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Global Environments Through The Quaternary:

Exploring Environmental Change

David E. Anderson, Andrew S. Goudie, Adrian G. Parker


We are in the grip of global warming, so we are told: sea levels are rising; glaciers are melting; meteorological events are becoming more extreme. But to what extent are these differences a deviation from the norm or merely part of an ongoing cycle of change? How can they be put into perspective?

Global Environments through the Quaternary delves into the environmental changes that have taken place during the Quaternary: the two to three million years during which man has inhabited the Earth. Taking the reader through the Pleistocene and the Holocene, the book describes the evidence that has helped us to characterize environmental changes during these two epochs. It then explores the changes captured by more recent meteorological records in the period up to the present day. Current climate change research foretells of potentially catastrophic sea-level changes in the future; chapter seven examines sea-level changes throughout the Quaternary, putting current concerns into perspective. The book closes with a look at the environmental basis of climate change - and the impact of human activity upon it.

Global Environments through the Quaternary captures our current understanding of the field within in a vibrant, two-colour text design, using many custom-drawn figures to help students visualise the concepts being presented. With climate change - itself but part of a the perpetual process of environmental change - as fierce a topic of debate now as at any other time, Global Environments through the Quaternary is essential reading for any students seeking a balanced, objective overview of this truly interdisciplinary subject.

  • Unrivalled coverage of the entire Quaternary period enables the reader to build a balanced view of the patterns and cycles driving environmental change over millions of years
  • Global approach draws upon examples from a range of geographical locations, encouraging the reader to view environmental change on a broad, planetary level.
  • Brings together discussions of the physical basis of environmental change and the human activities that have influenced this change, giving the reader a truly integrated view of both processes and impacts.
  • Explores environmental change in the context of sea level and climate change, demonstrating the immediate relevance of the subject to contemporary study and research
  • Online Resource Centre features figures from the book, available to download

1: A framework for understanding environmental change
2: Sources of evidence for reconstructing past environments
3: Pleistocene climatic change and environments of mid- to high latitudes
4: Pleistocene environments of low latitudes
5: Environmental change in post-glacial times
6: Environmental change during the period of meteorological records
7: Sea-level changes of the Quaternary
8: Links between environmental change and human evolution and society
9: The causes of climatic change

David E. Anderson - Geography teacher, Eton College; Senior Research Associate, Oxford Centre for the Environment and Outreach Officer, Quaternary Research Association

Andrew S. Goudie -  Master of St Cross College, Oxford, and Professor of Geography, Oxford Centre for the Environment

Adrian G. Parker - Reader in the Department of Anthropology and Geography, Oxford Brookes University.

"Overall, this is an excellent all-round textbook on environmental change. It is well worth a purchase - essential for libraries - and is a welcome addition to the Quaternary literature." - Geological Magazine, 2008

Online Resource Centre:
The Online Resource Centre features figures from the book available to download, to facilitate lecture preparation