Centre for Anthropocene History researcher awarded 2024 Rainger Prize by History of Science Society

The History of Science Society has awarded this year’s Ronald Rainger Early Career Award  in History of the Earth and Environmental Sciences to Centre post-doctoral researcher Gustave Lester  for his article , “Land, Fur, and Copper: The Union of Settler Colonialism and Industrial Capitalism in the Great Lakes Region, 1815-1842.”

The prize was awarded at the History of Science Society Annual Meeting  in Mérida, Yucatán, Mexico. The Rainger Prize is awarded for the best early career work on the history of the earth and environmental sciences. In the words of the Award Committee:

“Gustave Lester’s article demonstrates superior argumentation based on an impressive empirical source base. […] Notably suitable for this award, Lester’s article aligns the history of the earth and environmental sciences with broader debates about settler colonialism, geological exploration, American empire, and Indigenous land rights.

It tells a story that combines western scientific knowledge of a supposedly newly discovered landscape with Indigenous knowledge of an ancient homeland. In a large field of strong submissions this year, Lester marshaled a variety of textual sources to contextualize geological exploration in early-nineteenth century America in the history of Indigenous land expropriation.

In so doing, Lester shows that mineral prospecting ultimately mattered less to settler appropriation of Indigenous lands than an expansionist approach to land seizure did. This marks a signal contribution to the expanding historiography of earth sciences in the crucible of empire.”

Congratulations to Gus from eveyone at the Centre for Anthropocene History!