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Environmental Studies Research Guide

  • Find Background Info
  • Find Books and Films
  • Find Articles
  • Find Local Resources
  • Citing Sources

Find Background Info

Background sources, such as specialized encyclopedias and dictionaries, are an essential piece of the research process. They can help you:

  • Gather information about your topic and understand the scope of the research
  • Locate reliable sources and clarify keywords
  • Pinpoint important authors, texts, ideas, and keywords about the research area. Knowing what the primary phrases and concepts are will help you a lot as you are searching through library databases and online sources.

Credo Reference

Credo Reference is a multi-publisher collection of high quality reference titles covering everything from the arts to astronomy, law to literature, and science to Shakespeare. The collection currently contains over 162 titles taken from 36 different reference publishers and more titles are being added. Available titles also include a range of multimedia options including thousands of high quality diagrams, photographs, maps, and audio files.

Search Credo Reference

Environmental Science on Credo

Credo Reference offers the following relevant titles and many more:

Science Reference Center (EBSCO)

Science Reference Center database provides easy access to a wealth of full-text, science-oriented content including science encyclopedias, reference books, periodicals and other reliable sources. In addition, the database includes a vast collection of images from sources such as UPI, Getty, NASA, National Geographic and the Nature Picture Library.

Search Science Reference Center (EBSCO)

Find Books and Films

Print and e-books are valuable sources for academic research. They will help you gain an overview of your topic and often contain in-depth information about the scholarship or history of research on a subject. Some books are written by single authors, while others include essays or chapters by multiple scholars within a discipline. Don’t let the length of books intimidate you because you don’t need to read them from cover to cover. Look at the table of contents and index to find the sections that are relevant to your work.

Find Books Using GriffinSearch

GriffinSearch is a good starting place if you are looking for books, journal articles, films, and other materials available in the library. In addition to searching the Giovale Library catalog for physical materials, GriffinSearch finds e-books and articles from several of our databases. To get started, search by keyword or type in the title of a book here:

Academic Videos Online (AVON)

Academic Video Online (AVON) provides unlimited access to a comprehensive selection of videos curated for the educational experience.

Search Academic Videos Online

Videos about Environmental Studies

WorldCat

WorldCat lets you search for books, articles, videos, and other material that are available in libraries worldwide. If you are doing in-depth research on a topic and are considering requesting resources through Interlibrary Loan, WorldCat can help you discover resources that might not be in the Giovale Library collection.

Search WorldCat

Interlibrary Loan (ILL)

Interlibrary Loan is a service where patrons of one library can borrow books and other materials, and access journal articles that are owned by another library.

Explore Interlibrary Loan Materials

Utah Academic Library Consortium

Giovale Library participates in the Utah Academic Library Consortium (UALC) and Westminster College students have reciprocal circulation privileges at UALC partner libraries. Each UALC library has different circulation policies, but all require a current, valid, legal photo identification and proof of current enrollment at Westminster. Some libraries may also require other verification methods, so it is recommended that you contact the library you are interested in for details.

Explore the Consortium

Popular Titles and Featured Texts

Great Salt Lake Biology: A Terminal Lake in a Time of Change

Great Salt Lake Biology: A Terminal Lake in a Time of Change

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Edge of Morning

Edge of Morning: Native Voices Speak for the Bears Ears

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Climate Change: Turning Up The Heat

Climate Change: Turning up the Heat

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Feed the Green

Feed the Green: Feminist Voices for the Earth

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Browse Our Print Collection

The Giovale Library uses the Library of Congress Classification system, which divides collections into 21 basic classes using single letters of the alphabet. These classes also hold subclasses which allows the library to implement more specific classes to make it easier for patrons to find materials. Environmental studies materials can be found using the subclassifications GE, QC882-QC994.9, QH72-QH77, TD169-TD1066. These books can be found on the top floor of the library.  Find details about these subclassifications on page 5 of the Library of Congress Collections Policy Statements document

Find Articles

The Giovale Library provides access to a number of subject databases that you can use to find journal articles on topics within a specific discipline or field of study. The databases listed on this page are those that are most useful for finding research published in environmental studies.

GriffinSearch

GriffinSearch is a good starting place if you are looking for books, journal articles, films, and other material available in the library. In addition to searching the Giovale Library catalog for physical materials, GriffinSearch finds e-books and articles from several of our databases.

Search GriffinSearch

GreenFILE (EBSCO)

GreenFILE is a research database focusing on the relationship between human beings and the environment, with topics ranging from global warming to recycling to alternate fuel sources and beyond. Comprised of scholarly and general interest titles, as well as government documents and reports, GreenFILE offers a unique perspective on the positive and negative ways humans affect ecology.

Search GreenFILE (EBSCO)

Environmental Studies (Gale)

Environmental Studies is an electronic resource provided by Gale that focuses on the study of sustainability and the environment. Topics include global warming, food safety, access to health care, and the impact of economic development on international relations.

Search Environmental Studies (Gale)

Environmental Studies and Policy (Gale)

Environemntal Studies and Policy addresses environmental concerns and research with coverage from journals and book reference content.

Search Environmental Studies and Policy (Gale)

Find Local Resources

Citing Sources

Citation Resources

Properly citing your sources shows that you’ve done research to become knowledgeable about your topic and helps you avoid plagiarism. Explore citation resources to learn how to correctly cite sources based on style.

Need help with your research?

Get in touch with:

Giovale Library

Giovale Library

801.832.2250
library@westminsteru.edu

Librarians are happy to answer questions via email, phone, or in-person.

Contact the Giovale Library with a question or to schedule a research help appointment.

Faculty: Contact the Giovale Library to suggest edits to this research guide.

Chat with a Librarian

Use the chat box below to ask the library staff a question. If chat is unavailable or we don’t respond quickly, please use the email form on our Get Research Help page and a library staff member will contact you as soon as we are available.