Home Place: Essays on Ecology

Simon Dalby is a research associate at the Centre for International
Studies at Simon Fraser University in Burnaby, British Columbia.

The essays and articles collected in this volume range through the
1980s. Many were originally published in NeWest Review, but none are
dated; the reflections in nearly all are timely. In theme they range
from commentaries on the violence of male adolescence to the ecological
possibilities of Chinese landscapes, from the inadequacies of
environmental law reform to the ecology of the Saskatchewan prairie.

Rowe’s essays are the product of his many years as an ecologist and
of as many years’ reflection on the philosophical questions posed by
ecology. Despite the presence of scientifically informed opinion, this
collection never suffers from academic dryness or unnecessary
complexity. It is clearly written, carefully argued, touching in places,
and always interesting. Endnotes trace the sources of some of the ideas
and a short annotated bibliography allows interested readers to retrace
these essays’ intellectual genealogy.

Eschewing both panic and the simplistic verities of contemporary green
consumerism, Rowe invites us to reflect on how our society understands
nature, living in our ecosystem—our “home place.” As if to
emphasize the quiet seriousness of the author’s purpose, all royalties
from this volume are being donated to the Canadian Parks and Wilderness
Society.

Given the urgency and the difficulty of coming to terms with the
current cultural crisis in the face of ecological destruction, Rowe’s
thoughtful writings are a welcome addition to the Canadian literature on
environment.