HIST 2440: Environmental History as World History
Prof. Ruth Mostern
Mo 2:30-4:55PM, 3701 Posvar Hall
This course is a history, from ancient to modern times, of the interactions between human societies and the natural environment, including other forms of life that inhabit our planet. Throughout history, humans have affected the natural environment. Sometimes we have sustained balance with it, but often we have degraded it, with impacts on both nature and society. At all times, humans have interacted with the non-human world in the context of specific cultures and social relations, including those of power and domination. This course investigates how environmental changes have affected the history of human societies, and also how human activity has transformed nature. We will pay special attention to climate history.