HELLO

And welcome to the third edition of the Society for Human Ecology Newsletter! From poems to academic work and everything in between, we have some fantastic work to share with you this month.

But first - some inspiration! The world celebrated Earth Day on the 22nd of April. In a world of uncertainty and increasingly complex challenges, it's important to celebrate the progress we are making towards environmental regeneration and justice. Here are a few ways nature is recovering:

• The Amazon Rainforest currently has the lowest level of deforestation in over a decade, with an 11% drop.
• Green sea turtles are now listed as 'Least Concern' after spending over 40 years listed as endangered.
• Renewable energy overtook coal as the world's biggest power source in 2025.

Combined with the incredible work of our global human ecology community, there's a lot to celebrate.

SHE Conference 2027

The SHE Conference Planning Committee is thrilled to announce that the Society for Human Ecology will return to the Philippines for SHE XXVII. While final dates are still being confirmed, the conference is anticipated for June 2027, and we will keep the membership updated as details are finalized.

We are especially delighted to be partnering once again with the College of Human Ecology at the University of the Philippines Los Baños, which hosted us in 2017. UPLB remains a vibrant center of human ecological scholarship, innovation, and leadership, making it an ideal home for our next global gathering.

As a reminder, SHE convenes international conferences approximately every 18 months. Planning is already underway with our colleagues in the Philippines and the SHE leadership team to create an inspiring venue for learning, integration, and collaboration across the full spectrum of human ecology.

More updates will be shared soon as plans take shape.

Sincerely,

Kenneth E Hill, PhD
SHE Executive Director
Vice President of Academic Innovation and Global Outreach at College of the Atlantic

Academic work & articles from our community ​​

SANEAMIENTO AMBIENTAL: SITUACIÓN EN PERÚ Juan Eduardo Gil Mora ​​Read here​​​​​​

Cultural Forest Restoration in a Rubber Plantation Context Dr. habil. Cory Whitney ​Read here​

When the Ocean Cried Out Dr. Janine Pierce ​​​​​ ​​​ ​​​​​​Read here​​​​​​

Justice sociale et écologique JUSTES Contact Group ​​Read here​​​​​​​​

Human Ecology - as essay Richard J. Borden ​​​​​​​​​Read here​

Strategic Minerals: No Agreements Without Community Consent ​​Mpinda Tushiminine Martin, PhD ​Read here​

Wicked Problems and Communication: In Search of Governability Ana Vitoria Alkmim de Souza Lima, PhD ​​​Read here​​​​​​​​​

A Review of Wood Energy in Southern Katanga ​​Mpinda Tushiminine Martin, PhD and Alain Tshibungu ​​​​Read here​​​​

Impacts of Mining Activities Along the Katangan Copperbelt ​​Mpinda Tushiminine Martin, PhD ​Read here​​​

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Poet's Corner

And Justice for All Preston Richard This found poem is a collection of quotes from Daniel Quinn's "Ishmael", Aldo Leopold's "A Sand County Almanac", and Dina Gilio-Whitaker's "As Long As Grass Grows: The Indigenous Fight for Environmental Justice." Read here.

A Climate, Changed Kira West Read here.

Untitled Jay McNally Read here.

SHE Spotlight

Maine’s Cambodian Community Aims to Keep Invasive Green Crabs at Bay Ben Seal Read here.

College of the Atlantic First Year Program Ken Hill College of the Atlantic Bringing Human Ecology into the World in Troubling Times Read here.

Lessons in Human Ecology Jay McNally To read the short story, click ​​​​​here​​.​

In Search of Human Ecology Richard J. Borden​​ To read the essay, click ​​here.

Announcements

The Sanitation Bulletins: A Forgotten Chapter in Public Health History

Tara Pearson, Ph.D. Student, College of Human Ecology Dean's Archival Fellow 2025, Cornell University

A century ago, Cornell researchers were already tackling one of the biggest public health challenges of their time: how to translate scientific knowledge into everyday practice. Drawing from original materials in Cornell's Division of Rare and Manuscript Collections, Pearson uncovers how early Home Economics faculty developed science-based sanitation bulletins that brought disease prevention strategies directly into rural New York homes.

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Applications open for Pathways Initiative

Viola Baldeschi, Science Officer, Future Earth/The Pathways Initiative

Early career researchers based in Europe can apply to the Future Earth Pathways Autumn School: "Towards Sustainable and Just Futures: Concepts, Challenges, and Practices", which will take place from November 16–20, 2026, in Aussois, in the French Alps.

Applications close 22 May. For more information visit the Future Earth site.

MSCA Research Fellowship Awarded

Alex Putzer

Alex Putzer has won an MSCA (Marie Curie) for a project on the rights of nature in cities. He will be located at the TU Delft Faculty of Architecture and Built Environment for two years starting in October. As part of the project, he will spend five months in Mexico City in the Spring of 2027 and six months at the OECD in Paris in the Winter of 2028/29.

Read the project abstract here.

Reach out to him at alex.putzer@nyu.edu if you are interested in collaborating.​​

International Day of Forests Webinar

Prof T.I. Khan, University of Rajasthan, Jaipur, India

Dr T. I. Khan delivered the keynote for the International Day of Forests webinar on 25 March, 2026. Summary below:

We have lost Sustainability in many spheres like Industries, Agriculture, Supply of Potable Water etc. especially in developing countries. Also, we are facing the loss of Forests and Biodiversity due to variety of reasons including Climate Change. There are a large number of reasons ascribed to developmental activities like production of electricity, in Thermal Power Plants using coal, gas and petroleum, increasing number of vehicles, cutting of Forests for various minor and major products, mining for different mining products. Biodiversity loss is also observed due to variety of reasons. The research work carried out pertaining to Climate Change, Biodiversity Conservation and Sustainability by individuals in different institutions in different countries was discussed.

Next Call for Content As a reminder, this is a quarterly newsletter. The next call for content will be in July, but please feel free to send feedback or submissions any time to Kira West at kira.west@humanecology.earth. Thank you to everyone who contributed!