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Arcadia, 2012, no. 4

The Natural and Social Conditions for Soil Nutrients: The Case of a Mediterranean Village in the 1860s

Galán, Elena; Tello, Enric

Analysing the natural and social conditions for soil nutrients in the small Catalan village of Sentmenat during the 1860s, this interdisciplinary study aims to bridge the gap between history and ecology in order to draw lessons for sustainable agricultural systems from the pre-industrial era.

Arcadia, 2012, no. 3

London’s New River

van Lieshout, Carry

The New River was a canal opened in 1613 to supply London’s growing population with fresh water, which was commercially sold by the New River Company. Its construction and use played an instrumental part in the shift from freely available water that had to be fetched to a commercial service that was laid into people’s homes.

Arcadia, 2012, no. 2

Sounds in the Sky: Listening for the Aurora Borealis at Fort Chipewyan

McCorristine, Shane

Part of the scientific agenda of the British Arctic land expedition of 1819-22 was to investigate whether the appearance of the aurora borealis was accompanied by any sound.

Arcadia, 2012, no. 1

Seeking Environmental Knowledge from an Inuit Shaman

McCorristine, Shane

British Arctic explorers lacked local knowledge of the environments through which they passed and sometimes consulted Inuit shamans, whose geographical knowledge was known to be extensive. One expedition to seek the Northwest Passage exemplifies how they supplemented their deficit with indigenous environmental knowledge.

Arcadia, 2011, no. 8

Expecting Disaster: The 1963 Landslide of the Vajont Dam

Hardenberg, Wilko Graf von

On October 9, 1963, a landslide above the Vajont Dam created a wave that destroyed several villages in the valley, killing about 2,000 people. Opinion as to whether to interpret the disaster as natural or one caused by human error remains divided.

Arcadia, 2011, no. 7

Transforming Rivers into Streets: How the Nineteenth Century Scheme to Improve Shipping on the Vitava, Elbe and Danube Failed

Brabec, Stephan

In the second half of the nineteenth century, projects aimed at improving ship-based commerce by connecting various rivers boomed. One such project was the establishment of an Elbe-Vltava-Danube canal, which, however, was never completed.

Arcadia, 2011, no. 6

From Grains to Riches: How Hydropower Production on the Möll River in the Austrian Alps Went from Local to Supra-Regional

Haidvogl, Gertrud

After the collapse of the Austrian-Hungarian monarchy Austria was disconnected from its coal resources. Electricity production was focused on hydropower. The Möll is an example for the turn from local energy production to supranational electricity provision.

Arcadia, 2011, no. 5

Nature Unites: Peace and Conservation in the Former Death Zone – the European Green Belt

Weinbuch, Sonja

The European Green Belt is a pan-European project to protect the environment and consolidate peace along the former Iron Curtain throughout Europe.

Arcadia, 2011, no. 4

The Hamburg Flood in Public Memory Culture

Mauch, Felix

Today, the Storm Flood of 1962 forms an integral part of local and national memory culture. Public commemoration events, monuments, and media coverage assure that the disaster is not forgotten.

Arcadia, 2011, no. 3

Nuclear Power, No Thanks! The Aftermath of Chernobyl in Italy and the Nuclear Power Referendum of 1987

Hardenberg, Wilko Graf von

The 1987 nuclear power referendum was a major political victory for the Italian environmental movement. In the wake of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster, it led to a moratorium on building nuclear plants in Italy.

About Arcadia

Arcadia: Explorations in Environmental History is an open-access, peer-reviewed publication platform for short, illustrated, and engaging environmental histories. Embedded in a particular time and place, each story focuses on a site, event, person, organization, or species as it relates to nature and human society. By publishing digitally on the Environment & Society Portal, Arcadia promotes accessibility and visibility of original research in global environmental history and cognate disciplines.

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