Nature – an open access collection

The clocks have gone forward, the days are getting longer and spring is well and truly here. 

It’s a good time of year to think about what your students are reading. Whether you’re building a reading list or filling a gap in your collection, we’ve got you covered.  

Drawn from the 38,000+ eBooks available in the Kortext Open Resources Collection, our nature collection brings together titles each reflecting different aspects of how humans understand, engage with and shape the natural world. 

Here are five titles from our open access nature collection to get you started. 

1. Defending the Wilderness: The Adirondack Writings of Paul Schaefer by Paul Schaefer

This anthology brings together the conservation writings of Paul Schaefer, widely credited as one of the most important figures in the protection of the Adirondack Park in New York State. His collection of essays spans several decades of grassroots activism, illustrated with 64 black-and-white photographs, documenting the wilderness and the movement built to protect it. 

By bringing primary source conservation writing into a single volume, the book offers students a direct account of how environmental advocacy is sustained over time. It will appeal to students and researchers in environmental history, conservation studies and American studies. 

2. Turning Gardens in Japan into Japanese Gardens: Nation, Nature, Heritage, and Modernity since the 1890s by ChristianTagsold

As Japan modernised rapidly in the mid-nineteenth century, traditional garden building declined, only to be revived by a new class of political and business leaders seeking designs that broke from established patterns. Now recognised as part of Japan’s national heritage, these gardens were long overlooked by early garden historians. 

Tagsold traces this rediscovery, examining the complex relationships between nature, national identity and modernity through the lens of horticulture. Students in history and geography will find this a useful text, as will those working on how societies construct and contest ideas of nature over time. 

3. The Plant Detective’s Manual: A Research-led Approach for Teaching Plant Science by Gonzalo M. Estavillo

Estavillo’s award-winning teaching manual is built around a central research challenge: identifying the gene responsible for the traits of an unknown mutant of Arabidopsis thaliana (thale cress). Rather than presenting a series of standalone experiments, it offers a cohesive set of laboratory investigations designed to reflect the process of plant science research.  

Designed specifically for undergraduate teaching and adaptable to different course levels, it provides a practical resource for students in botany and plant biology. The investigations connect directly to wider challenges in food production and biodiversity loss, grounding students in the real-world stakes of plant science research. 

4. Valuing Nature: The Roots of Transformation by Holly McKelvey and Rob Fish

Set around a group of undergraduates completing a university assignment on nature in the modern world, this graphic book explores the philosophical and practical questions around valuing the natural world. 

It covers the diverse meanings people attach to nature, different frameworks for understanding the relationship between people and their environment and the approaches available for managing ecosystems sustainably.  

With an accessible format and deliberately interdisciplinary scope, the book is a useful introductory text across a range of courses from ecology and geography to social science and philosophy. For postgraduate students, it also serves as a solid foundation for embarking on interdisciplinary research. 

5. Reimagining Urban Nature: Literary Imaginaries for Posthuman Cities by Chantelle Bayes

Bayes examines the cultural assumptions behind technological development and the significant cost this has had on the natural world. Grounded in the Australian and Australasian context, the book contributes to the field of urban ecocriticism, bringing a more diverse set of voices, texts and ecologies into a field still largely shaped by the Global North. 

By centring the city as its focus, the book will appeal to students and researchers studying geography and ecology, as well as those with an interest in environmental activism and how urban spaces shape our relationship with the natural world. 

To access our new collection, please contact your Kortext Account Manager for more information. 

You don’t have to be an existing Kortext customer to benefit from our Open Resources Collection. To find out more, talk to us today.