Environmental History

The Construction of an Alpine Landscape: Building, Representing and Affecting the Eastern Alps, c. 1885-1914

by Ben Anderson

Forthcoming in Cultural Geography.

Between 1885 and the First World War, German and Austrian alpinists talked of ‘opening up’ the Alps in Germany and the... more Between 1885 and the First World War, German and Austrian alpinists talked of ‘opening up’ the Alps in Germany and the Austrian Empire with a vast network of huts and paths. This article argues that this effort to develop the Alps arose from a series of relationships between people, objects, representations and affects which linked urban spaces of middle-class conduct to the alpine environment. Alpinists utilised media such as landscape reliefs and panoramas not merely to represent the Alps, but to inculcate a particular affective response amongst Germany’s urban middle-class, or Bürgertum. Instead of a Romantic ideal of mountains as unknowable symbols of nature’s power, these alpinists promoted a modern gaze which would see all, from the safety of a controlled, governable landscape. In doing so, alpinists legitimised their intervention in the Eastern Alps, developing these once unknown landscapes as a bürgerlich [bourgeois, or middle-class] cultural resource.

A nyulak-szigeti apácakolostor és a Duna. In: Mikó Gábor – Péterfi Bence – Vadas András (szerk.): Tiszteletkör. Ünnepi tanulmányok Draskóczy István egyetemi tanár 60. születésnapjára. Budapest: ELTE Eötvös Kiadó, 2012. 561–572.

by Vadas András

The nunnery of the Margaret Island (Budapest) and the Danube.

Great King, Emperor and Caliph - Byzantium in the political Web of the Middle East, 300-1204 CE (in German)

by Johannes Preiser-Kapeller

in: Historicum. Zeitschrift für Geschichte. Linz 2012, p. 26-47.

Intersections of Nature, Science, and Religion: An Introduction

by Adrian Ivakhiv

Co-authored with Catherine Tucker

Tagungsbericht "Ein wundervoller Anblick und von überreichem Nutzen? Der Byzantiner und seine Umwelt" Mainz, 17./18.11.2012

by Henriette Kroll

Tagungsbericht Ein wundervoller Anblick und von überreichem Nutzen? Der Byzantiner und seine Umwelt. 17.11.2011-18.11.2011, Mainz, in:
H-Soz-u-Kult, 10.05.2012, <http://hsozkult.geschichte.hu-berlin.de/tagungsberichte/id=4236&gt;.

Mapping indigenous Siberia: Spatial changes and ethnic realities, 1900–2010

by Ivan Sablin

co-authored with Maria Savelyeva, published in Settler Colonial Studies, vol. 1, no. 1, 2011, pp. 77–110.

This article discusses spatial changes in the ethnic territories of Native Siberians from the late nineteenth century... more This article discusses spatial changes in the ethnic territories of Native Siberians from the late nineteenth century to the early twenty-first century. A Geographic Information System (GIS) was developed to model and observe these changes. The GIS also features resource-oriented economic activities, major waterways and railroads. Analysis of the model, textual sources and statistical data made it possible to determine what factors constituted Siberia’s ethnographical pattern of the early twentieth century and led to its changes in the ensuing decades and what impact on the indigenous peoples these changes had. Four special maps showing Siberia in the 1900s–10s, 1930s–40s, 1970s–80s and 2000s–10s were produced from the GIS and are included in the article. The current legal status of the indigenous peoples’ territories was also examined. This article presents an interdisciplinary macroscale case study.

Теоретические аспекты экологической политики [Environmental policy: Theoretical aspects]

by Ivan Sablin

published in Молодой ученый, no. 6-2, 2011, pp. 58–65.

Экологическая проблематика стала предметом интереса целого ряда общественных наук в конце 1960-х – начале 1970-х... more Экологическая проблематика стала предметом интереса целого ряда общественных наук в конце 1960-х – начале 1970-х годов. Экологические направления появились в рамках многих дисциплин, включая экономику, социологию и политологию. Обращение экономистов, политологов и социологов к взаимоотношениям общества и природы обусловлено, прежде всего, теми социальными и политическими процессами, которые начались в западном мире в 1960-х годах. Всплеск общественного интереса к экологическим проблемам и все более широкое осознание глобального характера происходящих в окружающей среде изменений не только привели к появлению новой области исследований, но и стали вызовом для тех, кто принимает политические и экономические решения. В рамках различных научных дисциплин, а также на междисциплинарном уровне был разработан целый ряд концепций экологической политики.

Институциональное оформление внутренней экологической политики Китая и Индии [Institutional design of Chinese and Indian domestic environmental policies]

by Ivan Sablin

published in Молодой ученый, no. 6-2, 2011, pp. 52–58.

Китай и Индия как крупнейшие развивающиеся страны привлекают значительный научный и общественный интерес. Динамичное... more Китай и Индия как крупнейшие развивающиеся страны привлекают значительный научный и общественный интерес. Динамичное развитие экономик двух стран оборачивается серьезными экологическими проблемами национального, транснационального и глобального масштабов. От того, как эти проблемы будут решаться, напрямую зависит будущее по крайней мере трети населения Земли. Многие, однако, склонны полагать, что в их решении заинтересованы и оставшиеся две трети, т.к. последствия экономического развития двух стран за последние десятилетия имеют планетарный характер. Если Индия и Китай приблизятся к уровню потребления развитых стран, то мир ожидает экологическая катастрофа, при этом прямой переход к устойчивым моделям развития видится трудноосуществимым. Какой путь развития изберут эти страны в ближайшие годы? Данный вопрос на сегодняшний день представляется чрезвычайно актуальным. Изучение процесса институционального становления экологической политики двух стран, постановки проблем в юридическом дискурсе и используемых для их решения инструментов приблизит нас к поиску ответа.

A percepção na transformação da paisagem: os agricultores no desflorestamento de Engenheiro Beltrão - Paraná, 1948-1970

by Eunice Nodari

CARVALHO, Ely Bergo de; NODARI, Eunice Sueli

The agricultural boundary expansion is the main deforestation cause in Brazil and studying the farmers’ perception is... more The agricultural boundary expansion is the main deforestation cause in Brazil and studying the farmers’ perception is fundamental to understand such process. This environmental history research is limited to Engenheiro Beltrão City, located in Paraná, from 1984, which was the beginning of the guided colonization, to 1970. It was used the oral history methodology, by the elaboration of 37 interviews. The main objective is to understand how the farmers have appropriated the forest and represented themselves to it.

"Silver Falls State Park and the Early Environmental Movement"

by Zebulun Larson

Published in Oregon Historical Quarterly

Environmentalism in the early twentieth century began with two movements: conservation and preservation. Conservation... more Environmentalism in the early twentieth century began with two movements: conservation and preservation. Conservation stressed the wise use of limited resources, while preservationists tried to protect wilderness areas from commercial developments. At the turn of the century, these two movements seemed to be in direct opposition to each other. Nevertheless, historian Zeb Larson argues, the values from both movements are evident in the creation of Silver Falls State Park, much of which was constructed as make-work projects during the Great Depression. Through restoring landscapes damaged by fire and logging, creating structures that blend with the landscape, and building youth camps, the park’s designers and managers drew on beliefs from both environmental ideologies as well as the aesthetics of the Arts and Crafts movement. Today, Silver Falls is the largest state park in Oregon.

A State of Excitement: The Hood River Valley Residents Committee and Land-Use Planning in Hood River Oregon

by Zebulun Larson

Written for the Hood River Valley Residents Committee

The Hood River Valley Residents Committee is recognized as one of the most successful citizens land-use watchdog... more The Hood River Valley Residents Committee is recognized as one of the most successful citizens land-use watchdog groups. Formed in 1977 in response to a Planned Unit Development that threatened farmland near the town of Parkdale, the Residents Committee has since been present in Hood River County for numerous fights to protect farm and forest land and promote the abstract goal of livability. The early founders of the group had seen unchecked growth change Oregon drastically in other counties, and they resolved to prevent the same from happening in Hood River. Over time, the group has changed from an activist group to an educational group, raising awareness of land-use issues in Hood River and overseeing land-use in the county. This transformation has changed the Residents Committee into the citizens group that Tom McCall hoped for and into the group that is needed for land-use planning to work effectively.

OTTOMAN ENVIRONMENTAL HISTORY: A NEW AREA OF MIDDLE EAST STUDIES

by Chris Gratien

ARAB STUDIES JOURNAL, SPRING 2012 (Vol. 20 / No. 1)

This review article discusses the emerging field of Middle East environmental history through two works on Ottoman... more This review article discusses the emerging field of Middle East environmental history through two works on Ottoman ecology: Sam White, Climate of Rebellion and Alan Mikhail, Nature and Empire in Ottoman Egypt.

The Extractive Economy: An Early Phase of the Globalization of Diet, and its Environmental Consequences

by Richard Wilk

An edited and shotened version of this paper was published as Wilk, Richard 2007 “The Extractive Economy: An Early Phase of the Globalization of Diet, and its Environmental Consequences.” In Rethinking Environmental History: World System History and Global Environmental Change, edited by Alf Hornborg, John McNeil and Joan Martinez-Alier, Lanham: Altamira Press. Pp. 179-198.

The literature on globalization is replete with millenarian and utopian ideas about the uniqueness of the present... more The literature on globalization is replete with millenarian and utopian ideas about the uniqueness of the present moment, constantly showing us that the intoxication of modernism has not really disappeared, at least from the world of professional visionaries.  For those of us interested in the world food system, it is commonplace to hear that we have just entered an era of globalization and McDonaldization, and that until recently all food was local, traditional, seasonal, and diverse. The real history of the globalization of food systems is much deeper and more complex than I can even begin to describe here. Instead I want to pull out one part of an earlier global food system, to show that it had common qualities, a coherence that allows us to trace some common characteristics in many localities around the world.

DOI: 10.5007/2175-7976.2011v18n25p96 UNIDADES DE CONSERVAÇÃO DE PROTEÇÃO INTEGRAL: SOLUÇÃO PARA A PRESERVAÇÃO? FLORESTA COM ARAUCÁRIAS EM SANTA CATARINA

by Eunice Nodari

Revista Esboços, Florianópolis, v. 18, n. 25, p. 96-117, ago. 2011

This article aims to analyze the historical process of deforestation of the Araucaria Forest in the West of the State... more This article aims to analyze the historical process of deforestation of the Araucaria Forest in the West of the State of Santa Catarina, Brazil,during the 20th century and early 21th century. In addition, discuss the process that led to the creation of Conservation Units in the year of 2005 by the Federal Government. In the State of Santa Catarina, the Araucaria
Forest accounted in the past for 42.5% of the total vegetation. Currently the remaining fragments correspond to less than 5% of the original area and only 0.7% can be considered as native Forest, placing it among the most threatened typologies of the Atlantic Forest. The colonization process chosen for the region is one of those responsible for the current situation of the Forest. The analyses of different sources indicates that devastation occurred regardless of legislation, the problems resided in Law enforcement and overlapping economic interests and even in the absence of a public opinion acting in defense of preservation and reforestation of the Araucaria Forest.

Waterford and its hinterland: an historical overview

by Jim Galloway

co-authored with Margaret Murphy and Anne Connon

published in James Eogan and Elizabeth Shee Twohig eds., Cois tSiuire - Nine Thousand years of Human Activity in the Lower Suir Valley (Dublin, National Roads Authority, 2011), pp. 217-44.

Environmental History: A New Discipline with Long Traditions

by Timo Myllyntaus

Timo Myllyntaus & Mikko Saikku, “Environmental History, A New Discipline with Long Traditions,” In: Encountering the Past in Nature, Essays in Environmental History, Ed. by Timo Myllyntaus and Mikko Saikku, 1st edition, Helsinki: Helsinki University Press 1999, pp. 17-26, 2nd edition, Athens, OH: Ohio University Press 2001, pp. 1-28.

Изучение степной растительности Европейской России (1850-1917): становление геоботаники

by Anastasia Fedotova

summary of the phd dissertaion
Автореферат диссертации на соискание степени кандидата биологических наук. защита состоится в ИИЕТ РАН, 22 мая в 11 часов

Prescribed burners can't see the forest for the trees

by Robyn Ballinger

Article published on the Comment and Debate page of the Melbourne newspaper the Age 13 April 2012

Prescribed burners can't see the forest for the trees

by Robyn Ballinger

Article published on the Comment and Debate page of the Melbourne newspaper the Age 13 April 2012

Carse A (2012) Nature as infrastructure: Making and managing the Panama Canal Watershed.” Social Studies of Science 32(4).

by Ashley Carse

In: Special Issue on Water and Science and Technology Studies, Samer Alatout & Jessica Barnes, eds. Comments by Karen Bakker & Wiebe Bijker.

The Panama Canal requires an enormous volume of fresh water to function. A staggering 52 million gallons are released... more The Panama Canal requires an enormous volume of fresh water to function. A staggering 52 million gallons are released into the Atlantic and Pacific oceans with each of the 35–45 ships that transit the canal daily. The water that facilitates interoceanic transportation and global connection falls as rain across the watershed surrounding the canal and is managed by an extensive system of locks, dams, and hydrographic stations. These technologies – which correspond with the popular understanding of infrastructure as hardware – were largely constructed during the early 20th century. Since the late 1970s, however, administrators and other concerned actors have responded to actual and potential water scarcity within the canal system by developing a managerial approach that integrates engineered technologies and new techniques of land-use planning and environmental regulation across the watershed. Through this process, techno-politics and environmental politics have become increasingly inextricable in the transit zone. Whereas canal administrators previously emphasized the control of water in its liquid state, watershed management emerged as an attempt to manipulate water flows through the legal protection of forests and restriction of agriculture. As forested landscapes have been assigned new infrastructural functions (water storage and regulation), campesino farmers have been charged with a new responsibility (forest conservation) often at odds with their established agricultural practices. Consequently, I bring together scholarship on infrastructure in science and technology studies and political ecology in anthropology and geography to examine why, how, and to what effect landscapes around the canal have been transformed from agricultural frontier to managed watershed. I suggest that the concept of infrastructure is a useful theoretical tool and empirical topic for analyzing the politics of environmental service provision. By paying attention to the contingent history of engineering decisions and the politics embedded in the changing socio-technical system that delivers water to the canal, we can better understand the distributional politics of environmental service provision in Panama today.