Yale Environmental Humanities kicked off the spring semester on February 10th with a panel titled “Keywords in the Environmental Humanities.” Taking place over Zoom, three Yale scholars discussed conceptual terms shaping how humanities scholars write about the environment and society. With over 80 people in attendance, the event garnered a lively discussion.
Greta LaFleur (American Studies) discussed the word “sexuality,” tracing the development of a broad knowledge of sexuality defined in terms of the dynamic relationship between the human and its natural, social, physical, and climatic milieu. Siobhan Angus (History of Art) discussed “extraction,” speaking about both material and resource extractions and their links to topics such as settler colonialism. Lindsay Stern (Comparative Literature) discussed “standing” and how legal standings shape our understanding of the environments that surround us.
All three scholars expanded our understandings on the unexpected connections these keywords have with our perceptions of the environment. Yale Environmental Humanities looks forward to continuing these conversations throughout the rest of the semester!