Thom van Dooren: The World in a Shell

UMass Amherst History Department

Feinberg Series lecture on the disappearing snails of Hawaii by Thom van Dooren. Thom van Dooren is a field philosopher, storyteller and Associate Professor, University of Sydney and the University of Oslo. Moderated by Malcolm Sen with an introduction by Brian Ogilvie. The Hawaiian Islands were once home to one of the most diverse assemblages of terrestrial snails found anywhere on earth. Today, however, the majority of these species are extinct and most of those that remain are headed swiftly in the same direction. This lecture explores this larger context of loss, asking what it means and why it matters that so much of Hawai’i’s rich snail diversity is disappearing. It does so, however, through a focus on one very particular question: how did a global centre of terrestrial snail diversity end up out in the middle of the Pacific Ocean? Snails, after all, are not commonly known for their propensity to undertake long journeys—not by land, and certainly not by sea. So, how did they all get to this most remote oceanic archipelago? Equally as importantly at our present time, how might the ongoing extinctions of snails be understood differently if we pay attention to these deep-time processes? What might this context help us to see, appreciate, and perhaps hold onto? To watch the video recording: https://blogs.umass.edu/feinberg/a-world-in-a-shell-the-disappearing-snails-of-hawaii/ -- The 2020-2021 Feinberg Series ~ Planet on a Precipice: Histories and Futures of the Environmental Emergency The UMass Amherst history department's 2020-2021 Feinberg Series is exploring the climate and environmental emergency in historical perspective. Free online events address the historical origins of ecological destruction and mass extinction; the implications of these phenomena for human and nonhuman survival and ways of life; the role of human politics; the connections between the environmental emergency and histories of capitalism, colonialism, genocide, and white supremacy; human entanglements with the nonhuman world; and the past, present, and future of resistance movements. The series seeks to deepen our understandings of this singularly important set of problems through historical analysis and, in doing so, to envision constructive paths forward. The Feinberg Family Distinguished Lecture Series is made possible thanks to the generosity of UMass Amherst history department alumnus Kenneth R. Feinberg ’67 and associates. The series is co-sponsored by more than 3 dozen community and university partners. Visit the Feinberg Series webpage for more information about the series. blogs.umass.edu/feinberg-series