The Give and Take of Sustainability

Archaeological and Anthropological Perspectives on Tradeoffs

Edited by Michelle Hegmon

Sustainability strives to meet the needs of the present without compromising the future, but increasingly recognizes the tradeoffs among these many needs. Who benefits? Who bears the burden? How are these difficult decisions made? Are people aware of these hard choices? This timely volume brings the perspectives of ethnography and archaeology to bear on these questions by examining case studies from around the world. Written especially for this volume, the essays by an international team of scholars offer archaeological and ethnographic examples from the southwestern United States, the Maya region of Mexico, Africa, India and the North Atlantic, among other regions. Collectively, they explore the benefits and consequences of growth and development, the social costs of ecological sustainability, and tensions between food and military security.

Bio

Michelle Hegmon is a professor in the School of Human Evolution and Social Change at Arizona State University. Her research focuses on the archaeology of the U.S. Southwest,<strong> </strong>particularly the Mimbres region of southwest New Mexico.

The Give and Take book cover image
Date published
Publisher
Cambridge University Press
ISBN
978-1107078338
Genres
Environment and sustainability, Archaeology and anthropology
College or unit
The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, School of Human Evolution and Social Change

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