Columbia Environmental History Seminar
The Columbia Environmental History Seminar (formerly the New York Metro Seminar in Environmental History) provides a space for environmental scholars to share their works in progress. It is hosted by Columbia's History Department and is currently facilitated by Barrie Blatchford and Amanda Martin-Hardin. Please contact Amanda or Barrie if you are interested in attending, presenting, or joining the mailing list.
Scholars from all institutions are most welcome and are warmly invited to attend.
All events for the academic year 2020-2021 will be hosted virtually.
See below for our list of upcoming and past events.
UPCOMING EVENTS
FALL 2020
OCTOBER 15
Oliver Lazarus
"Chaos in the Metropolis: The Great Epizootic of 1872 and Animals in 19th Century New York City."
NOVEMBER 20
Jill Falcon Mackin
”Chi Bizhiki: A Deep History of Buffalo Culture in the Old North Trail."
DECEMBER 10
Karolina Partyga
"Socialist Alchemy: Poland’s Attempts to Turn Trash into Gold. Waste Recovery in the Polish People’s Republic, 1947-1989."
SPRING 2021
MAY 7*
Leah Aronowsky
“Gaia in the Mud: Lynn Margulis and the Making of a New Microbial Science”
*(A joint event with the History of Science seminar)
MAY 28
Jayson Porter
“This Chapter May Contain: Fats, Oils, and Other Interchangeable Elements of Power.”
Past PresenterS
2019-2020 (organized by Dr. Raechel Lutz, Barrie Blatchford, and Amanda Martin-Hardin)
Camden Burd, “Empire Business”
Lily Pollans, “Deconstructing Garbage: Radical Reframing in Seattle”
Mohamed Gamal-Eldin, “Tout-à-l’égouts” in the Suez Canal Cities: Water and Sewage Management in Port Sa‘īd, Isma‘iliyya, and Suez”
Wallace Scot McFarlane, “Urbanization and Displacement: Boosters, Levees, and Prisons”
2018-2019 (organized by Raechel Lutz and Scot McFarlane)
Barrie Blatchford, "Make the Desert Bloom Like a Rose: Animal Acclimatization and the Quest to Build a Better Nature in the West"
Paul Sabin, "Public Citizens: Ralph Nader, the Environmental Crusade, and the Remaking of American Liberalism"
Marika Plater, "Protecting the Poor People's Parks: Working Class Environmental Advocacy at the Battery and Tompkins Square, 1876-1892”
Teona Williams, "For Peace, Quiet, and Respect: A Political Ecological Approach to Police Brutality on Chicago”