Overview

"The philanthropist and philosopher Strachan Donnelley (1942--2008) devoted his life to studying the complex relationship between humans and nature. Founder and first president of the Center for Humans and Nature, Donnelley was a pioneer in the exploration and promotion of the idea that human beings individually and collectively have moral and civic responsibilities to natural ecosystems. In this wide-ranging volume, Donnelley traces the connections between influential figures such as Aldo Leopold and Charles Darwin, as well as lesser-known but original thinkers that he met during the course of a full life -- ministers at his church, friends with whom he fished, and colleagues who shared his passion for research and writing. He grounds his work in classic philosophers such as Descartes, Spinoza, and Whitehead and reinterprets their writings about the natural world to develop a conservation-centered philosophy, which he dubs ""democratic ecological citizenship."" Edited by his daughter, Ceara Donnelley, and Bruce Jennings, Frog Pond Philosophy illuminates the dominant strands of Donnelley's intellectual identity as a philosopher, naturalist, agitator, and spiritualist. Despite his often grim depiction of the current state of the environment, Donnelly never surrenders his faith in humanity's ability to meet its ethical obligations to conserve, respect, and nurture the complexity and diversity of the natural world. His vivid and personal essays, rooted in everyday experiences, offer a distinctive perspective on questions of urgent contemporary importance."

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9780813176697

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Reviews

We encounter a whole person in these pages -- Donnelley is a man of immense vitality, commitment, love for the world and particular individuals, courage and grace, whose ideas, words, flights of speculation and moral exhortations were totally integral to who he was. Reading this book was a pleasure. -- J. Ronald Engel, coeditor of Democracy, Ecological Integrity and International Law A highly intelligent, unusual, demanding book that asks for, and rewards, serious attention. It reflects the quality of a fine mind, a passionate spirit, and a dedicated champion of 'nature alive.' It is a worthy book for a world that needs it. -- Elizabeth Minnich, author of Transforming Knowledge Frog Pond Philosophy combines the rigors of hard-core philosophy with the reflections of an avid outdoorsman and naturalist. Donnelley states boldly the need for healing the divide between humans and nature, and he gently nudges readers out of their conceptual categories and comfort zones. -- Bill Vitek, coeditor of The Virtues of Ignorance: Complexity, Sustainability, and the Limits of Knowledge

A highly intelligent, unusual, demanding book that asks for, and rewards, serious attention. It reflects the quality of a fine mind, a passionate spirit, and a dedicated champion of 'nature alive.' It is a worthy book for a world that needs it. -- Elizabeth Minnich, author of Transforming Knowledge Frog Pond Philosophy combines the rigors of hard-core philosophy with the reflections of an avid outdoorsman and naturalist. Donnelley states boldly the need for healing the divide between humans and nature, and he gently nudges readers out of their conceptual categories and comfort zones. -- Bill Vitek, coeditor of The Virtues of Ignorance: Complexity, Sustainability, and the Limits of Knowledge We encounter a whole person in these pages -- Donnelley is a man of immense vitality, commitment, love for the world and particular individuals, courage and grace, whose ideas, words, flights of speculation and moral exhortations were totally integral to who he was. Reading this book was a pleasure. -- J. Ronald Engel, coeditor of Democracy, Ecological Integrity and International Law

Author Information

Frederick L. Kirschenmann, Distinguished Fellow at the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture in Ames, Iowa, and president of the Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture at Pocantico Hills, New York, has published articles in many books including

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