Welcome to our weekly roundup of news from university presses! Once again, there is a lot to share this week from our fellow academic publishing houses and much to learn on What SUP at the social university presses. This week, we found conversations on David Bower, Daniel Taylor’s second edition of his new book on sustainable development, and the evacuation of 500,000 people from 9/11. What did you read this week?

Columbia University Press interviews author Robert Wyss who wrote The Man Who Built the Sierra Club: A Life of David Bower focusing on Bower’s interest in the conservation movement during the 1950s. Not only did Bower have a fearless attitude, he was a fighter that opposed the construction of two dams in Dinosaur National Monument and went head on with the Bureau of Reclamation. Bower established the foundation for environmental activism and showed people how to effectively use propaganda.

Duke University Press interviews incoming editor of the Journal of Health Politics, Policy and Law (JHPPL) Eric M. Patashnik who researches on politics related to healthcare and the government. With healthcare prices on the rise, Patashnik examines ideas, observations, and institutions of governance that effects communities and practitioners. With his new role as editor for JHPPL, Patashnik believes that the journal investigates pressing current topics and thinks about the broader perspectives of healthcare and policy making.

John Hopkins University Press does a Q & A with author Daniel Taylor who wrote Just and Lasting Change: When Communities Own Their Futures which is now on its second edition. As a father-son team, the book focuses on  public health and “how to improve people’s lives when they are doing the work according to their priorities.” With a number of global challenges and epidemics happening around the world, his book does not provide answers but a process such as the SEED-SCALE that addresses the problems and uses resources that are already there.

Princeton University Press interviews author Benjamin Peters who recently wrote Digital Keywords: A Vocabulary of Information Society & Culture which centers around how people use “keywords” that are so important now in the digital age. Peters argues that people are “linguistic creatures” and his book seeks to change the conversations that are made through media. Throughout the book, Peters offers 25 keywords that he believes are meaningful to the social work of people’s lives.

Temple University Press does a Q & A with co-authors James Kendra and Tricia Wachtendorf who wrote American Dunkirk: The Waterborne Evacuation of Manhattan on 9/11. Their book involves the improvisations of evacuating 500,000 people and the re-establishment of the Emergency Operations Center after the original was destroyed. By having the community in mind, the extended harbor community was able to think on their feet and gather resources as well as the maritime workers were able to make a plan without having a plan in-place.