A caricature of the Berners Street Hoax by William Heath, 1810

Is “Swatting” Rooted in a Prank Craze from the 1800s?

Why did Georgian-era England go mad for dangerous hoaxes, and what can that mania tell us about today’s volatile, content-hungry world?
Aerial view of the lithium mine of Silver Peak, Nevada

The Art of the Deal or the Dirt?

Will so-called Trump Tariffs ensure that the United States has the minerals it needs to transition to sustainable energy?
A map of North America

The Making and Meaning of Greenland: A Reading List

A selection of research reports and peer-reviewed articles offers insight into the history and potential future of the autonomous territory of Greenland.
A lump of peat used to make whiskey

Why Peat Is a Key Ingredient in Whisky and the Climate Crisis

Approximately 80 percent of Scotch whisky is made using peat as a fuel source for drying barley during the malting process. Is that a problem?
New Zealand, North Island, Te Urewera National Park, man, hiker gazing at trees along hiking trail, wilderness, native rainforest, dramatic landscape,

Legal Personhood: Extending Rights to Nature?

The idea of awarding legal personhood to nature has received renewed attention in the contemporary environmental justice movement, but much contention remains.
A firefighter runs so not to be surrounded by fire as he tries to extinguish a wildfire burning near the village Vlyhada near Athens on July 19, 2023 in Athens, Greece.

The Social-Ecological Nature of Wildfire

How do we meet the challenge of increasingly devastating wildfires?
A dead whale being cleaned by whalers

So You Plan to Teach Moby Dick

The study of Melville’s novel is enhanced by contextualizing it with primary and secondary sources related to the American sperm whaling industry.
A group of children holding up a small globe

Making Climate Communication Nature-Driven

How climate change is represented in popular media allows us to avoid the complex, interconnected roles humans have played to create it.
An ecstatic commune member

When Communes Don’t Fail

Communes have gotten a reputation for being flaky or cultish. But intentional communities have a long history, and many have been successful.