Learning Pathways - Indigenous Studies
Description
This pathway is focused on exploring and understanding Indigenous environmental regimes and systems of knowledge. Understanding Indigenous peoples' environmental knowledge aids academic study by resituating the human in ecological terms and the non-human in ethical terms. Both Western and Indigenous environmental studies share an interest in sustaining resilient landscapes and this pathway will aid students in exploring the best practices of both systems of thought toward reaching this common goal.
Faculty
Jay T Johnson, Geography and Indigenous Studies - Lead Faculty Member, Indigenous Studies
Byron Caminero-Santangelo, English
Dorothy Daley, Political Science
Joseph Brewer, Indigenous Studies - video link
Kelly Kindscher, Environmental Studies
Joane Nagel, Sociology
Ray Pierotti, Ecology & Evolutionary Biology
Resources
Suggested Courses
Typically Offered Every Year
- EVRN 420 Topics in Environmental Studies: _____
- Courses on special topics in Environmental Science and/or Policy. These courses may be lecture, discussions, or readings. Students may enroll in more than one interest group but may enroll in a given interest group only once. LEC.
Spring 2019 Type Time/Place and Instructor Credit Hours Class # LEC Johnson, Jay
Brewer II, Joseph
M 02:00-04:50 PM LIN 309 - LAWRENCE
3 74620 LEC Schultz, Peggy
M 12:00-04:00 PM LIN 103 - LAWRENCE
3 75577 LEC Burgin, Amy
TuTh 02:30-03:45 PM LIN 309 - LAWRENCE
3 75578
- EVRN 542 Ethnobotany
- Course will involve lectures and discussion of Ethnobotany - the mutual relationship between plants and traditional people. Research from both the field of anthropology and botany will be incorporated in this course to study the cultural significance of plant materials. The course has 7 main areas of focus: 1) Methods in Ethnobotanical Study; 2) Traditional Botanical Knowledge - knowledge systems, ethnolinguistics; 3) Edible and Medicinal Plants of North America (focus on North American Indians); 4) Traditional Phytochemistry - how traditional people made use of chemical substances; 5) Understanding Traditional Plant Use and Management; 6) Applied Ethnobotany; 7) Ethnobotany in Sustainable Development (focus on medicinal plant exploration by pharmaceutical companies in Latin America). (Same as ANTH 582 and ISP 542.) Prerequisite: ANTH 104, ANTH 108, EVRN 148, or consent of instructor. LEC.
Spring 2019 Type Time/Place and Instructor Credit Hours Class # LEC Kindscher, Kelly
TuTh 01:00-02:15 PM LIN 307 - LAWRENCE
3 68062
- HIST 353 Indigenous Peoples of North America
- This course surveys the history of the first peoples to inhabit North America from prehistory to present. Commonly and collectively referred to as American Indians, indigenous peoples include a diverse array of nations, chiefdoms, confederacies, tribes, and bands, each of which has its own unique cultures, economies, and experiences in dealing with colonial and neocolonial powers. This class seeks to demonstrate this diversity while at the same time providing an understanding of the common struggle for political and cultural sovereignty that all indigenous nations face. Indigenous nations that have developed a relationship with the United States will receive primary focus, but comparative reference will be made to First Nations of Canada. LEC.
Spring 2019 Type Time/Place and Instructor Credit Hours Class # LEC Isenberg, Andrew
TuTh 01:00-02:15 PM FR 106 - LAWRENCE
3 76107
Typically Offered Every Two Years
- ISP 101 Introduction to Indigenous Nations Studies
- An introduction to the study of Indigenous peoples. It surveys the concepts, methods, and content relevant to Applied Indigenous Studies, using case studies drawn from diverse cultures. The course illustrates that the social, political, religious, and economic aspects of American Indian life are interconnected and that tribal histories cannot be understood without an awareness of these fields. Students are introduced to controversies over how to research, write, and interpret American Indians, and will address the foundations of Indigenous Studies, and that is Indigenous concepts of decolonization, empowerment and Nation-building. The course explores how the lives of Indigenous people have been affected by colonization, while exploring the varying definitions of "colonialism", "colonizer" and the "colonized. LEC.
The class is not offered for the Spring 2019 semester.
- ISP 601 Indigenous Peoples of the World
- A survey of the varied responses of global Indigenous peoples as a result of the imposition of external economic and political systems. An overview of diverse, thematic issues such as land rights, economic development, resources and cultural patrimony, languages, knowledge systems, and women's rights from the perspectives of Indigenous societies around the world. Detailed studies of Indigenous peoples seeking recognition and protection under international law are used. (Same as GEOG 601 and GIST 601.) Prerequisite: Permission of instructor. LEC.
The class is not offered for the Spring 2019 semester.
Typically Offered Less Than Every Two Years
- EVRN 528 Environmental Justice and Public Policy
- This course provides an overview of environmental justice, both as a social movement and as a public policy initiative. Environmental justice examines the distribution of environmental externalities across different socio-economic and racial groups. We will discuss several different public policy areas that have been impacted by the environmental justice movement: hazardous waste facility siting, urban redevelopment and Brownfields, transportation policy, and Native American sovereignty. We will also touch upon international environmental policy in an environmental justice context. Throughout the course we will evaluate empirical issues in studying environmental justice. (Same as POLS 528.) Prerequisite: POLS 306, or a statistics class, or consent of instructor. LEC.
The class is not offered for the Spring 2019 semester.
- GEOG 570 Geography of American Indians
- A survey of the culture and history of selected indigenous peoples of the Americas. Emphasis is placed on the environmental setting, the settlement and subsistence patterns, and the impact of European colonization. Discussion includes present-day ethnic and resource issues. LEC.
The class is not offered for the Spring 2019 semester.
- HIST 120 Colonial Latin America
- The principal focus is on the evolution and analysis of societies, economies, and religions of native American peoples, the impact of Spanish and Portuguese conquests and settlement, government, trade and culture upon native civilizations, the influence of African population and culture, and the creole nature of the resulting society in the colonial period. Changes in the society and economy which presaged the movements for independence are also discussed. LEC.
The class is not offered for the Spring 2019 semester.
Haskell Environmental Science Courses
ENVS 310: Geologic History: A Sense of Place
ENVS 410: Ecological History of North America and Its People
PLEASE NOTE: If you are interested in enrolling in one of the courses listed above, remember to check the Schedule of Classes or contact the offering department (e.g., Geography & Atmospheric Science) to verify that the course will be offered during the semester in which you plan to enroll in the course.
