About the presentation
Climate-related marine environmental change is happening across all scales, from the microbiotic to the geophysical: from the unraveling symbiotic relationships of zooxanthellae and corals in shallow reef systems, to the slowing of global ocean currents, to the increase in temperatures on the Antarctic ice sheet, where the recorded highs were 40 C above normal this spring. Large-scale changes also include deviations in the territorial ranges and migratory patterns of marine species across taxon. These changes to marine spaces of course impact ocean-dependent human communities as well, including the ways in which different communities understand, inhabit, and claim marine territory. Using case studies from research with traditional coastal communities in Southeast Asia, this presentation will explore how environmental change is colliding with already complex negotiations between traditional and state marine tenure systems, tracing the roles of animals, hunters and fishers, marine ecology, and policy.
About the presenter
Florence Durney is an anthropologist whose broad-scale research interests center on the relationships of human societies and their environments. The majority of her work has focused on humans and the marine environment, and the ways in which that relationship is differentially understood and put in practice, with a regional focus in Southeast Asia. As a postdoc with the ERC funded Whales of Power lab, her current project focuses on the last active community of traditional marine hunters and whalers in eastern Indonesia, and their experiences negotiating cosmology, hunting, and identity in a time of large-scale social and environmental change. Before joining UiO, Durney completed a PhD at University of Arizona, where she also lectured in anthropology. She has also worked as a contracted researcher and research assistant on projects across the social and natural sciences including at the University of Arizona, the American Museum of Natural History, the Wildlife Conservation Society, and beyond.
About the event series
The OSEH Environmental Lunchtime Discussion series consists of short, 15 minute presentations by invited guests, followed by a discussion. We invite speakers from a wide variety of fields, both academic and beyond. The presentations are accessible and are aimed at anyone with an interest in environmental issues. All are welcome.