Between the local and the global in the Age of the Anthropocene: the case for the “regional” in Environmental Studies and Sciences

This article notes that two analytical lenses, one focused on the “local” and the other on the “global,” have influenced the Environmental Studies and Sciences (ESS) curriculum from its earliest days. It argues that, while vitally important, in the Age of the Anthropocene, the local/global paradigm is not enough. A necessary corrective is the incorporation of a regional analytical perspective. Such a perspective is needed to provide students with meaningful knowledge of peoples, their livelihoods, and their relationship to ecosystems in parts of the world between the local and the global. Revealing the networked relationships between places in concrete human terms sensitizes students to the complex reasons for ecological destruction and better prepares them to contribute to more just and sustainable outcomes. The paper defines a regional perspective; demonstrates the value of a regional lens to ESS using a case study of one region (Asia) and one environmental issue (land use changes due to commodity crop expansion); reviews empirical information on how the Asian region is presently incorporated in the undergraduate ESS curriculum; and, based on these findings, concludes by addressing how a regional lens might be more fully incorporated in undergraduate ESS teaching.