Thread by @GeoForTheFuture

Today for #EarthScienceWeek @earthsciweek we're thinking about Earth Science and Decolonisation.

We'll be adding to this thread with some resources on this topic throughout the day, and we would like it you could add yours too! #DayOfScience

...We're not experts on this topic by any means- but we are learning and listening every day, and seeking out new resources to share that will help us to understand better how we can address this important topic in our subject...

...First of all, what does "decolonisation" mean?

This is a good read from @ConversationEDU to give a broad overview.

"Decolonisation is now used to talk about restorative justice through cultural, psychological and economic freedom."

theconversation.com/explainer-what…

...Before we get into Earth Science, it's important to see the big picture of how ALL science has benefitted from colonisation, and still benefits from the legacy of colonialism today.

Another from @ConversationEDU, this article is essential reading:

theconversation.com/decolonise-sci…

...But what do we mean by "decolonising science"?

"Decolonization is a movement to eliminate, or at least mitigate, the disproportionate legacy of white European thought and culture in education."

This article gives a South African view on this issue:

nature.com/articles/d4158…

"It's not about tearing down an amazing musuem...it's about making it do it's job better...telling the whole story, and not just these stories that have been selectively told in the past"

Working to decolonise the Sedgwick museum, talk by Dr. Liz Hide:

..This is a really fascinating talk. It discusses how Adam Sedgwick, a prominent figure in the "golden era" of geological discovery, inherited a significant wealth from slavery and used it to buy specimens from Mary Anning (which he then took the credit for when displayed...)

...and a possibly little known fact about the Voyage of the Beagle-The ship's main duty was to conduct a survey of the South American coastline, "ultimately about enabling greater British access and control of those areas"- Darwin just went along as a companion to the captain.

This recent panel discussion from the UK Volcanic and Magmatic Studies Group, hosted by @VolcanoJenni, tackles decolonisation and addressing inequalities. There are some great speakers:

... @scarlett_jazmin (7:40 - 15:00) discusses her PhD research; she considers how discrimination occurs during volcanic crises in both colonial and post-colonial eras- "colonial racism and oppression, in its many forms, impacts who and how people either survive or perish"

..Dr Elisa Sevilla(16:40-25:00)discusses how European acquisition of geoscience knowledge in Latin America was greatly dependent on interaction with indigenous peoples:"Explorers relied on colonial structure to obtain information,guides & workers to carry instruments&collections"

There are a few great resource 'libraries' on geology and colonialism out there...@BrynMineral is a great account to follow, they have a reading list of papers relevant to this theme: mineralogy.digital.brynmawr.edu/blog/geology-c…

And this is a new one we just found today- the Claremont Colleges Library "Decolonising the Geosciences" resource list: libguides.libraries.claremont.edu/c.php?g=712173…

It's worth bearing in mind that examining the links between colonisation and Earth Science is not new. Check out this paper by Robert Stafford from 1984: "Geological surveys, mineral discoveries, and British expansion, 1835–71" tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.108…

The very first sentence is pretty striking: "In the middle decades of the nineteenth century, the science of geology enjoyed a remarkable vogue as an *instrument of imperial development*"

..and this from the last paragraph most damning : "British geology in the nineteenth century conquered new lands by reducing them to regularity and providing the requisite information to exploit them."

https://twitter.com/envidynxlab/status/1316736658973364226?s=20

“You know the moment one starts to see one’s own privilege? This is what I call becoming aware of the wallpaper of your life. I wanted us to see that, not in the science itself, but in the story of science—in how science is told.”

Brilliant article:
wcsj2017.org/decolonizing-s…