Special events & Field trips

Special Exhibit
“Plants and Publications from the New World, 1492-1825: A Potpourri of Ethnobotany, Taxonomy, and Ecological Concerns”
Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and Saturday, 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.
John Carter Brown Library, Main Green, Brown University
Curated by Anita Been, Madison, Wisconsin

Distinguished Lecture and Reception
“What Environmental and Cultural Factors Make Some Societies Especially Fragile?” by Jared Diamond, Department of Physiology, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA
Wednesday, March 26
7:30 p.m.  
101 Salomon Center, Main Green, Brown University

Jared Diamond, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Guns, Germs and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies will give a public address in Salomon Center at Brown University.  Registered ASEH conference participants (with name badge) are invited to a reception following the talk at the John Carter Brown Library, also on Brown University’s Main Green.  For those who would like transportation to the event, buses will run continuously from the Biltmore to Salomon Center between 6:30 and 8:00 p.m.  For the return journey, they will run continuously from the John Carter Brown Library to the Biltmore between 8:30 and 10:00 p.m.

President’s Luncheon
“Race and Environmental History,” by ASEH President Carolyn Merchant
Thursday, March 27
12:15 to 1:45 p.m.
Grand Ballroom
$24 participants or $12 students.  Vegetarian cuisine.

The biennial President’s Luncheon marks the close of the ASEH president’s term.  Outgoing President Carolyn Merchant, Chancellor’s Professor of Environmental History, Philosophy, and Ethics, in the Department of Environmental Science, Policy, and Management, at the University of California, Berkeley, is the author of numerous books and articles that have shaped the field of environmental history.  At this luncheon she will speak on “Race and Environmental History.”   Please plan to attend this celebration of Professor Merchant’s leadership and scholarship.  Conference participants not attending the banquet may join the gathering at 12:45 p.m. to hear the speech free of charge.

Cocktail Hour
Thursday, March 27
5:45 to 7:45 p.m. (Discussions 6:00 to 7:00 p.m.)
L’Apogee Room
No charge

Join your colleagues for discussion and light refreshments (with a cash bar) in the L’Apogee Room, a meeting and function area on the 17th floor.  Structured discussions on topics of general interest and on professional development issues of special concern to graduate students will take place at 6:00 p.m. in the salons, adjacent to the main area.  In addition, L’Apogee offers space for relaxed, unstructured discussions.

Graduate Student Development Session: “Three Editors and an Author: Births, Weddings, Happy Marriages and Alternative Lifestyles in the Book World,” moderated by David Biggs, University of Washington

*  Mary Elizabeth Braun, Oregon State University Press. “Giving Birth: Turning Ideas into Manuscripts”
*  Jean Black, Yale University Press. “Planning the Wedding: Choosing a Publisher and Starting the Editing Process”
* Susan Ferber, Oxford University Press. “Keeping it Together: Budgets, Contracts, and Markets”
* Rebecca Solnit, Independent Scholar. “Taking Other Paths: Environmental Writing and Books in Other Contexts”

        L’Apogee Room, Salon 3

Topical Discussion Groups:

* “Ecological Science and Environmental History,” led by Christopher Conte, Utah State University
L’Apogee Room, Salon 1

*  “Popular Culture and the Environment,” led by Peggy Shaffer, Miami University
L’Apogee Room, Salon 2

* “Environment and Technology,” led by Sara Pritchard, University of Pennsylvania/Montana State University
L’Apogee Room, Salon 4

*  “Conservation Histories,” led by Tom Dunlap, Texas A&M University
L’Apogee Room, Salon 5

*  “Urban Environmental History, “ led by Ari Kelman, University of Denver and Matt Klingle, Bowdoin College
L’Apogee Room, Salon 6

*  “Environmental History and North-South Politics,” led by Krista Harper, Smith College
L’Apogee Room, Salon 7


Plenary Session
“Mainstreaming the Marginal,” chaired by Ravi Rajan, University of California, Santa Cruz
    Thursday, March 27
    8:15 to 10:00 p.m.
    Grand Ballroom

Panelists: Stephanie Pincetl, University of Southern California; Rachel Morello-Frosch, Brown University; Dorceta Taylor, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor

Discussants: Susan Flader, University of Missouri, Columbia; Martin Melosi, University of Houston

How can environmental historians reconcile the needs of those struggling for basic dignity, justice and quality of life with the aspirations of the mainstream environmental movement?  What is entailed in incorporating marginalized voices and struggles into environmental history? The panelists in this plenary will use their scholarship and experience to raise a set of agendas for the discipline.  The discussants will respond by identifying some of the institutional opportunities and challenges that scholars are likely to face in such an endeavor.


Field Trips

    Friday, March 28
    12:30 to 5:30 p.m.
    Various Locations
    $29 (includes lunch, transportation and all other costs)

More details field trips >>

NEW SPECIAL EVENT! Reception at the Haffenreffer Museum of Anthropology, Bristol, R.I.

FRIDAY, MARCH 28, 2003 7:00 pm(Buses leave hotel) - 10:00 (Buses arrive back)

Thanks to the kindness of Shepherd Krech III, Director of the Haffenreffer Museum, and his staff, we are able to offer an evening excursion to Brown University's highly regarded museum of ethnography. Participants will have ample time to explore the museum's exhibits, with rich collections from Native American and circumpolar cultures. Beer, wine, soft drinks, and light food will be served, and the museum colleagues are as eager to get to know us as we are to get to know them.

Most importantly, this reception is a benefit for the society, to help our efforts to compensate fairly our Executive Secretary and eventually to convert that position to ASEH Executive Director. Fifty percent of the $40 fee will go toward this good cause. (If your situation permits, please feel free to contribute more than this amount.) ALL OF YOUR CONTRIBUTION IS TAX DEDUCTIBLE. Thanks to an extremely generous gift from Hal Rothman we have already taken a first step toward this goal.

Because of limited space, there is room for only 40 participants.

SEPARATE CHECKS SHOULD BE MADE OUT TO ASEH WITH A NOTATION THAT THEY ARE FOR THE HAFFENREFFER EXCURSION AND BENEFIT. PLEASE DO NOT SEND THEM TOGETHER WITH YOUR OTHER REGISTRATION FEES, BUT TURN THEM IN AT THE REGISTRATION TABLE OR ON THE BUS.

To reserve places, please e-mail ASEH Vice President Doug Weiner at dweiner@u.arizona.edu or reserve at registration. To get a preview of the museum, see: http://www.brown.edu/Facilities/Haffenreffer/ Please post as soon as is convenient. Thanks.

Douglas R. Weiner
Professor of History
University of Arizona
Tucson, AZ 85721
dweiner@u.arizona.edu
(520) 621-3736 direct
(520) 621-2422 Fax

Evening Reception

    Friday, March 28
    8:00 to 10:30 p.m.
    L’Apogee Room
    No charge

Come to the L’Apogee Room for convivial and stimulating discussion with fellow conference participants.  Light refreshments and cash bar.


Roundtable
“A Conversation about Love Canal,” chaired by Byron Pearson, West Texas A&M University
    Saturday, March 29
    12:30 to 1:45 p.m.
    Grand Ballroom

Panelists: Lois Gibbs, Center for Health, Environment and Justice; Sylvia Washington, Northwestern University

What can environmental historians learn from environmental activists? The purpose of this panel is to hear what leading citizens and scholars have to say on this subject, against the backdrop of the historic anniversary of the Love Canal episode.


ASEH Executive Committee Meeting
    Saturday, March 29
    12:00 to 5:30 p.m.
    L’Apogee Room, Salon 3


ASEH Business Meeting
    Saturday, March 29
    5:45 to 6:15 p.m.
    L’Apogee Room, Salon 7

All ASEH members are encouraged to attend.


Cocktail Hour
Saturday, March 29
5:45 to 7:45 p.m. (Discussions 6:15 to 7:15 p.m.)
L’Apogee Room
No charge

For a description of the Cocktail Hour Discussions, please see entry under Thursday, March 27.  Please note that the discussions will start at 6:15 on Saturday.

Graduate Student Development Session: “Are you an environmental historian or do you write for a living?” Moderated by Aaron Sachs, Yale University and Bob Morrissey, Yale University
* Jennifer Price, Independent Scholar
* Robert Campbell, Montana State University
* Fred Strebeigh, Yale University
* Rebecca Solnit, Independent Scholar

        L’Apogee Room, Salon 3

Topical Discussion Groups:

*  “Gender and Environment,” led by Kimberly Little, Michigan State University
L’Apogee Room, Salon 1

*  “Race, Ethnicity and Environment,” led by Chris Sellers, State University of New York at Stoney Brook
L’Apogee Room, Salon 2

*  “Environment and Public Health,” led by Jacqueline Corn, Johns Hopkins University
L’Apogee Room, Salon 4

*  “Environmental Historians and Activists,” led by Helen Tilley, Princeton University
L’Apogee Room, Salon 5

*  “Economic and Environmental History,” led by Steven Stoll, Yale University
        L’Apogee Room, Salon 6

*  “Environmental History and Museums,” led by Lorne Hammond, Royal British Columbia Museum
        L’Apogee Room, Salon 7


ASEH Awards Banquet
“The Status of the African Lion: Towards Extinction or Possible Survival,” by His Excellency Mwelwa Musambachime, Ambassador, Permanent Mission of the Republic of Zambia to the United Nations
    Saturday, March 29
    8:00 to 10:30 p.m.
Grand Ballroom
$40 participants or $20 students.  Vegetarian cuisine.

Join us for an evening celebrating ASEH award recipients.  Our keynote speaker will be His Excellency Mwelwa Musambachime, Permanent Representative and Ambassador to Zambia’s Permanent Mission to the United Nations.  He holds a Ph.D. in History and Agricultural Economics from the University of Wisconsin.  His previous positions include Professor and Head of the History Department at the University of Namibia, Associate Professor and Dean of the Faculty of Education at the University of Zambia.   The author of four books and numerous articles, book reviews and papers, he has been a visiting professor in Malawi, South Africa, Burundi, France and the USA.


International Teleconference and Breakfast
    “Environmentalism in the Developing World: A Conversation between Providence, South Africa and India,” chaired by Colin Duncan, McGill University
    Sunday, March 30
    8:30 to 11:00 a.m.(Teleconference to begin at 9:00)
The Watson Institute for International Studies, Brown University, 111 Thayer Street (Corner of Thayer and Charlesfield Streets)

The meeting will close with a teleconference with environmental activists and scholars in South Africa and India.  For details on the program, see the webpage <http://www2.h-net.msu.edu/~environ/ASEH/conferences.html>.  A complimentary breakfast will be served.  Buses will run continuously between the Biltmore Hotel and the Watson Institute from 8:15 to 11:15 a.m.

 

FIELD TRIPS

ASEH Field Trips, 2003

Note: All trips will take place rain or shine.  Boxed lunches included.  Transportation for fieldtrips will leave outside the main entrance of the Biltmore Hotel on Friday at 12:30 p.m.

Field Trip 1: Walking Tour of Downtown Providence
Explore the remarkable transformation of the Providence waterfront over the last decade, a transformation which has helped earn the city a reputation for being one of the most desirable places to live and work in the United States.  The widely proclaimed, and heavily self-promoted “Renaissance City” was listed in the August 2002 issue of Town and Country as one of seven must-see waterfront cities along with New York, Los Angeles, Paris, Barcelona, Venice, and Florence.  The ASEH’s own Steven Corey will provide an historical overview of the Providence waterfront and conduct a walking tour from the newly created Waterplace Park, through the heart of downtown, along the harbor, to the Hurricane Barrier at Fox Point.  Special attention will be given to the recent relocation of two rivers, the uncovering of harbor embankments, the ongoing rearrangement of Interstate 195, and the newly commenced “Little Dig” project designed to minimize sewage discharge into Narragansett Bay.

Field Trip 2: Minuteman National Historical Park and Walden Pond
Walk two to three miles through the Battle Road section of Minuteman National Historical Park, Massachusetts, between Meriam’s Corner and Hartwell Tavern, following a fully accessible trail.  The ASEH’s Brian Donahue will discuss the development of colonial agriculture and land use within the park, and David Hackett Fischer, the author of Paul Revere’s Ride, will discuss the events of April 19, 1775.  We will then stop at Walden Pond, visit Thoreau’s house site and his bean field, and talk about the history of Walden Woods and the environment of nineteenth-century Concord.

Field Trip 3: Slater Mill and Blackstone Valley
Pat Malone, an expert in past and present environmental developments in southern New England, and Rick Greenwood, of the Rhode Island State Historical Preservation and Heritage Commission, will lead a bus tour of sites along the Blackstone and Woonasquatucket Rivers, where we will explore the environmental effects of water-powered industry.  Visit the birthplace of the American factory system and see why the Blackstone was called the “hardest working river in America.”  The trip will provide a balanced view of industrial development by visiting carefully landscaped mill villages as well as notorious sinks for manufacturing wastes.  We will end the tour with a stop at the Slater Mill Historical Site in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, the site of the first water-powered cotton textile factory in the United States.

Field Trip 4: Mashantucket Pequot Museum
The tribally owned and operated Mashantucket Pequot Museum and Research Center is a state-of-the-art complex located near North Stonington, Connecticut.  The permanent exhibits include ethnographic and archaeological collections as well as commissioned works of art and traditional crafts by Native artisans.  A glacial crevasse, a caribou hunt of 11,000 years ago, a walk-through sixteenth-century woodland Indian village, a seventeenth-century Pequot fort, and an outdoor, eighteenth-century farmstead with orchards and gardens are some of the exhibits that take visitors from the last Ice Age to modern times.  The highlight of the trip will be a lecture by William S. Simmons, an expert on Pequot folklore and history.

Field Trip 5: Birding on Narragansett Bay

The ASEH’s avid birder, Kurk Dorsey, will lead a three-mile walk over level terrain around the Sachuest Point National Wildlife Refuge to look for harlequin ducks, scoters, eiders, short-eared owls and snowy owls, as well as other winter specialties of New England.  You’ll need binoculars or a spotting scope, and some warm clothes.

Field Trip 6: Rose Island Lighthouse and the Future of Narragansett Bay

In this trip, led by Caroline Karp of the Center for Environmental Studies at Brown University, take a ferry from Jamestown, Rhode Island to Rose Island and tour the historic Rose Island Lighthouse and Bird Sanctuary. The director of the Rose Island Light project will lead the tour of the Lighthouse and the Museum, including a short film on the history and restoration of the site.  Staff of the Rhode Island Audubon Society and the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management have been invited to lead a walking tour of the bird sanctuary and the seal haul-out area.  Hiking shoes, sweater and binoculars are a good idea.