About this book
No matter where they are located in the world, communities living in mountain regions have shared experiences defined in large part by contradictions. These communities often face social and economic marginalization despite providing the lumber, coal, minerals, tea, and tobacco that have fueled the growth of nations for centuries. They are perceived as remote and socially inferior backwaters on one hand while simultaneously seen as culturally rich and spiritually sacred spaces on the other. These contradictions become even more fraught as environmental changes and political strains place added pressure on these mountain communities. Shifting national borders and changes to watersheds, forests, and natural resources play an increasingly important role as nations respond to the needs of a global economy.
The works in Global Mountain Regions consider multiple nations, languages, generations, and religions in their exploration of upland communities' responses to the unique challenges and opportunities they share. From paintings to digital mapping, environmental studies to poetry, land reclamation efforts to song lyrics, the collection provides a truly interdisciplinary and global study. The editors and authors offer a cross-cultural exploration of the many strategies that mountain communities are employing to face the concerns of the future.
Contents
1: Introduction: Listening to Voices across Global Mountain Regions
Ann Kingsolver and Sasikumar Balasundaram
2: After Coal, through Film
Tom Hansell and Patricia Beaver
3: Mountains, Coal, and Life in British Columbia and West Virginia
Paul S. Ciccantell
4: Black Diamonds
Crystal Good
5: Historicizing Poverty and Marginalization in the Southern Mountain Regions of Malawi
Tony Milanzi
6: Voices for Community Rights in Amazonia
Monica Chují
7: Indigenous Social Movements in Mountain Regions
Carmen Martinez Novo, Shannon Elizabeth Bell, Subhadra Mitra Channa, Annapurna Devi Pandey, and Luis Alberto Tuaza Castro
8: Rebuilding Mountain Communities after Natural and Human-Made Disasters
Jude L. Fernando, Lina Maria Calandra, Stephanie McSpirit, Pam Oldfield Meade, Jeremy Paden and Shaunna L. Scott
9: Moving Heaven and Earth behind Mountains
Daniel Joseph
10: Environment, Health, and Justice
Mary K. Anglin, Gregory V. Button, and Dolores Molina-Rosales
11: Circulating News in Rural China and Appalachia
Al Cross and You You
12: Thinking About the Future
Jane Jensen, Marco Pitzalis, Mir Afzal Tajik, and Alan J. DeYoung
13: Jirga: Everyday Peace-Building in Rural Mountain Communities of Pakistan
Sajjad Ahmad Jan
14: Mapping and Measuring Digital Divides in Mountain Regions
Stanley D. Brunn and Maria Paradiso
15: Artifacts of Home
Saakshi Joshi
16: Resonating with the Trees
Jasper Waugh-Quasebarth
17: Appalachian and Carpathian Exchanges
Jessica Murray and Iryna Galuschchak
18: Appalachian and Columbian Connections through Cerulean Warbler Migration
Regina Donour
19: Experience and Expertise
Lisa B. Markowitz
20: Sustainable Livelihoods in Extreme Lands
Dipak R. Pant
21: Comparing Rural Livelihood Transitions in the Catalan and Sardinian Regions of Europe and the Appalachian Region of the United States
Domenica Farinella, Ann Kingsolver, Ismael Vaccaro, and Oriol Beltran
22: Honey Corridors in the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve and Appalachian Coal Production Areas
Tammy Horn Potter and Kunal Sharma
23: Agricultural Sovereignty and Arabica Coffee Production in Ethiopia
Aklilu Reda
24: Creating Sustainable Post-extraction Livelihoods in the Central Appalachian Coalfields
Nathan Hall
25: Reforestation Can Contribute to a Regenerative Economy in Global Mining Regions
Christopher D. Barton, Kenton Sena, and Patrick N. Angel
26: Palestinian Responsible Tourism for Cross-Cultural Understanding
Asma Jaber and Michel Awad
27: Conclusion: Looking Toward the Future in Global Mountain Regions
Felix Bivens, Sasikumar Balasundaram, and Ann Kingsolver
Index
Customer Reviews
Biography
Ann Kingsolver is Professor of Anthropology and past director of the Appalachian Center and Appalachian Studies Program at the University of Kentucky. Her research in the United States, Mexico, and Sri Lanka has focused on how people make sense of all that gets called "globalization" and act on those understandings. Her books include NAFTA Stories: Fears and Hopes in Mexico and the United States, Tobacco Town Futures: Global Encounters in Rural Kentucky, and several edited volumes.
Sasikumar Balasundaram is Assistant Professor of Anthropology at Southern Illinois University, Edwardsville. His research interests include refugees, humanitarian aid, global health, engaged anthropology with children and youth, and contemporary issues of the Up-country Tamils of Sri Lanka.
