The History of Deserts in a Warming World *Online* *NEW*

Deserts and drylands encompass 40% of the globe and shelter two billion people. Arid regions are the birthplace of world religions, empires, and civilizations and are home to valued natural resources and major cities. Throughout human history, however, deserts have been seen as empty, hostile lands—spaces to be either feared and avoided or conquered and exploited. Consequently, we often fail to understand drylands as complex ecosystems and as places of rich cultural, ecological, societal, and economic diversity. This course combines environmental history, exploring what deserts actually are and where they are located (we often forget, for example, that the largest desert on Earth is in fact Antarctica) with cultural history, delving into histories of art, architecture, and literature produced in and about deserts. We'll also talk about more modern projects of geo-engineering and resource extraction in deserts and use knowledge from the past to think about our present and future, especially in light of the effects of climate change on arid zones and the increasing aridity of our planet overall. Instructor: Maggie Freeman

Sections

Instructor

Maggie Freeman is a PhD candidate in History, Theory and Criticism of Art and Architecture and the Aga Khan Program for Islamic Architecture at MIT, where she researches uses of architecture by nomadic peoples with a focus on the modern Middle East. She has researched, published, presented, and taught on a range of topics from medieval Islamic architecture to the global history of nomadism.