This guide is meant to be a starting point for undergraduate students interested in any aspect of sustainability studies.
If you are just beginning your research, consult the following reference material for ideas and topics.
- Dictionary of Ecodesign: an illustrated reference
- Environmental Justice Atlas
- Handbook of design for sustainability
- Handbook of green design and construction
- Handbook of sustainability literacy: skills for a changing world
- Implementing campus greening initiatives: approaches, methods and perspectives
- Integrating sustainability thinking in science and engineering curricula: innovative approaches, methods and tools
- Methods of sustainability research in the social sciences
- State of the World: an annual Worldwatch Institute report on progress toward a sustainable society (more reports are available in print format)
- Sustainable consumption and production: a handbook for policy makers (UNEP)
Useful web guides:
- Tips for Choosing an essay topic
- Writing the Research paper video
- Mind Map (free education tool to help you map out the main idea for your essay topic)
- Brainstorm for the essay (Purdue OWL)
Search Summon to easily find peer-reviewed journal articles on any topic. Remember to refine your search by selecting the following options: Scholarly & Peer-Review, Journal Article and Discipline to obtain high quality, academic literature --> see diagram below
You can also limit your search to many other sources in Summon, such as books/e-books, newspapers, magazines, trade publications, videos, dissertations or conference proceedings. While many sources are published in different formats and written for specific audiences, they do not have solid authority as with the scholarly, peer reviewed literature.
Try searching subject-specific databases which offer many advanced search features and only contain scholarly literature. Your search results will be fewer but more precise.
Subject-Specific databases for sustanability studies:
- Business Source Complete
- Canadian Business and Current Affairs
- Environment Index
- GEOBASE
- GreenFILE
- Scopus
- Social Sciences Full Text
- TRID
- Web of Science
Note: If the library does not have what you need, you can order books and journal articles from other libraries through RACER but you need to register before you can start using it.
Select journals for Sustainability Studies:
- Alternatives Journal
- Canadian Journal of Environmental Education
- Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability
- Environment, Development and Sustainability
- Envrionmental Education Research
- International Journal of Sustainable Transportation
- Internatioal Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education
- Local Environment
- Sustainable Cities and Society
- Sustainable Development
Summon Search Example
Books
- The Environmental State of Canada
- The Hidden potential of sustainable neighborhoods: lesson from low-carbon communities
- Human Footprints on the Global Environment: threats to sustainability
- LEED Practices, Certification and Accreditation Handbook
- Making peace with the earth by Vandana Shiva
- Our Common Future (Brundtland Report)
- Our Ecological Footprint
- Planning for sustainability: creating livable, equitable and ecological communities
- Sustainable city and creativity: promoting creative urban initiatives
- Taking Sides: Clashing views on environmental issues
Videos
Start here: Finding Videos in the library collection
- Breaking the wall of concrete pollution: how green concrete can reduce the giant carbon footprint of construction
- Cultivating Sustainable Landscapes
- Endangered Planet 1959
- Environmental Impacts: ethical textiles
- Fundamentals of Sustainable Living Series
- Seeds in the City
- Sustainable Building Choices
Websites
Social Scientists most often use APA citation style. Link to APA Citation Style web guide for basic instructions.
Referencing your sources is an important part of academic writing. Why?
- it lets you acknowledge the ideas or words of others if you use them in your work
- it helps you to avoid plagiarism
- it demonstrates that you are using the scholarly record and that you can provide authority for statements you make in your term paper
- it enables readers to find the source information
Writing Guides:
- Writing an annotated bibliography: link to the Youtube video or web page for instructions.
- Writing Services - located on the 4th floor of the library: offers students help with learning the mechanics of academic writing
Just need a few resources to get you started? Try the Sustainability Studies Quick Guide.
