Household Consumption and Environmental Change in the Twentieth Century

Rachel Carson Center
Alma Mater Studiorum Università di Bologna
Dipartimento di Storia Culture Civiltà

Household Consumption and Environmental Change in the Twentieth Century

Conveners: G. Parrinello (Sciences Po), P. Capuzzo (University of Bologna)

Abstract
Consumption is a crucial dimension of present-day environmental debates. From meat to automobiles, from tourism to electronic gadgets, multiple dimensions of individual and group consumption are questioned from the perspective of their impact on the environment and their share of responsibility in the global ecological crisis. How this relationship has been built, both discursively and in its material underpinnings, throughout history? While consumption studies have shed light on the subjective and often political dimension of consumer culture, environmental history has emphasized the material outcomes. We think that only by combining these two historical perspectives it is possible to fully understand the contradictory place of consumption in present-day environmental debates and politics.

Partecipants
D. Philippon, A. Day, E. Tizzoni, M. Mart, N. Lokowski, W. König, H. Weber, S. Fabian, R. Wright, N. Möllers, F. Paolini, M. Stoppock.