By Mónica Salas Landa, Lafayette College § ‘‘How do you feel living right across from the oil and gas complex?’’ I asked Ms. Dora, a few days after I settled into her home in Poza Rica, Veracruz, a city transformed by the industrial apparatus of oil. ‘‘We have gotten used to smelling the gas and seeing all … More Commentary: Toxic Bodies, Part I
By Whitney Larratt-Smith, UC Davis § “We were walking for a long time before I saw it. It was an exceptionally hot day in July for Northern Alberta, intensified by the acrid fumes of bitumen, diesel, and sulfur entering my lungs. I was starting to get a headache, and felt increasingly weary walking on the scorching … More On Tricking Ducks: Industrial Naturecultures and the Toxic Bodies of Oil Sands Country
By Janelle Baker, McGill University § In Memory of the late “Cibomb” Clement Auger Rattling down a dusty oil field road in his little aqua truck headlights on as company safety protocols mandate Me, 8 months pregnant nervously remembering his accident last winter on the South Wabasca Lake ice in which he lost sight in one … More In Search of the Toxic Berry Patch
By Nathalia S. Brichet, Frida Hastrup, and Felix Riede § From the late 1930s until 1970, low-grade brown coal was extracted at Søby in mainland Denmark. This activity carried out largely by manual labour massively transformed, if not destroyed, the surrounding landscape. The need for Danish brown coal extraction was spurred by increasing domestic demand, but even more … More Mild Apocalypse – Feral Landscapes in Denmark: Reflections on an Exhibition
By Zachary Caple, University of California, Santa Cruz § The Limpkin Lover of the trashiest shorelines, the limpkin is an ibis made plainer, browner. Flecked white collar and long proboscis, it makes a living along the dock-stamped littorals and dingy canals of Florida. I got my first good look at a limpkin in a phosphate … More The Limpkin: A Poem and Short Essay
By Cailín E. Murray with contributions from her students Whitney Lingle and Britny Burton § Once a booming agricultural and factory town, Muncie, Indiana, is today a post-industrial rustbelt city grappling with questions about its economic and environmental futures. As heavy industries left town, Muncie’s economy has flagged, leaving some 24% of its residents at … More Sustainability and Food Production in the Hoosier Heartland: Learning through Local Engagement
by Peter C. Little § Less than 300 miles northwest of New York City, in the Empire State’s Southern Tier region, is the small community of Endicott. Nestled along the Susquehanna River, it is known as the “Birthplace of IBM.” International Business Machines Corporation (IBM)—born of a marriage between the Computing, Tabulating, and Recording Company … More Microelectronic Disaster and the “Smarter Planet” Paradox
