Davidson, Joe P. L. and Carreira da Silva, Filipe (2024) Decolonising the earth : anticolonial environmentalism and the soil of empire. Theory, Culture & Society . doi:10.1177/02632764241242380 ISSN 0263-2764.
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Abstract
The relationship between humanity and the soil is an increasingly important topic in social theory. However, conceptualisations of the soil developed by anticolonial thinkers at the high point of the movement for self-determination between the 1940s and the 1970s have remained largely ignored. This is a shame, not least because theorists like Eric Williams, Walter Rodney, Suzanne Césaire and Amílcar Cabral were concerned with the soil. Building on recent work on human-soil relations and decolonial ecology, we argue that these four thinkers conceptualised the connection between soil, empire, and anticolonial revolt. Williams and Rodney ground understanding of soil degradation in global relations of economic power, while Césaire and Cabral reconceptualise postcolonial nationhood in terms of the mutability and diversity of the soil. The article concludes by suggesting that these two anticolonial counterpoints, global connectivity and more-than-human identification, anticipate and deepen contemporary attempts to decolonise ecological thinking.
| Item Type: | Journal Article |
|---|---|
| Subjects: | G Geography. Anthropology. Recreation > GF Human ecology. Anthropogeography H Social Sciences > HD Industries. Land use. Labor H Social Sciences > HM Sociology J Political Science > JV Colonies and colonization. Emigration and immigration. International migration |
| Divisions: | Faculty of Social Sciences > Sociology |
| Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH): | Human ecology , Social ecology , Decolonization -- Environmental aspects, Environmentalism, Environmental protection -- Political aspects, Soils -- Sociological aspects |
| Journal or Publication Title: | Theory, Culture & Society |
| Publisher: | Sage Publications Ltd. |
| ISSN: | 0263-2764 |
| Official Date: | 10 May 2024 |
| Dates: | Date Event 10 May 2024 Available 29 November 2024 Accepted |
| DOI: | 10.1177/02632764241242380 |
| Status: | Peer Reviewed |
| Publication Status: | Published |
| Access rights to Published version: | Open Access (Creative Commons open licence) |
| Date of first compliant deposit: | 23 May 2024 |
| Date of first compliant Open Access: | 24 May 2024 |
| RIOXX Funder/Project Grant: | Project/Grant ID RIOXX Funder Name Funder ID |
| URI: | https://wrap.warwick.ac.uk/185884/ |
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