Environmental Module
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Introduction
This module will educate students on the historical effects of humans upon the planet in
various forms, as well as the environment’s role in human affairs. Students will conduct
comprehensive, in-depth activities and readings that will benefit their knowledge and
appreciation for the natural world in history. Some topics of this module include entomological
vectors, the Anthropocene in Asia and Africa, epidemics in human history, and the impact of war
upon the planet from 1500 AD into the millenium.
Rationale
The environment and the natural word has always been a character in history, an actor, as
well as something acted upon. This unit focuses on the environment as both cause and effect. It
is curious that when greenhouse gases were measured to be radically harmful that international
governments and the United Nations took immediate action. However, slow responses to
pollution, civil amenities, and species populations are appalling. Judging from where
environmental history is coming from and recent studies, if behaviors, laws, and technologies are
not adjusted soon there may be irreversible damage to both mankind and earth. Historians in this
field believe that their historical craft and perspective has much to offer the international
community. By re-evaluating the “natural history” and “human history” dichotomy,
environmental history is a way to re-frame world history for the unique problems of our age.
Grades and Time Required
Grades: Upper division undergraduates or graduate students; Time Required: two class weeks
(four, hour and fifteen minute periods)
Goals
Students develop:
1. An awareness of the importance of the environment and its contributions to
World History.
2. An understanding of major events within the field of environmental history and an
ability to accurately place them in a timeline.
3. An appreciation of the major issues examined amongst
contemporary scholars throughout the field of environmental history spanning the context
of the globe.
Instructional Objectives
Environmental History Course Packet
Defined Learning Outcomes. Students should be able to…
1. Identify, describe, and classify the three different branches of environmental history.
2. Demonstrate a mature understanding of the historiography of the field.
3. Have an appreciation for the allied disciplines (such as geology, geography, ecology,
microbiology, archaeology, etc) that make environmental history possible.
4. Write a well-researched, analytical, historical research paper, intentionally employing an
environmental approach to their topic of choice.
Resources
https://aseh.net/
“Model of the interaction between human culture and the natural environment.”1
Richard Tucker and Edmund Russell. These authors have compiled an anthology of essays
from other historians and subject experts regarding the effects of war upon the planet.
When people think about war, they usually picture foxholes, artillery craters, and nuclear
destruction. These are certainly horrible, but there are additional considerations. Loss of
timber, whale populations, naval disease vectors, starvation, production alterations, and
entomological disparities are few of the other angles students should ponder.
Ian Whyte. Whyte’s introduction summarizes the basic ideas of the environmental
history field concisely. His book is an excellent resource to aid all levels in understanding
the field.
Procedure
1. Divide the class into groups of 3-4 people. There should ideally be no more than five
groups in this manner. Ensure that they each have one of the books listed in the
bibliography, so that between each member of the group they have the entire list. Each
person should read their respective book and be prepared to lead discussions on it.
2. Using the knowledge they have gained, they must create a GIS map of diseases and
epidemics. Additional points regarding Anthropocenic events are strongly encouraged.
See the “Out of class activity” below.
3. Students will conduct and lead discussions in class in various formats. These seminars
should meet the pre-described learning objectives so that students will obtain their own
critical perspectives. See the “In class activity” below
Class Activities
Outside of Class Activity: GIS Epidemic Project
Students will pick a major epidemic in world history. Students will then map the spread
and effects (deaths, permanent effects such as paralysis or loss of limbs, etc.) in a digital
mapping system. Students will then write a 5 to 10 page paper about how this disease affected
history on a local to national and then on a global scale. The paper will also address how the
disease was spread and in what ways humans assisted in the perpetuation. For example, yellow
fever in South America became more widespread due to the expansion of sugarcane fields which
were breeding grounds for mosquitoes.
In Class Activity: Understanding Major Viewpoints
The class will be divided into four groups. Each group will be given key excerpts of
major environmental history writings. One group will read sections of Alfred W. Crosby’s work,
another will read sections of Jared Diamond. The third group will read William H. McNeill and
the fourth will read a selection of 21st century environmental historians. Each group will read
their segments and discuss the major ideas of the author(s). During the second half of the class
period, each group will report to the rest of the class on the major ideas of the authors they read.
Bibliography
Austin, Gareth, ed. Economic Development and Environmental History in the Anthropocene:
Perspectives on Asia and Africa. London: Bloomsbury Academic, 2019.
Crosby, Alfred W. Ecological Imperialism: the Biological Expansion of Europe, 900-1900.
Cambridge, MA: Cambridge University Press, 2015.
Diamond, Jared. Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fate of Human Societies. New York : W.W.
Norton & Company, 1997.
McNeill, J R. “The State of the Field of Environmental History.” Annual Review of
Environment and Resources 35 (August 16, 2010): 345–74.
https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-environ-040609-105431.
McNeill, J.R. Mosquito Empires : Ecology and War in the Greater Caribbean, 1620-1914. New
York: Cambridge University Press, 2010.
McNeill, William H. Plagues and Peoples. Garden City, NY: Anchor Press/Doubleday, 1976.
Tucker, Richard P. and Russell, Edmund. Natural Enemy, Natural Ally. Corvallis, OR:
Oregon State University Press, 2004.
Whyte, Ian. A Dictionary of Environmental History. London: I.B. Tauris, 2013.
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