EHS4020 – Introduction to Environmental Humanities: Decolonizing Ecology

Course content

Discomedusa. Ernst Haeckel's Kunstformen der Natur (1904)

Over the course of five seminars, this course introduces you to the dynamic and rapidly evolving field of environmental humanities through close readings of selected texts that highlight both established and developing topics within the field. The course is curated by active researchers: each year the selection of topics and readings shifts, reflecting their focus and interests.

This year, the course will be taught by Marta Mboka Tveit and Patrick Brock, and focus on the nexus between colonialism and ecology,  with special attention to Latin America and sub-Saharan Africa. From situated viewpoints we critically examine extractivism, developmentalism and progress-thinking. Then we turn to new pathways and possibilities, examining recent social-ecological movements, such as Buen Vivir and the African Water Commons Collective, that can be called both anti-colonial and environmentalist, and possible strategies for imagining ecologies otherwise from the Global South. 

Learning outcome

The course will:

• Introduce you to perspectives on planetary environmental issues from Latin America and Sub-Saharan Africa
• Train you to work and read across disciplinary boundaries
• Equip you with a deeper understanding of raging current debates on the link between colonial histories and the Anthropocene
• Strengthen your capacity to engage reflectively with complex environmental problems

Admission to the course

This course is part of the Honours Certificate in Environmental Humanities and Sciences (honours certificate).

Students not enrolled in the certificate programme can be admitted to the course if this is cleared by their own study programme.

Students who are admitted to study programmes at UiO must each semester register which courses and exams they wish to sign up for in Studentweb.

Teaching

The course consists of 5 bi-weekly seminars, spaced over the autumn term. Each seminar will focus on selected mandatory readings, which students should come prepared to discuss.

Examination

Term paper to be submitted in Inspera. The term paper should be between 5-7 pages á 2300 characters without spaces, not counting front page and references. Detailed instructions for the term paper will be given in Canvas.

Language of examination

The examination text is given in English, and you submit your response in English.

Grading scale

Grades are awarded on a pass/fail scale. Read more about the grading system.

More about examinations at UiO

• Use of sources and citations
• Special exam arrangements due to individual needs
• Withdrawal from an exam
• Illness at exams / postponed exams
• Explanation of grades and appeals
• Resitting an exam
• Cheating/attempted cheating

You will find further guides and resources at the web page on examinations at UiO.