The Nature and Culture of Disaster

Our view of nature forms the basis of environmental studies, ecotourism, heritage management, and contemporary debates over global warming that impact both public policy and the very way we lead our lives. This course draws from theorists (such as Douglas, Latour, Strathern and Spivak), as well as recent anthropological test cases from Amazonia, Papua New Guinea, and South Africa to look at how humans in the 21st century view nature in terms of stability, instability and disaster. How should we assess the ‘risk culture’ in which we currently live?