The GARDEN project (Guide on Archives Regarding ENvironmental history in Belgium, 18th-20th c.), the State Archives in Belgium and the PolleN-University of Namur (Center of Environmental History of Namur) are glad to announce the colloquium Archives, environmental history and sustainable development.

This colloquium will be held in State Archives in Mons(Belgium) on 27 May 2013. The languages of the colloquium are Dutch and French.

All ESEH members and friends are cordially invited to this colloquium. There is no need to register to the colloquium, as it will be in open access.

For further information see the GARDEN website and the attached flyer.

Research on the complex relationships between the environment and society can only be carried out on an interdisciplinary basis. The doctoral program Environment and Society is therefore aimed at graduates from the humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences who wish to research questions concerning the nature/culture/environment interface. Within the scope of the program, doctoral students acquire the ability to understand the origins and interactions of complex natural and social processes. The doctoral program brings together expertise on environmental research from university and non-university institutions in Munich. The program is based at the Rachel Carson Center for Environment and Society, a joint initiative of LMU Munich and the Deutsches Museum. Its stimulating research environment, intensive supervision, and opportunity to form international networks offer excellent conditions for doctoral students.

The doctoral program does not offer any scholarships to its participants, but can assist its students when applying for other sources of funding as well as by financially supporting PhD-related activities like conference participation and archival research trips.
Applicants wishing to be admitted to this doctoral program must hold a degree from a recognized university, show evidence of excellence in their chosen field of study, and present a sketch of their plans for an innovative PhD project.

Dissertation projects may relate to any of the following topics: approaches to the shortage of natural resources; natural disasters and cultures of risk; environmental law and environmental justice; problems of sustainability, environmental ethics and environmental politics; the perception and cultural understanding of environment and nature; and the role of environment and environmental problems in the sciences.

The following documents should be submitted together with the application via (the program’s online portal):

• Proof of higher education entrance qualification;
• Documentation of university degree(s) held;
• One copy of the Master’s thesis;
• An academic curriculum vitae, including a list of publications if available;
• An outline of your planned dissertation project along with a projected timetable for completion (up to five pages);
• The name of a member of the Academic Board who can supervise the dissertation;
• Name and address of two references (university lecturers) able to give information about the suitability and academic potential of the applicant;
• The filled-out online application form.

Please submit your application by 1 June 2013. Only electronic applications will be considered. Successful candidates will be accepted into the program for the winter semester 2013/14.
For further information on the doctoral program Environment and Society, including application details and FAQ, please visit the Environment and Society homepage.

Please contact PhD Program Coordinator for any questions about the program.

Dr. Elisabeth Zellmer
Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München
Promotionsprogramm „Umwelt und Gesellschaft“
Rachel Carson Center
proenviron [at] carsoncenter.lmu.de

Extended deadline to 15 May 2013!

The conference Sámi Customary Rights in Modern Landscapes – Indigenous People and Nature Conservation at Luleå University of Technology, Sweden, will take place 28-30 August 2013.

For information on the program and the optional excursion in Laponia visit the Conference webpage.

The European Society for Environmental History is inviting all members to nominate candidates for election to the board. Elections will be held at the Ordinary General Meeting at the ESEH conference in Munich, Germany, on 23 August 2013.

Nominations for candidates for all posts on the Board are welcome, i.e. President, Vice-Presidents, Treasurer, Secretary, and also for the Financial Control Committee.

Please send nominations to the chair of the Nominating Committee: Martin Schmid, Alpen-Adria Universität, Austria (martin.schmid [at] aau.at) by 4 June 2013 the latest (according to the constitution, nominations must be sent to the Nominating Committee at least 80 days before the Ordinary General Meeting, which will be held on 23 August 2013). Please include a one-page CV, or link to the webpage, of the nominee, with details of the person’s current post, previous posts (where relevant), degrees, main publications, research grants and projects, experience in academic societies, and any other relevant information.

The European Society for Environmental History (ESEH) welcomes submissions for its Best Article Prize. The prize is intended to identify and encourage innovative and well written research in the field of environmental history of Europe. It will be awarded to an article published in 2011 or 2012. Applications are welcomed from senior and junior scholars from all countries, even though some preference may be given to junior scholars from Europe. The prize will be awarded at the 7th ESEH Conference, 20-24 August 2013, in Munich, Germany.

The ESEH publication prize is intended for an article on any subject in European environmental history and in any European languages. The winner will receive a money prize worth of Euro 500 as well as travel grant (if needed) to attend 7th ESEH Conference, 20-24 August 2013, in Munich, Germany. Applicants are asked to submit their published article (including book chapters that are read as stand-alone work) by e-mail as a PDF-file to rhoelzl [at] gwdg.de. If the language of publication is not English, applicants should include a one-page English summary.

Complete applications must be received by 1 May 2013. The winner will be contacted in the end of June 2013.

ESEH Best article Prize
Dr Richard Hölzl
Seminar for Modern and Medieval History
Georg-August-University Göttingen
Heinrich-Düker-Weg 14
37073 Göttingen
Germany
rhoelzl [at] gwdg.de

The Latin American and Caribbean Society for Environmental History (Solcha, for its acronym in Spanish), the Universidad de los Andes and the Universidad Nacional de Colombia invites graduate students to apply to the First Summer School on Latin American Environmental History, which will take place in Bogota between Monday June 3rd and Friday June 7th.

Deadline for submissions is 23 March 2013.

For more information see the attached flyer and visit the school’s website.

Nanyang Technological University in Singapore is looking for candidates for a tenure-track position in environmental history. NTU has a relatively new and rapidly growing history department and is looking to hire at the assistant professor level. Applications are invited from scholars working broadly in the area of environmental history. The geographical specialization is also open (that is, candidates need not specialize in Asia or Asian topics).

A full description of the position as advertised is available on the webpages of the History Department at NTU

The position is open until filled, but to receive full consideration, applications should be dispatched to the Search Committee by 17 March 2013.

Mountains Across Borders – A Summer School in environmental history
Lavin, Switzerland | 17-21 August 2013

This four-day ESEH graduate student Summer School will convene immediately before the European Society for Environmental History conference in Munich to offer intermediate to advanced graduate students the opportunity to present and discuss their work, to network with other researchers from across the world, and to witness and learn from eastern Switzerland’s complicated alpine environment.

APPLICATION DEADLINE: 22 March 2013.

Detailed information on the program and how to apply may be found in the full call for applications.

The first volume in The Environment in History: International Perspectives series has been published: Civilizing Nature: National Parks in Global Historical Perspective, edited by Bernhard Gissibl, Sabine Höhler, and Patrick Kupper.

This Berghahn Books series is peer reviewed by scholars affiliated with the Rachel Carson Center for Environment and Society and the European Society of Environmental History.

The editors discuss the book in an interesting conversation published on the website of Berghahn Books.

Cindy Ermus of Florida State University is looking for panelists for a session on “historical disasters” to be held at AHA 2014 in Washington, DC. The deadline for submissions in on 15 February 2013.

In particular, 3 or 4 case studies on government response and corruption (broadly) in times of natural disasters in the 18th century (though 17th and 19th century would also work) are sought for. Cindy Ermus is working on responses to the perceived “threat” of plague in England, France, and Italy during the Marseille plague of 1720. Her project explores responses to the threat of plague beyond the borders of France, and exposes the underlying interests that often inform decisions to search vessels, raise port taxes, quarantine, restrict travel, erect or shut city walls and so on.

Please contact Cindy Ermus for further information: cermus [at] fsu.edu