Description: How has the current dependence on petroleum determined the variable and uneven ways in which marginalized communities and individuals across the planet experience different manifestations of the climate crisis? What are the histories, cultures, infrastructures and aesthetics of the oil industry and how can approaching them critically help us envision different possibilities? In what ways can marginalized perspectives contribute to discussions and imaginations of energy justice and post-fossil futures? This course combines approaches from the social sciences and humanities to examine oil cultures and the different connections between the oil industry and the uneven distribution of environmental harms and hazards. Through engagement with case studies from all over the world, we explore the social life of energy, including topics such as climate change in the anthropocene, the history and social lives of energy systems, oil and democracy, oil and culture, petro-violence, infrastructure and environmental racism, electricity, plastic pollution, slow violence, greenwashing and corporate malfeasance, energy transitions, solar and wind power, and post-fossil fuel futures.
Prerequisite(s): GIS experience, EA 31, or appropriate environmental science course.
For up-to-date information on current course offerings and details, please refer to the Pitzer class schedule on MyCampus2 Portal.
