Ecological Imperialism (book)

Not to be confused with Green imperialism.
Ecological Imperialism: The Biological Expansion of Europe, 900-1900
AuthorAlfred W. Crosby
LanguageEnglish
SeriesStudies in Environment and History
GenreEnvironmental history, Geography
Published1986 (1st edition)
PublisherCambridge University Press
Pages408
ISBN9780521837323

Ecological Imperialism: The Biological Expansion of Europe, 900-1900 is a 1986 book by environmental historian Alfred W. Crosby. The book builds on Crosby's earlier study, The Columbian Exchange, in which he described the complex global transfer of organisms that accompanied European colonial endeavors.

In Ecological Imperialism, Crosby seeks to explain why European colonialists were successful in establishing settler societies in temperate regions around the globe. He argues that this was due principally to the "portmanteau biota" – disease microbes, weeds, domesticated plants, and animals – that accompanied Europeans, devastating local populations and significantly re-making local landscapes. The book advanced understandings of the environmental impacts of global colonialism and re-shaped understandings of the colonial experience itself, placing environmental factors at its center.[1] Crosby introduced "ecological imperialism" as an explanatory concept that points out the contribution of European biological species such as animals, plants and pathogens in the success of European colonists.[2]

Ecological Imperialism is considered a foundational text in the field of environmental history and has been influential in many other fields, including postcolonial studies.[3][4] It was awarded the 1987 Ralph Waldo Emerson Award.[5]

  1. ^ Rice, Stanley (1989). Crosby, Alfred W. (ed.). "An Ecological Interpretation of History". Ecology. 70 (4): 1199–1200. doi:10.2307/1941394. ISSN 0012-9658. JSTOR 1941394.
  2. ^ Motyka, John (4 April 2018). "Alfred Crosby, 'Father of Environmental History,' Is Dead at 87". The New York Times. Retrieved 22 April 2023.
  3. ^ Piper, Liza; Sandlos, John (2007-10-01). "A Broken Frontier: Ecological Imperialism in the Canadian North". Environmental History. 12 (4): 759–795. doi:10.1093/envhis/12.4.759. ISSN 1084-5453.
  4. ^ Buchanan, Ian (2010-01-01), "ecological imperialism", A Dictionary of Critical Theory, Oxford University Press, doi:10.1093/acref/9780199532919.001.0001, ISBN 978-0-19-953291-9, retrieved 2020-07-21
  5. ^ "PBK - Phi Beta Kappa Book Awards". www.pbk.org. Retrieved 2020-07-21.