HIST 337: Environmental History

(1 Unit)
Prerequisite: Enrollment in 300-level courses requires prior completion of a 100-level history course or above and at least sophomore standing.
Focus on the historical roots of contemporary environmental problems. Analysis of both the destructive and the conservation sides of the American experience. Native American perspectives, women and nature, technology, Thoreau, John Muir, energy crisis, ecology as the subversive science, a land ethic, Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring, and environmental impacts (DDT, Love Canal, atomic testing, PBB, dioxin, acid rain) are stressed. Concentration on America, but within a global frame of reference. Interdisciplinary emphasis that invites students from a variety of majors, particularly those in the sciences and those treating public policy issues. Special opportunities for those who enjoy the out-of-doors. Staff