In May, with the support of the Humanities Council, the Climate Change and History Research Initiative partnered with the Program in Medieval Studies to launch a new seminar series that examined the historical context and the social, cultural, and environmental impact of pandemics through the ages. The virtual series entitled “Pandemics in the Past: from Prehistory to (almost) the Present” featured guest scholars from across the U.S. and Europe.
The series was coordinated by John Haldon, Shelby Cullom Davis ’30 Professor of European History, Emeritus, and Helmut Reimitz, Professor of History and Director of the Program in Medieval Studies.
Watch the videos:
Thursday, May 14, 13:30 – 15:00 EST
“The Story of Pandemics in Scholarship and Popular Culture, 1890-2020”
Merle Eisenberg, National Socio-Environmental Synthesis Center in Annapolis, MD, and Lee Mordechai, Hebrew University
Thursday, May 21, 13:30 – 15:00 EST
“Plague: From the Late Neolithic to the Black Death”
Phil Slavin, University of Stirling
Thursday, May 28, 13:30 – 15:00 EST
“The ‘Plague of Cyprian’: Sources, Problems, Origins and the ‘Crisis of the Third Century’”
Sabine Huebner, University of Basel
Thursday, June 4, 13:30 – 15:00 EST
“Avoiding Plague like the Plague: Some Pathogenic Context for Late Antique Pandemics”
Tim Newfield, Georgetown University, Washington
Thursday, June 11, 13:30 – 15:00 EST
“The Justinianic Plague: Apocalypse or Overblown?”
Lee Mordechai, Hebrew University, and Merle Eisenberg, National Socio-Environmental Synthesis Center in Annapolis, MD
Thursday June 18, 13:30 – 15:00 EST
“From Healthscaping to Disease Tracing: Plague and Public Health After the Black Death”
Abigail Agresta, George Washington University; Columbian College of Arts and Sciences, Washington
Followed by a general discussion: comparative perspectives, and the way forward.
