Scholarworks @ Morehead State

Title

A Brief History of Environmental Policy Through Literature

Authors

Nathan Walden
Brady Lawson
Adam Abdel-Rahman
Mathew Delancey
Douglas Mock, Faculty Mentor

Files

Description

Environmental policy is a relative newcomer on the scene of federal regulation, with cries for a unified federal environmental response ignited by the publication of Silent Spring, by Rachel Carson in 1962 which exposed the new field of environmental science and its effects to the American public. However, the tradition of literature driving public awareness and federal policymaking does not stop at its genesis with many seminal works such as Collapse, by Jared Diamond, The Diversity of Life, by Edward O. Wilson, and Love Canal, by Richard Newman, continuing to do the same. These books have continued to champion the cause of environmental awareness through detailing the effects of human activities on the ecosystems around us, as well as the human cost. The shocking imagery in this literature has prompted many in the American public to take up the cause of environmental reform, this increased awareness and involvement of many in the public has perpetuated a chunk of the environmental reforms adopted by the federal government. As such, the history of the federal environmental legislature is inextricably linked with literature.

Publication Date

4-2023

Disciplines

Arts and Humanities | Business | Education | Engineering | Higher Education | Life Sciences | Medicine and Health Sciences | Physical Sciences and Mathematics | Social and Behavioral Sciences

Recommended Citation

Walden, Nathan; Lawson, Brady; Abdel-Rahman, Adam; Delancey, Mathew; and Mock, Douglas, "A Brief History of Environmental Policy Through Literature" (2023). 2023 Celebration of Student Scholarship - Poster Presentations. 20.
https://scholarworks.moreheadstate.edu/celebration_posters_2023/20