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Sustainability


Search databases for articles

  • EBSCOhost databases
    These three databases can be searched separately or together :
    • Academic Search Complete
      Multi-disciplinary database, includes full text articles on environment and ecology.
    • GreenFILE
      GreenFILE is a database of articles and web pages covering all aspects of human impact and the environment. GreenFILE indexes nearly 300,000 journal articles as well as linking to more than 4,600 web pages.
    • Australia/New Zealand Reference Centre - EBSCOhost database. Contains leading Australian and New Zealand newspapers & magazines and a few international ones too, as well as some reference books in full text.
  • ScienceDirect - Search over 1800 Elsevier journals, with full text generally available from 1997. Subjects covered include sustainability and renewables.
  • Emerald - The Emerald database has full text for around 150 journals, including titles such as the International Journal of Social Economics; Management of Environmental Quality: An International Journal; International Journal of Sociology & Social Policy and also Corporate Governance.
  • SAGE - part of the INFORMIT set of databases, SAGE indexes and abstracts Australian articles on science, geography and the environment.
  • AANRO (Australian agriculture and natural resources online) - indexes and abstracts articles on agriculture and natural resource management.

Thomson Gale database collection:

  • Academic OneFile - A major academic database with varied sources covering a range of subjects.
  • Expanded Academic ASAP - Over 3500 different titles going back 20 years, with many available in full text. 2100 are peer-reviewed. Subjects covered include social sciences, humanities, education, science and technology.
  • Infotrac OneFile - A small database with mostly general material, however it contains a few titles that Academic OneFile lacks.
    • Search these 3 databases simultaneously!

Search for statistics

E-books: books available online

Search online encyclopedias & dictionaries

Search the Swinburne Library catalogue

  • Swinburne Library catalogue
    Try a Keywords search using words like sustainability, sustainable, environment, environmental, conservation, renewable, recycling, social responsibility, etc
    Try a Subject starts with... search using:
    Sustainable Development
    Economic development - environmental aspects
    Environmental protection
    Industrial management - environmental aspects
    Green marketing
    Ecotourism    , etc.

Online journals and magazines

Sustainability - internet resources and websites

  • CSIRO Sustainability network - As well as a directory of links to other websites, there are also databases of research and articles that can be searched. The current month's issue of their own magazine, ECOS, can be browsed online and articles downloaded in PDF format.
  • Department of Sustainability & Environment (Vic Govt.) - The main page of interest is Conservation & Environment . Other pages of interest are Forestry (especially the links to Commercial activities & Sustainable Forest Management ) and Land Management as well as Water and the sustainable initiatives currently in operation.
  • Port Phillip Ecocentre - (It) "aims to protect and enhance biodiversity by promoting awareness and action for sustainable living”. Of most interest is The Ecohouse Project on the Projects menu - a model sustainable site in St Kilda Botanical Gardens. The Eco Links in the Resources menu has lots of Victorian content such as the Alternative Technology Association, Nature Loo, EcoRecycle and more.
  • EPA Victoria's Sustainable business & industry pages - The Victorian Government's Environmental Protection Agency has plenty of information largely aimed at implementing sustainability into Victorian businesses and organisations. Eco-footprints can be examined and calculated. Sustainability Covenants (including Swinburne's!) are listed. Case studies of how businesses are actually implementing these ideas can be downloaded in PDF format.
  • Swinburne National Centre for Sustainability - A collaboration of Victorian universities and TAFEs that provides education, research and consultancy. The Sustainability Self-Assessment Software for Small to Medium Sized Businesses and the Information and Tips for Green Office Reps are two useful resources. More information is available from the collaborative National Centre for Sustainability.
  • Sustainability - EPA (U.S.) - This is a directory of information about sustainability from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The four main headings here are: Built environment; Water, ecosystems & agriculture; Energy & the environment; Materials & Toxics.
  • GreenTreks Network - A television and multimedia production organisation in America that educates by informing about current environmental issues and how to make positive changes. Realplayer clips from their productions can be freely viewed and downloaded, as can presentations. Broadband is the best way to download or view – files on this site are large. Click on Education (along the top) and then select Resources.
  • Interface Inc.'s sustainability webpages - Sustainability for individuals and organisations, written in plain English but in great detail and with comprehensive explanations. Interface Inc. itself is a commercial interiors business, providing floor coverings and fabrics. This is a good example of a business striving towards sustainability. Colour graphs can be viewed.
  • SustainAbility consulting - Creators of “the triple bottom line” concept, this major consultancy & think-tank is interested in risks and opportunities of corporate responsibility and environmental sustainability.

Climate change - internet resources and websites

  • Climate Action Network Australia - “Climate Action Network Australia (CANA) is an alliance of over 30 regional, state and national environmental, health, community development, and research groups from throughout Australia”. Reports and articles about the Environment, current environmental and sustainable issues, discussion of the Kyoto Protocol etc.
  • Australian Bureau of Meteorology – Climate change - As well as an extensive booklet about climate change, The Greenhouse Effect and Climate Change (with the data and images available separately), other data is freely available such as statements, maps, graphs and statistics. There are also links to global climate change information.
  • CSIRO – climate change FAQ - A CSIRO Frequently Asked Questions page with information, data and diagrams on climate change. There are also links to other organisations, Australian and International.
  • The Kyoto Protocol Download the full text of the Kyoto Protocol from the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) as well as read some background and explanatory material.
Last maintained by : Nick Pavlovski (email npavlovski@swin.edu.au), late Jan, 2009