Research Guides: ENSC 430: Honours Projects in Environmental Sustainability: Finding Articles and Reports

Judging Reliability

Journals may or may not be peer-reviewed. To be certain, look up the journal title in Ulrichsweb.

Worksheet

Worksheet #2: Database Searching
Use the search strings you developed in Worksheet #1 to search the library databases listed. Once you see the number of results, change your search string as necessary, or use the database filtering and sorting systems to narrow your list of results.

Selected Databases

Besides using Google Scholar, select relevant library databases for your literature review search. These databases have advanced filtering systems that allow you to make your searches more efficient.

Queen's Library subscribes to over 700 databases. To ensure that you are using the best databases for your topic, please consult with your subject librarian. Below is a list of some general databases relevant to Environmental Studies.

Compendex
Compendex is a comprehensive engineering literature database. It currently indexes more than 4,000 journals and trade magazines, dozens of book series, thousands of conference proceedings, dissertations, theses and standards
EconLit
Publication coverage: 1886 - present
Indexes the international literature in the field of economics. Includes coverage of journals, books, book chapters, reviews, dissertations, conferences and working papers.
Environment Complete
Publication coverage: Varies by title. 1940s to present.
Deep coverage of environmental aspects of agriculture, ecosystem ecology, energy, renewable energy sources, natural resources, marine & freshwater science, geography, pollution & waste management, environmental technology, environmental law, public policy, social impacts, urban planning, and more.
GREENFILE
GreenFILE covers the connections between the environment and a variety of disciplines such as agriculture, education, law, health and technology. It offers indexing and abstracts for more than 850,000 records and open access full text for nearly 13,000 records.
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GreenFILE offers well-researched information covering all aspects of human impact to the environment. Its collection of scholarly, government and general-interest titles includes content on the environmental effects of individuals, corporations and local/national governments, and what can be done at each level to minimize these effects.
GEOBASE
GEOBASE consists of the latest information on the earth sciences, ecology, geology, human and physical geography, and environmental sciences, focusing on, and highlighting, the human and social impacts on both.
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It covers 3+ million abstract records, providing a comprehensive geological evaluation of any desired region. This includes geological structure and relation to natural resources, as well as linking management, transport, and urban planning.
PAIS
Publication coverage: 1915 - present
Index to publications on global public policy and social issues from the early twentieth century through to the present.
Sociological Abstracts
Covers sociological topics within such fields as anthropology, communications, counselling, crime, economics, education, ethics, medicine, community development, philosophy, public policy, political science, religion, social psychology and welfare. Coverage includes journal articles, books, dissertations, conference proceedings, and reviews.
Web of Science
Access to current and retrospective citations, author abstracts, and cited references found in approximately 5,900 of the world's leading scholarly science and technical journals.
Scopus
Scopus is the largest abstract and citation database, including peer-reviewed titles from international publishers, Open Access journals, conference proceedings, trade publications, quality web sources.

What is a Technical Report?

Technical reports describe the progress or results of scientific or technical research.
Usually issued in numbered series by government agencies (watch for changing agency names), university departments or corporations.
Usually a good source of information on the municipal/city level
Found in print, online, or in microform - search Omni. Ask library staff for assistance if you need microfiche or microfilm scanned for you.
Found online in various repositories. These reports may NOT be indexed by Google – you need to search each repository’s site. E.g. NRC’s Publications Archive