating them on the shelf.

• Africa; atlas of our changing environment [92]
• Atlas of Cultural and Environmental change in arid Africa [93]
• Atlas of population, environment and sustainable development of China [94]
• One planet, many people: atlas of our changing environment [95]
• Online Maps from the Maps, Data and Government Information Centre [96]