An introduction to how the archaeology and management of ancient sites and artifacts from Greek and Roman civilizations is carried out in the field. Archaeologists play an important role in recovering these past civilizations, while museums help to spread the information gathered to the wider public. What happens to the thousands of objects uncovered during excavation? How do museums curate these artifacts and presented them to the public? What role do we all have in protecting and preserving these past cultures? These questions and more will be discussed through an in-depth look at archaeological projects, museum collections, and the ethical debates surrounding the study of the ancient civilizations.

This course introduces students to Russia's astounding ethnic diversity. We will study the histories of the Sami, the Khanty, the Evenks, the Nenets, the Yakuts, the Chukchi, and others, from Ivan the Terrible's conquests in the 16th century to Vladimir Putin's policies today. The students will explore the impacts of colonialism and capitalism on the lives of the indigenous peoples; the issues of environment and sustainability; the struggle for preservation of the peoples' languages and traditions; the creative expression of culture through the traditional music, costumes, ceremonial dances, and literature. This course carries the following General Education designations: 1. Equity and Power-Global 2. Societies and Human Behavior.

This course will invite students to critically think about the historical, political, and cultural processes that have come to define the meaning of “being Indigenous” in Latin America. Through an interdisciplinary approach (with readings from critical Indigenous studies, Latin American studies, history, and anthropology), the course will introduce students to key episodes, from conquests and colonizations, national projects of assimilation, the development of extractive economies, multicultural reforms, and contemporary projects of decolonization. In considering such themes, students will be able to grasp how the definition of indigeneity is tied to global and regional histories, as well as to contemporary struggles over autonomy, territories, and resources.

Energy is framed as the source of our current climate crisis, as a crucial steppingstone for building a post-carbon world, and as an essential aspect of our sociopolitical imaginaries (tied to ideas of freedom, prosperity, and the good life). This course explores the cultural politics of energy production and consumption from a global perspective. It maps the major theoretical and empirical concerns regarding the relationship between collective life and energy as a resource. It considers the impact of energy regimes on human and non-human ecologies; the relation between energy, modern state power, and contemporary capitalism; the subjective, cultural, and affective dimensions of energy forms; and the place of energy in debates about climate change and planetary futures. Drawing on readings from anthropology, critical geography, political science, and international relations, we explore specific energy forms, from carbon-based (fire, coal, oil, natural gas) to renewables (wind, sunlight, biomass, water). Through ethnographies of energy from Latin America, Africa, South Asia, the Pacific, and the Global North, we consider how these energy sources shapes in distinct ways societies, subjectivities, and the environment.

This course surveys art and architecture of civilizations in Precolumbian Mesoamerica from approximately 2000 BCE to 1521 CE in the modern-day countries of Mexico, Guatemala, Belize, and Honduras. We will study the history and artistic expression of a number of cultures, among them the Olmec, Maya, Zapotec, Mixtec, and Aztec. We will also look at the effects of the Spanish conquest and the influence of Mesoamerican art and cultures on contemporary society. A central question we will tackle throughout the class is how to make meaning out of art that falls outside the Western tradition. To help address this issue, we will consider a broad range of artistic practices and modes of visual communication, from household ceramics to monumental buildings.

Archaeology is the scientific study of the ancient and recent human past through the material traces of past human activity. In this hands-on introduction to archaeology, students learn some archaeological and anthropological methods used to reconstruct, document, and interpret aspects of the human past.

This course introduces students to Russia's astounding ethnic diversity. We will study the histories of the Sami, the Khanty, the Evenks, the Nenets, the Yakuts, the Chukchi, and others, from Ivan the Terrible's conquests in the 16th century to Vladimir Putin's policies today. The students will explore the impacts of colonialism and capitalism on the lives of the indigenous peoples; the issues of environment and sustainability; the struggle for preservation of the peoples' languages and traditions; the creative expression of culture through the traditional music, costumes, ceremonial dances, and literature. This course carries the following General Education designations: 1. Equity and Power-Global 2. Societies and Human Behavior.

Since 1492, religion has been central to the project of modern colonialism. Everywhere European conquerors went, they justified colonial rule in the name of Christianity, sponsored missionary projects of conversion, and regulated the traditions and practices of the colonized. Indeed, some scholars have argued that modern conceptions of religion (and its cognate, world religions) only emerged out of these colonial conquests. This course explores the constitutive relationship between colonialism and religion. Two broad questions will inform our inquiry: How did the colonial encounter shape modern knowledge of religion? How did colonial technologies of rule (law, education, the census, surveillance, welfare) effect transformations in the religious beliefs, traditions, and practices of both the colonizer and the colonized? Our readings will include materials from various modern empires in the Americas, Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. We will explore how religion was constitutive of modern empires and how religion relates to other sites of social power including race, gender, and nation. Themes for the course may include religious conversion and freedom of religion, religious institutions and reforms, textuality and interpretation, ritual and material cultures, and legal reforms and regulation.

An introduction to how the archaeology and management of ancient sites and artifacts from Greek and Roman civilizations is carried out in the field. Archaeologists play an important role in recovering these past civilizations, while museums help to spread the information gathered to the wider public. What happens to the thousands of objects uncovered during excavation? How do museums curate these artifacts and presented them to the public? What role do we all have in protecting and preserving these past cultures? These questions and more will be discussed through an in-depth look at archaeological projects, museum collections, and the ethical debates surrounding the study of the ancient civilizations.

Energy is framed as the source of our current climate crisis, as a crucial steppingstone for building a post-carbon world, and as an essential aspect of our sociopolitical imaginaries (tied to ideas of freedom, prosperity, and the good life). This course explores the cultural politics of energy production and consumption from a global perspective. It maps the major theoretical and empirical concerns regarding the relationship between collective life and energy as a resource. It considers the impact of energy regimes on human and non-human ecologies; the relation between energy, modern state power, and contemporary capitalism; the subjective, cultural, and affective dimensions of energy forms; and the place of energy in debates about climate change and planetary futures. Drawing on readings from anthropology, critical geography, political science, and international relations, we explore specific energy forms, from carbon-based (fire, coal, oil, natural gas) to renewables (wind, sunlight, biomass, water). Through ethnographies of energy from Latin America, Africa, South Asia, the Pacific, and the Global North, we consider how these energy sources shapes in distinct ways societies, subjectivities, and the environment.