The Rise and Demise of Equine “Cyborg” Labor
U.S. cities were built with and around horse-human-machine assemblages. Bri Meyer explores the one-time prominence and lasting impact of “cyborg” equine labor on Madison, Wisconsin.
Tagged: History
Faculty Favorites: (Re)Imagine Environmental Futures with These Books, Films, and Exhibits
A gift for navigating our present: Academic faculty recommend new and old books, films, and exhibits that critically reflect on environmental futures and futurity.
Knowledge Politics and the Making of Indian Environmental History: A Conversation with Ramachandra Guha
Laleh Ahmad speaks with Ramachandra Guha on his new book, Speaking with Nature (2024). They discuss the history of environmentalism in India and how it differs from the West, especially through key thinkers’ intertwining of social justice and nature.
Humanizing Migrants and Miners of Southern Africa
In this exhibit, Christopher Conz and Christina Balch use archival materials and art to humanize the stories of migrant mining workers of southern Africa and reflect on the environments in which they live, work, die, and resist.
Bearing Colonialism in Japanese Popular Culture
Benjamin Chin-Hung Kao looks beyond the often-cutesy appearance of bears in Japanese popular culture to discover their role in the country’s violent colonial history and present.
Troubling Dualisms with the God in the Aquarium
God, pet, and research subject, axolotls transgress Western dualisms. Alex Ventimilla explores what these creatures tell us about science, companionship, and life in the Anthropocene.
What Comes After Earth Day?
In this special episode, Edge Effects and the SustainUW Podcast team collaborate to discuss the history of Earth Day in the United States, bring a glimpse of Earth Fest celebrations on UW-Madison’s campus, and underline the importance of embracing environmental protection beyond just April 22.
Consensual AI? A Call for Indigenous-Led Caribou Conservation
Genevieve Pfeiffer explores human-caribou entanglements and how Indigenous relationships with them could guide future conservation efforts—avoiding past disasters like the James Bay Project.
Thinking With Animal Companions: A Keynote
In this series keynote, professor emerita and historian Harriet Ritvo sets the stage for further investigation of “companion species.” She introduces the varied threads of animal companionship—from influence and impact to proximal, favored reciprocity.
Unearthing Buried History with REMOTE VIEWING & Land Art
Katherine Gregory explores how Cauleen Smith’s short film REMOTE VIEWING (2011) excavates buried histories of racial violence and challenges audiences to rethink who has the right to shape the land.
