Environmental History Working Group (EHWG)
The Environmental History Working Group runs informal meetings for those interested in studying the past in ways that recognise interactions between and the interconnectedness of animals, plants, humans, other beings, and the environment. "Environmental history" is conceived of extremely broadly, and includes ideas of space and place, urban history, art/literary histories, and social histories. We try to keep discussion informal, and we encourage anyone at all interested in these kinds of approaches to come along, regardless of research specialism or presumed existing knowledge. Last year, our sessions were mainly attended by graduate students and undergraduates who were considering writing a dissertation or embarking on further study in the field, but all are welcome.
Meeting Details:
Meetings are held each term on Wednesdays, 1-2.30pm, in even weeks at the History Faculty (Schwarzman Centre, Radcliffe Observatory Quarter). Meeting details will be released at the beginning of each term.
Session 1, Wednesday 21 October (Week 2), 1pm-2.30pm.
Location: Room 20.402, Schwarzman Centre
Our first session is an informal meet and greet. Chat to others working in the field over some light lunch refreshments! All are welcome.
Session 2, Wednesday 4 November (Week 4), 1-2.30pm.
Location: Room 20.421, Schwarzman Centre
Speaker: Dr Leonor-Jo Barnard
Title: "Emerging Ecological Consciousness in Nineteenth-Century Literature"
Abstract: Nineteenth-century literature reveals a growing awareness of the relationships between humans, other forms of life, and their environments, alongside the environmental effects of industrialisation. Across a range of literary works, we can trace the emergence of ecological thinking and consider how these ideas have shaped the ways we understand ecology today.
Session 3, Wednesday 18th November (Week 6), 1pm-2.30pm,
Location: Room 20.421, Schwarzman Centre
Speaker: Lekha Masoudi
Title: “Lord, Deliver Us from the Forest Guards!”: Colonial Reforestation Policy and Practices of Rural Resistance in Algeria, 1903-1962.
Abstract: This presentation re-examines French colonial ecological policy and resistance by rural populations in the forests of Algeria following the passage of the 1903 Forest Code to trace a throughline between informal practices of peasant resistance in the early 1900s to explicitly nationalist ecological warfare against colonial arboricultural spaces during the independence struggle. The 1903 Code sought to remake the forests through expropriation and reforestation into sites of settler emotional attachment and economic gain. I argue that rural Algerians developed highly strategic ecological, legal, and political tactics to resist post-1903 dispossession, challenging historiography of Algerian resistance as primarily urban, as well as political and historical assertions of peasant passivity, unfamiliarity with colonial tools of adjudication, and impotence against colonial and state projects.
Session 4, Wednesday 2nd December (Week 8), 1pm-2.30pm
Location: Room 20.421, Schwarzman Centre
Speaker: Sonam Shulman
Title: Manipulating Musical Chairs: A History of Environmental Negotiations & Exclusions in Canada
Abstract: Sonam Shulman researches historical environmental negotiations and policymaking processes in Canada with a focus on stakeholder engagement. Her work considers how human interactions, hierarchies and exclusions impact the environment, illuminating two important outcomes: 1) historical processes and exclusions inform present-day environmental decision-making; and 2) social exclusion and exploitation are inextricably tied to environmental degradation. She draws on global history to uncover effective approaches to environmental management.
Convenors:
