Applied Environmental Histories of Global Parks and Protected Areas

Session Submission Type: Roundtable

Abstract

Bringing together scholarship on four different continents, this roundtable discussion uses histories of global parks and protected areas to develop the concept of ‘applied environmental history’. Applied environmental history might be thought of as environmental history research that responds to the needs of policy makers, broadly defined, and that seeks to use its findings to inform policy, also broadly defined. Applied environmental history is located at the intersection of environmental history and public history; it is likely collaborative and interdisciplinary in its approach, and very often involves some degree of co-production of research. While many environmental historians are already doing ‘applied’ research, we would suggest that there is much more that can be done and that applied environmental history is an approach that merits greater attention, both from scholars and policy makers.

A central contention of the roundtable is that histories of global parks and protected areas offer ideal case studies for developing the theory and practice of applied environmental history. Case studies from specific parks and protected areas places can show how historical research can inform environmental management. The roundtable brings together scholars working on North America (Payne), Europe (Baker), Africa (Chignell), and Antarctica (Howkins) to discuss the ‘applied’ dimensions of their research. How have we sought to work with partners? How effectively has our research informed policy? What have been some of the barriers to doing applied environmental history? In addition to studying different parts of the world, we come from various career stages, ranging from PhD student to Associate Professor, and from three different countries, meaning that our experiences of working on applied research projects are often quite different. To ensure the ‘applied’ nature of the discussion, the panel will be chaired by a US National Park official (Gullett).

Sub Unit

• ASEH Annual Conference

Chair

• Poppie Gullett, US National Park Service

Moderator

• Adrian Howkins, University of Bristol

Presenters

• Sarah Payne, Colorado State University

• Steve Chignell, University of British Columbia

• Leonard Baker, University of Bristol