Working for Wild Life: Beginning of Preservation in Canada - Hardcover

Foster, J.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0802053998 ISBN 13: 9780802053992

Publisher: University of Toronto Press, 1978

Synopsis

Twenty years ago, Working for Wildlife was published to wide acclaim. It remains the definitive history of the beginnings of wildlife consciousness in Canada. When Banff National Park was established by the federal government in the late 1880s, wildlife protection was not a top priority. By 1922, however, the government had hosted the first Dominion-Provincial Conference on Wild Life Protection, and wildlife preservation had become part of established government policy. Janet Foster shows how, in the early decades of this century, a small band of dedicated civil servants transformed their own goals of preserving endangered animals into active government policy. Today, the names of these individuals are scarcely known to most Canadians. Yet it was their commitment and dedication that charted the course of today's ecological movement. This new edition of Foster's important book will be welcomed by students of environmental studies, geography, and Canadian history, as well as by members of naturalist clubs and conservation societies. Lorne Hammond's new material places the book in context and provides readers with a sense of what has happened in the field since.

About this title

Review

'[Janet Foster has done her homework thoroughly, and brought to life men who recognized early in the century that wildlife was one of Canada's most valuable and most neglected resources, and how they quietly manoeuvred governments into taking positive steps.'--Lotta Dempsey "The Toronto Star "

'It is overflowing with delicious and absorbing well-researched detail, and rarely drags while presenting the saga of the rare example of a few dedicated civil servants.' - R.M. Alison - The Journal of Wildlife Management

'Working for Wildlife is a fitting tribute to these men, and it is an encouragement to us, in our own times and in our own campaigns for preserving wildlife and wilderness, to read this account of what they achieved.' - Jack Cranmer-Byng - Seasons

'A unique insight into the early history of wildlife conservation in Canada. It will interest both dedicated naturalists and professional conservationists.' - A.G. Loughrey - Canadian Geographic

'[Janet Foster] has done her homework thoroughly, and brought to life men who recognized early in the century that wildlife was one of Canada's most valuable and most neglected resources, and how they quietly manoeuvred governments into taking positive steps.' - Lotta Dempsey - The Toronto Star

'This is a painstaking and scholarly work and adds an important dimension to an understanding of Canadian history. It is readable throughout and is continuously informative.' - Fred Cooke - The Kingston Whig-Standard

'The story of a few remarkable men, pioneers in the field, who during the years .were able to turn their own goals of wildlife preservation into a declared government policy.... Smooth, at times lively, reading.' - Anne Mayhew - Thomson News Service

'For those interested in reconciling bureaucracy with conservation, this is a valuable book.' - Choice

'Anyone inclined to think that the Canadian government's early and gradual involvement in wildlife conservation would make a dull story, had better read this book. Janet Foster's thorough research of the subject, and her talent as a writer, have contributed to make this a most informative and fascinating production.' - Louis Lemieux - Canadian Museums Association Gazette

'If wildlife conservation and Canadian history are up your alley, Working for Wildlife by Janet Foster, is a book you'll enjoy.' - Stephen Hume - Victoria Times-Colonist

'Foster has combined sound historical research with her acknowledged writing skill to produce a first rate book.' - Robert Stamp - The Calgary Herald

'Anyone inclined to think that the Canadian government's early and gradual involvement in wildlife conservation would make a dull story, had better read this book. Janet Foster's thorough research of the subject, and her talent as a writer, have contributed to make this a most informative and fascinating production.'

- Louis Lemieux - Canadian Museums Association Gazette

'[Janet Foster] has done her homework thoroughly, and brought to life men who recognized early in the century that wildlife was one of Canada's most valuable and most neglected resources, and how they quietly manoeuvred governments into taking positive steps.'

- Lotta Dempsey - The Toronto Star

'This is a painstaking and scholarly work and adds an important dimension to an understanding of Canadian history. It is readable throughout and is continuously informative.'

- Fred Cooke - The Kingston Whig-Standard

'The story of a few remarkable men, pioneers in the field, who during the years "were able to turn their own goals of wildlife preservation into a declared government policy..". Smooth, at times lively, reading.'

- Anne Mayhew - Thomson News Service

'For those interested in reconciling bureaucracy with conservation, this is a valuable book.'

- Choice

'A unique insight into the early history of wildlife conservation in Canada. It will interest both dedicated naturalists and professional conservationists.'

- A.G. Loughrey - Canadian Geographic

'It is overflowing with delicious and absorbing well-researched detail, and rarely drags while presenting the saga of the rare example of a few dedicated civil servants.'

- R.M. Alison - The Journal of Wildlife Management

'Working for Wildlife is a fitting tribute to these men, and it is an encouragement to us, in our own times and in our own campaigns for preserving wildlife and wilderness, to read this account of what they achieved.'

- Jack Cranmer-Byng - Seasons

'If wildlife conservation and Canadian history are up your alley, Working for Wildlife by Janet Foster, is a book you'll enjoy.'

- Stephen Hume - Victoria Times-Colonist

'Foster has combined sound historical research with her acknowledged writing skill to produce a first rate book.'

- Robert Stamp - The Calgary Herald

About the Author

Janet Foster, writer, photographer, and naturalist, produces and films nature and wildlife programs with her husband, John, for TVOntario, NHK Japan, and the Discovery Channel. Their one-hour special, 'Clayoquot, the Sound of Wonder,' won the 1995 Gemini Award for Best Photography and the Golden Sheaf Award for Best Nature and Science Program. Lorne Hammond is a professor in the Department of History at the University of Victoria.

Edition details

• Publisher: University of Toronto Press
• Publication date: 1978
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0802053998
• ISBN 13: 9780802053992
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 296