Humanities

Deep-water intrusions

An essay moving between philosopher of science Isabelle Stengers, Haida mythteller Skaay, and the North Pacific Ocean. In Flemish (transl. Samuel Vriezen) in nY issue 32, Jan 2017, a special issue on Isabelle Stengers; or read my English original here. “What strikes me, as a modern student of the non-human members of Skaay’s marine landscape, … Read more

Northwest Coastal Stories: Turbulence and Uncertainty in Science and in Culture

Program on the Comparative History of Ideas (CHID), Oceanography, and Honors Program, 2004–2013 Course announcement: This course will follow Jonathan Raban’s remarkable travelogue Passage to Juneau on a tour through the human and natural history of the Pacific Northwest coastal waters. We’ll discuss chaos theory and the circulation of Puget Sound; coastal ecology and climate … Read more

Teaching animal studies, 2001-2011

I taught animal studies at University of Washington 2001–2011 through the Program on the Comparative History of Ideas (CHID) and undergraduate Honors Program. These courses grew out of my masters work in religious studies. Writing Animals (2011) Co-taught with Sarah Read, English Syllabus: pdf Course announcement: This course will explore how writers in a variety … Read more

World Religions and the Environment

Developed for the undergraduate Honors Program, University of Washington, 2008 Syllabus: pdf Course announcement: This course will explore intersections between religious belief and practice and the natural world, on both grand and intimate scales. Grand like the all-encompassing vision of interconnectedness in Mahayana Buddhism, or the message of glory and salvation John Muir brought down … Read more