Coming of Age at the End of Nature: A Generation Faces Living on a Changed Planet

by Julie Dunlap (Editor), Bill McKibben (Foreword), Susan A. Cohen (Editor)

Coming of Age at the End of Nature explores a new kind of environmental writing. This powerful anthology gathers the passionate voices of young writers who have grown up in an environmentally damaged and compromised world. Each contributor has come of age since Bill McKibben foretold the doom of humanity’s ancient relationship with a pristine earth in his prescient 1988 warning of climate change, The End of Nature .

What happens to individuals and societies when their most fundamental cultural, historical, and ecological bonds weaken—or snap? In Coming of Age at the End of Nature , insightful millennials express their anger and love, dreams and fears, and sources of resilience for living and thriving on our shifting planet.

Twenty-two essays explore wide-ranging themes that are paramount to young generations but that resonate with everyone, including redefining materialism and environmental justice, assessing the risk and promise of technology, and celebrating place anywhere from a wild Atlantic island to the Arizona desert, to Baltimore and Bangkok. The contributors speak with authority on problems facing us all, whether railing against the errors of past generations, reveling in their own adaptability, or insisting on a collective responsibility to do better. Contributors include Blair Braverman, Jason Brown, Cameron Conaway, Elizabeth Cooke, Amy Coplen, Ben Cromwell, Sierra Dickey, Ben Goldfarb, CJ Goulding, Bonnie Frye Hemphill, Lisa Hupp, Amaris Ketcham, Megan Kimble, Craig Maier, Abby McBride, Lauren McCrady, James Orbesen, Alycia Parnell, Emily Schosid, Danna Staaf, William Thomas, and Amelia Urry.

Genres: Nonfiction, Nature, Science, Essays, Environment, Anthologies, Climate Change

248 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2016

Reviews

[Richard Derus · Rating 5 out of 5]

Real Rating: 4.5* of five, rounded up because it's that important

Many thanks to Edelweiss and Trinity University Press for my DRC.

A wildly variable collection of young peoples' response to the horrific crisis my generation refused to mitigate or ameliorate in any way, shape, or form. I enjoyed a few essays that explored personal connections...a young parent pondering the ethics of childbirth at this point, a National Park docent contrasting the biome she guides people through with last century's paean essays to its lost glory...empathized with all, and ended up wanting t pen an apologia not a review. If the gutting of oversight and enforcement of regulations and standards on industry, and the all-but-abolishment of Federal land stewardship, causes you pain, read these essays to become galvanized and energized with purpose to fight our planet's hastened end.

[Ray Zimmerman]

Coming of Age at the End of Nature
Reviewed by Ray Zimmerman
These essays are examples of the voices of a new generation – the millennials. The specific emphasis is on those who work in charitable and not-for-profit enterprises and their struggles with day-to-day realities on and off the job.

I particularly liked the first section with its essays on a mission appointment in Haiti and a volunteer effort to clean up after Super Storm Sandy. The "Urban Foraging" essay addresses a unique approach to putting bread on the table with low income. In contrast, "Post Nature Writing" addresses the struggles of a park interpreter who reads the idyllic nature pieces of the past generation, provides programs for park visitors, and faces the forest's deterioration due to an invasion by Pine Bark Beetles. The author of a later essay, "My Present is not your Tombstone," confronts the angry authors of nature going awry, such as Edward Abbey and Terry Tempest Williams, and replies that she finds beauty in what is left of an admittedly damaged natural environment.

These essays come from a diverse spectrum of American society, including White, Black, Latina, male, female, straight, and gay. Queer, etc., etc. This is a refreshing change in a genre that has historically been the domain of white males, with only a few women feisty enough to claim a place at the table. Read this book today.

[Shannon · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am in love with this essay collection. Such beautifully stunning essays by writers in their 20s and 30s that address various aspects of what it means to become an adult on a dying planet. From the philosophical (one writer grapples with what it means to be a parent at this moment) to the practical (another writes about the battle raging on Cape Cod between proponents of off-road vehicles and environmental groups advocating to protect nesting plovers), each of the essays gets at the heart of issues around the climate and biodiversity crises but manages to do so in ways that are deeply grounded in personal experience. The writers are all so thoughtful and nuanced in their reflections, and each one offers something incredibly fascinating that I had not considered.

[kt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this as a part of an English course, The Environmental Imagination. The collection short essays and stories are highly varied in subject and style. I found that I did not care about most of the topics, but a few sprinkled about truly grasped my attention. I have been thinking of Diseases of Affluence and Can Mopping Save the World? Ever Since

[Leah · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is so interesting to read. I love all the essays in the book and really enjoyed learning about how much the world is changing. As someone in Gen Z it was really cool to see my thoughts put into words and to be able to relate to it so easily.

[Cherie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Neat environmental shorts of young people struggling with wtf is happening w our environment. Felt a bit white overeducated American at times, but still, some good reads

[Robyn Harrison · Rating 5 out of 5]

There was a LOT of anger in the essays in this book, but there were also some beautiful jewels that made me look for other things those authors have written.

[Jenny · Rating 3 out of 5]

Meh. I thought this would be my fave of the three first-year read candidates but I was pretty underwhelmed.

[Myra Scholze · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting and well-written essays, but I would have liked more diversity in the voices. This is a topic that I often consider, so it was nice to gain some ber perspective.

[Mike Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent read and important for older generations to hear.

[Kiersten Sellstrom]

Great

[Kae · Rating 5 out of 5]

beautiful essays from a lot of different youths across all walks of life

[cat · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 and essays wildly varying in success

[Casey Bush · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bill McKibben’s introduction to this book sets the stage for stories of attempts to cope with the “changed planet” and the so-called “end of nature”. The reality of ecological disaster is best portrayed in the hurricane and earthquake prone deforested island of Haiti. One writer pursues urban bird watching in Baltimore’s abandoned warehouses while others describe sustainable food practices inherited from elders. The folly of rain making is documented while strong arguments are presented against driving cars on the beach. Everyone wants a better world for their grandchildren. The essays are organized in three sections that mirror the distinguished traditions of environmental writing entitled “Living on Eaarth”, “Thinking Like a River” and “Mindful Monkeywrenching”.

This book of well written essays provides evidence of the power of naïve youthful vitality. Once you are old and cynical, there is less energy left to change the world. I was once told that politics was a form of weather that you could change by voting. Now we believe that the weather itself can be changed through political activism. Today’s Weathermen are not an offshoot of the SDS.

McKibben has drawn a line in the sand with his anti-carbon campaign, 350.org, demanding that the amount of carbon dioxide in the air be used as a measure to avoid an apocalyptic tipping of the Earth’s climate. What is missing from the climate change movement and this book, is a similar call for a reduction in the number of humans on the planet. Bill doesn’t even need to change the URL as perhaps some number like 3.5 billion would be about right. The garden of Eden and other species need some elbow room. The kids are alright, there’s just too many of them.

Casey Bush
Senior Editor, The Bear Deluxe Magazine
www.orlo.org
“exploring environmental issues through the literary and graphic arts”

[Brad Dress · Rating 4 out of 5]

A passionate story that follows a multitude of different writers facing a challenge at "The end of nature," this creative work of nonfiction shows the bitter truth of our nation. Through captivating writing full of creativity, imagery and strong literary devices, the writers speak out to you and challenge you with a new story, moral and catastrophe that will make you think about the world as it is and how we treat it.

[Erin Lawwill · Rating 4 out of 5]

The topic of this book was that of hope for the future. It recognizes our failings, but gives hope. I enjoyed the stories and the way the book was broken into sections. The first and third sections were my favorite, but overall, anybody interested in reading environmental texts but feels like the grim outlook is becoming a bit too much, and just needs a bit of uplifting should grab a copy and take a deep breath.