Nature's Genius

'Superb' ROBERT MACFARLANE

'Fascinating' ISABELLA TREE

'Inspiring' CAL FLYN

SHORTLISTED FOR THE WAINWRIGHT PRIZE FOR CONSERVATION WRITING

LONGLISTED FOR SCOTLAND'S NATIONAL BOOK AWARDS

For nearly four billion years, life on Earth has found new ways to adapt, reproduce and thrive. Now, in the face of climate change, nature is modelling ingenuity as never before.

David Farrier guides us through unexpected and hopeful examples of nature's genius: whether urban pigeons building nests in the spiked structures meant to deter them or tomcod in the Hudson River that have become immune to highly toxic chemicals, coral used to make a natural and self-healing cement or computer chips derived from mycelium skin. Farrier shows us how nature is offering a blueprint that could help us design sustainable cities, remake our economies, solve our waste problem, rescue animals from the brink of extinction and choose a better future.