In Rooting in a Useless Land, Chelsea Fisher examines the deep histories of environmental-justice conflicts in Mexico's Yucatán Peninsula. She draws on her innovative archaeological research in Yaxunah, an Indigenous Maya farming community dealing with land dispossession, but with a surprising twist: Yaxunah happens to be entangled with prestigious sustainable-development projects initiated by some of the most famous chefs in the world. Fisher contends that these sustainable-development initiatives inadvertently bolster the useless-land narrative—a colonial belief that Maya forests are empty wastelands—which has been driving Indigenous land dispossession and environmental injustice for centuries. Rooting in a Useless Land explores how archaeology, practiced within communities, can restore history and strengthen relationships built on contested ground.
By:
Chelsea Fisher Imprint: University of California Press Country of Publication: United States Dimensions:
Height: 229mm,
Width: 152mm,
Spine: 33mm
Weight: 363g ISBN:9780520395879 ISBN 10: 0520395875 Pages: 280 Publication Date:28 December 2023 Audience:
Professional and scholarly
,
Undergraduate
Format:Paperback Publisher's Status: Active
Chelsea Fisher is Assistant Professor of Anthropology at the University of South Carolina.