Dead Fish on Rickenbacker Lake

Handout # 1:
Resources For Environmental Research Available from Acterra Library and Elsewhere

Note: This handout is also available in PDF

Acterra Library Resources

Books

The Library has over 4,000 books on a wide range of environmental issues, including sustainability, energy issues, wildlife identification, and water conservation.

Periodicals

The Library has over 400 magazines and newsletters, from Audubon to World Watch Magazine.

Environmental Impact Reports

A collection of reports from cities and counties produced as part of their development processes.

Pamphlets and Newspaper Articles (Clippings files)

Covers a wide range of local environmental topics such as Coyote Valley development, San Francisco Airport expansion, habitat restoration, Stanford land use, and more.

Wildlife and Endangered Species Collection

Includes pictures, articles, endangered species lists, and background information about a wide variety of plants and animals.

Videos

The Library has over 300 videos, such as the popular Affluenza and Escape from Affluenza. We also feature the locally-produced environmental issues TV show Common Ground.

Backpacking and Trails Collection

Covers information on backpacking, bicycling, boating, camping, hiking, horseback riding, mountaineering, skiing, and more, including many trail guides and maps.

Environmental Volunteers Collection

Emphasizes sharing nature with children and includes classroom activity guides and children's books. The collection supports the Environmental Volunteers

Job Binders

Job and internship announcements for the Bay Area and has subscriptions to many environmental jobs newsletters.

Resources Elsewhere

Internet

The Internet is actually more than just the Web, although many people may think they are one and the same thing. The Internet includes databases and listservs as well as websites. You can find more and more information every day on the Internet, but how much is useful? Many searches will give an overwhelming number of results  - and many are clearly irrelevant.

Some things to keep in mind when you use the Internet - particularly the Web:

• Anyone can put up a web page
• Many periodicals are published both online and in paper, but the online versions require a subscription to view
• Today's newspaper articles are usually free online; yesterday's will cost you
• The Web is dynamic - a page you found yesterday may not exist tomorrow

While you can often find useful information on the Web or in databases just by typing in some terms (keywords), improving your search skills can mean better information in less time (or mean finding anything at all)

Other Libraries

For local environmental information, your public or school/college library may have some additional resources, but likely scattered and not as recent. They will, however, be helpful in providing you access to databases, including electronic journals. These resources tend to be very expensive to view otherwise.

Databases

In most cases, databases are organizedcollections of information. Examples include your library's online catalog (databases of information about items it holds), electronic periodical indexes such as Periodicals Contents Index, and full-text databases such as InfoTrac, PubMed, etc. Some are available for free, but most cost to use.

Informal Sources

Informal sources can include notes, abstracts, letters, journals, logs, records, files, lists, and conversations - almost any verbal communication that is unpublished.

Primary research

Primary research involves gathering data yourself rather than relying on someone else's published research.