Sea and Land: An Environmental History of the Caribbean

Sea and Land provides an in-depth environmental history of the Caribbean to ca 1850, exploring the mixing, movement, and displacement of peoples and the parallel ecological mixing of animals, plants, microbes from Africa, Europe, elsewhere in the Americas, and as far away as Asia. It argues that the constant arrival, dispersal, and mingling of new plants and animals gave rise to a creole ecology, particularly with the emergence of Black slavery, sugarcane, and the plantation system.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 464 pages
Publication date: 14 October 2022
Publisher: Oxford University Press Inc

Sea and Land is a comprehensive environmental history of the Caribbean that spans from approximately 1850 to the modern era, with a coda that extends the narrative into the contemporary period. It delves into the intricate processes of mixing, movement, and displacement of peoples, as well as the parallel ecological mixing of animals, plants, microbes, originating from diverse regions such as Africa, Europe, the Americas, and even Asia. The book begins by examining the arrival of Native American populations to the region and the subsequent environmental transformations that occurred. It then shifts its focus to the more dramatic changes that accompanied the arrival of Europeans and Africans in the fifteenth century. Throughout, the book argues that the continual arrival, dispersal, and mingling of new plants and animals gave rise to a unique creole ecology.

Special attention is given to the emergence of Black slavery, sugarcane, and the plantation system, which together wrought profound transformations on the region's demographic and physical landscapes, making the Caribbean a crucial site in the formation of the modern Western world.

In recent years, there has been a growing emphasis on addressing issues related to natural resources, conservation, epidemiology, and climate, which have elevated the environment and ecology of the Caribbean to a central historical concern. Sea and Land serves as an endeavor to consolidate this research into a new comprehensive environmental history of the region. Designed for scholars and students alike, its primary objective is to enhance both a deeper understanding of the profound influence of environmental factors on historical developments in the Caribbean and the extent to which human actions have shaped the region's biophysical environment over time.

The collaborative work of esteemed authors from the fields of environment, Latin American and Caribbean history, and other related disciplines brings forth. Sea and Land offers a distinctive perspective on a region renowned for its Edenic nature, paradisiacal qualities, and inherent dangers, as well as the challenges posed by diseases and other environmental adversities. By examining the complex interplay between human societies.

Weight: 662g
Dimension: 155 x 234 x 32 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780197555453