Integration and Implementation Insights

Research resources for understanding and acting on

complex real-world problems

Ten steps to strengthen the

environmental humanities
September 11, 2018September 11, 2018 Community Member Institutionalisation
Advocacy, Art, Author - Christoph Kueffer, Author - Marcus Hall, Communication,
Complexity, Context, Diversity, Engagement, Epistemology, Indigenous knowledge, Integration,
Interdisciplinarity, Participation, Reflexivity, Scaling up, Teams
Community member post by Christoph Kueffer and Marcus Hall

How might the environmental humanities complement insights

offered by the environmental sciences, while also remaining faithful
to their goal of addressing complexity in analysis and searching for
solutions that are context-dependent and pluralistic?

There is a long and rich tradition of scholarship in the humanities

addressing environmental problems. Included under the term
‘environmental studies’ until recently, fields such as the arts, design,
history, literary studies, and philosophy are now gathering under
the new umbrella of the ‘environmental humanities’.

Environmental problems are seen by environmental humanists as

inherently human problems. The environmental humanities
cultivate methodologies and epistemologies that value context-
dependence, multiperspectivity, relativism, and subjectivity. Thus
different research themes are relevant, for instance, in questions of
environmental justice that require us to focus on multiple meanings Christoph Kueffer
and values. Such insights complement the environmental sciences (biography)
that are often rooted in the natural sciences and the scientific
method.

Here we list ten ways to make the voice of the environmental humanities stronger, based on a
report of a survey we distributed to environmental humanists working worldwide about how
their field can add crucial tools to problem-oriented environmental research.
 1. Resetting the agenda in science policy to emphasize human
needs
Alternative themes and ways of doing research provided by the
environmental humanities must be moved to the top of scientific
and science policy agendas at national and international levels. For
example, humanists and artists must sit on steering committees and
expert panels, such as those that advise the Intergovernmental
Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), Intergovernmental Science-Policy
Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), or Future
Earth. They must join expert groups at national and local levels
which examine issues that transcend the natural sciences, such as
biodiversity loss, climate change, energy transition, urban and
spatial planning, and the green economy.

Marcus Hall 2. Challenging dominant scientific paradigms and science-policy

(biography) institutions
Changing the academic agenda can also mean that certain
dominant scientific approaches or institutions at the science-policy nexus are challenged. This can
involve criticizing particular aspects of existing research paradigms, such as anthropocentrism and
human exceptionalism, a simplistic systems analysis approach, or biased problem framings (eg., in
invasion biology, or of the Anthropocene concept). It can also mean making unheard voices heard
(eg., those of indigenous people). Further, it can involve critically analysing existing science-policy
bodies (eg., IPCC or IPBES).

3. Strengthening the voice of the environmental humanities

The environmental humanities have developed a rich body of conceptual ideas, and build on an
even richer tradition of environmental studies ranging from political ecology and post-colonial
studies, to critiques of capitalism, and feminist perspectives on eco-criticism. However, in
comparison to the very influential theoretical paradigms from the environmental sciences or
economics, a more visible integration of pluralistic environmental humanities perspectives
remains to be developed and appreciated. A promising strategy might be that environmental
humanists ask themselves how their perspectives might alter, complement, or replace existing and
emerging bodies of environmental theory, for instance in visions of sustainability or in societal
transformation.

4. Experimenting with new epistemologies and methodologies

Many scholars in the environmental humanities are experimenting with new epistemologies and
methodologies, or with integrating existing ones in new ways. Environmental humanists
emphasize aspects such as contextualization of knowledge and studies, relational and situated
knowledge, connecting themes that are conceptually disparate, providing qualitative data, or
including participation of indigenous and affected peoples, marginalized scientific views, or else
non-human living beings and non-living actors. The environmental humanities are an opportunity
for the confluence of multiple epistemologies and methodologies ranging from the arts to the
natural sciences.

5. Up-scaling local case studies to regional and global scales

Scholarship in the environmental humanities often focuses on case studies to ensure that research
leads to thick descriptions and holistic integration of multiple themes, perspectives and ways of
representation. A growing number of programs endeavour to connect local case studies at regional
and global scales. This up-scales local research enabling international exchange of knowledge and
strengthening multiples voices; often through virtual platforms.

6. New forums for knowledge exchange

It is essential to have diverse conversations within the humanities, across the humanities-science
cultural divide, and between academics and people of all walks of life. There is a need for forums
that are open to experimentation, free from the pressure of producing immediate results, and that
occupy respectful and neutral ground, while allowing sufficient time and energy for intensive
engagement. Examples are workshops embedded in real-world cases, longer-term internships of
artists in scientific laboratories, public events bringing together artists and scientists, and
interactive formats employed by museums.

7. New research teams and institutional structures

There is a need for both long-term interdisciplinary research teams and institutions, as well as
short-term multi-talented teams oriented toward offering immediate recommendations. Indeed,
there are now many environmental humanities centres worldwide that are experimenting with
different institutional forms for facilitating teamwork across a diversity of thinkers, styles, and
attitudes.

8. New forms of engaging with the public and the world of practice
Environmental humanists emphasize that engaging with the public and with practitioners must be
done in a critical and reflective way. This can mean employing ‘Socratic dialogues’ between
academia and the public to focus on questions more than answers. Humanists and artists can use
(and experiment with) a wide array of tools and expertise. They specialize in representing and
communicating ideas, experiences, knowledge, meaning, and relationships through different
media and in different settings; and they can profit from their expertise in reflecting on the
semiotics and social, cultural, psychological, emotional, and aesthetic dimensions of
communication. They can also draw from multiple media, ranging from film, visual art,
performance art, prose, song, exhibitions, stories, design, and social interventions.

9. Consultancy, advocacy and activism

There are many good examples of successful direct application of environmental humanities
insights and expertise that can be built upon. For instance, there is a need for specific expertise on
environmental law and regulation, environmental ethics and the valuation of environmental
goods, governance, communication and eco-media. There is also value in simplifying insights for
those immediately affected, such as grassroots activists – in the form of manuals, guidelines, and
toolboxes. At a more generic level, there are many examples of books and films that appeal to a
general audience and provide lasting success and influence. Some environmental humanists go
one step further, putting themselves forward as public intellectuals as well as advocates and
activists.

10. Teaching
Humanists like all academics are also teachers, and sometimes their longest-lasting influence is
through their students. There is ongoing potential for quality teaching. At many universities,
students in the humanities, arts and sciences do not yet have access to coursework in
environmental sciences, much less in environmental arts and humanities. Teaching can build on
different formats such as films, storytelling, and theatre that is situated in social learning and
activism.
Conclusion

What has been your experience working with humanists focused on the environment? Can you
share an instance in which insights or methodologies from the humanities (and/or the arts and
humanities-oriented social sciences) provided concrete and lasting relief to an environmental
dilemmas? What are the lessons for repeating this on other problems? Does environmental
humanities offer a way to justify dedicating more resources to the non-sciences?

To find out more:

Kueffer, C., Thelen Lässer, K. and Hall, M. (2017). Applying the environmental humanities: Ten steps
for action and implementation. Report, Swiss Academic Society for Environmental Research and
Ecology; and, Swiss Academy of Humanities and Social Sciences, Bern: Switzerland. Online (open
access): https://naturalsciences.ch/service/publications/97610
(https://naturalsciences.ch/service/publications/97610)

Biography: Christoph Kueffer is Professor of Urban Ecology at the Department of Landscape Architecture
at HSR Rapperswil (University of Applied Sciences Rapperswil) and senior lecturer at ETH Zurich (Swiss
Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich) in Switzerland. He has long experience in collaborating with
social scientists, scholars from the humanities and artists; amongst others as a co-chair of Environmental
Humanities Switzerland. Christoph’s research focuses on urban ecology, biodiversity conservation in novel
and human-dominated ecosystems, and global change impacts on island and mountain ecosystems.

Biography: Marcus Hall teaches environmental humanities courses in a science-based environmental

studies program at the University of Zurich, Switzerland. He is a historian of science and the environment,
recently serving as Vice-President for the European Society for Environmental History. His research focuses
on restoration, biological invasion, and disease ecology.

3 thoughts on “Ten steps to strengthen the

environmental humanities”

1. Machiel Keestra says:

September 14, 2018 at 4:21 am
Very interesting text, thanks for this systematic account of potential ways in which
(environmental) humanities scholars can contribute to, strengthen, environmental sciences
research. I am wondering whether it would make sense to mention as a separate step (or
option/mode) how humanities scholars can help towards making environmental studies more
transdisciplinary: their humanities expertise can help to facilitate the integral participation of
extra-academic stakeholders (citizens, farmers, NGO’s, etc.) in such projects, assisting in
mutual understanding and reflection, enhancing cultural sensitivity, creating novel outcome
targets, and so on. Sure enough, this partly overlaps with some elements of the ten steps (or
modes), yet is still different from just agenda setting, or consultancy, or activism. Indeed, I
think that by engaging in this way, humanities scholars’ involvement would potentially imply
restructuring the research process as a whole. Perhaps not always a feasible option, though…

Reply (https://i2insights.org/2018/09/11/strengthening-environmental-humanities/?
 replytocom=6535#respond)
2. Tim Gieseke says:
September 13, 2018 at 12:06 pm
Thank you for your list and insights. I have worked in agriculture sustainability issues for the
last 2-3 decades but recently focused more on social governance issues, in general. I held my
first session this week; Silos to Collaborations – Creating Governance Frameworks that Work.
One of the comments I found the most interesting was that the presentation “made governance
human”. I see it as having components related to #8 and #9 where practitioners must become
more engaged when solutions are distributed among many people.

Reply (https://i2insights.org/2018/09/11/strengthening-environmental-humanities/?
replytocom=6532#respond)
3. jacques@borderlands.org.au says:
September 11, 2018 at 2:42 pm
Dear all,

An important post, I think very much in the spirit of my/our own work here in Melbourne and
Australia more generally. You can find a presentation held recently and arguing for similar
purposes at https://1drv.ms/f/s!Ass8p-SJmH1ojxym5zLt9qDmabwK
(https://1drv.ms/f/s!Ass8p-SJmH1ojxym5zLt9qDmabwK) – see the presentation titled:
“Restorative and Regenerative Relational (‘social’) Practice in Communities must include the
Non-human”

Jacques Boulet

Reply (https://i2insights.org/2018/09/11/strengthening-environmental-humanities/?
replytocom=6522#respond)

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed
(https://akismet.com/privacy/).

Blog at WordPress.com. (https://wordpress.com/?ref=footer_blog)