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Translocal Ecologies: The Norfolk Broads, the “Natural,” and the International Phytogeographical Excursion, 1911

  • Special issue: Environmental History
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Abstract

What we consider “nature” is always historical and relational, shaped in contingent configurations of representational and social practices. In the early twentieth century, the English ecologist A.G. Tansley lamented the pervasive problem of international misunderstandings concerning the nature of “nature.” In order to create some consensus on the concepts and language of ecological plant geography, Tansley founded the International Phytogeographical Excursion, which brought together leading plant geographers and botanists from North America and Europe. The first IPE in August 1911 started with the Norfolk Broads. It was led by Marietta Pallis, Tansley’s former student at Cambridge. This trip and the work of Pallis, neglected in other accounts of this early period of the history of ecology, influenced the relations between Tansley and important American ecologists H.C. Cowles and F.E. Clements. Understanding “place” as a network of relations, our regional focus shows how taking international dialogue, travel and interchange into account enriches understanding of ecological practice.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Geography, Queen’s University, Kingston, ON, K7L 3N6, Canada

    Laura Cameron

  2. School of Geography, University of Nottingham, University Park, Nottingham, NG7 2RD, UK

    David Matless

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  1. Laura Cameron
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  2. David Matless
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Correspondence to Laura Cameron.

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Cameron, L., Matless, D. Translocal Ecologies: The Norfolk Broads, the “Natural,” and the International Phytogeographical Excursion, 1911. J Hist Biol 44, 15–41 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10739-010-9245-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10739-010-9245-5

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