About the lecture

In this module we introduce the water cycle: (i) we discusses the conventional hydrological cycle view, highlighting its limitations in capturing human impacts directly and indirectly, such as agriculture, manufacturing, and climate change; (ii) the complex interplay between human activities and water systems, referencing the updated 2022 map by the United States Geological Survey, which integrates human water usage categories; (iii) stress the necessity of considering both natural and social dynamics in addressing water challenges at local and global scales.

About the lecturer

My research focuses on the social dimensions of land, water, and energy, with particular attention to the ethical and political dimensions of human impacts on the Earth system. I have a long-term research project focused on these issues in the Canadian province of Alberta, where I examine colonial histories of water policy, the formation of oil economies, and the role of geosciences in state legitimacy and Indigenous dispossession.