Key Figures in Environmental History

Abstract

What follows is a partial list of major works in the field of environmental history that identify key figures and detail their impacts on US history. The bulk of these entries are relatively recent, given the newness of the field, and they benefit from borrowing elements of social, political, economic, and cultural history to better explain these individuals and their contexts. These studies also profit from the turn in historical writing generally away from traditional, linear biographies to a more narrative style that focuses on contextualizing individuals and explaining their impact with more sensitivity to why and how they carried such influence during their lives and as part of their legacies. This bibliography is separated into public and private figures, with the former emphasizing studies that investigate the role of American politicians, particularly executives, and employees of the federal government and the latter instead focused on private figures and non-governmental actors, including several activists and organizations devoted to environmental justice. This shift in attention toward individual and non-state actors reflects trends in the discipline more broadly. It especially demonstrates the impact that social history has had on how environmental historians investigate the past. For example, recent studies of prominent figures casts a much wider net in emphasizing the role of women and people of color, and their influence on issues like conservation and the establishment of national parks. Historiography has also tended to move away from government-led conservation and preservation policies and reforms to address the growth of environmentalism in the postwar period. This shift is also reflected in the growing body of work detailing issues related to climate change and environmental justice. Much of that recent work investigates movements rather than individuals, as the tendency is to look broadly at the community or organization or agency before then conducting studies of prominent figures. This does provide some benefit, though, because one consistent theme for most of the works on this list is an attempt by the author to contextualize individuals and connect them to broader communities and conversations. The ability to then draw those connections provides opportunities to better understand the periods and eras during which these figures had an impact. As a result, most of these works excel at finding balance between emphasis on the individual and attention to his or her impact on US history more broadly.

Keywords

Identifiers

DOI

10.1093/obo/9780199363445-0145

Journal

Environmental Science

Year

2025