Heise Handout

Ursula K. Heise argues that Environmentalism should not only consider the sense of place, but it should also encompass the global. Ideally, our perception of the environment should resemble a collage--a system in which everything is connected, but also separate. She makes this argument in five chapters, which are briefly touched on below.

1. "From the Blue Planet to Google Earth"

• Heise lays the foundation of her argue by summarizing and critiquing Ursula K. LeGuin's "Vaster than Empire and More Slow," which illustrates an environment in which everything is connected to a global network.

2. "Allegories of Connectedness: From Gaia to the Risk Society"

• Here we are introduced to three ecological allegories, the Gaia Hypothesis, Spaceship Earth, and Global Commons, sparked by the infamous image Blue Planet. Heise is not really a fan of these allegories because they assume that, without humankind, the ecosystem is one of perfect balance.

• Heise also addresses apocalyptic allegories and the notion of corporate conspiracy, which have contributed to turning our society into what Buell terms a "risk society."

3. "Localism and Modernity: The Ethic of Proximity"

• Heise wants us to start thinking about how natural and cultural places are connected and how human impact affects this connectedness.
• Aside from elaborating on the importance of equally valuing the local and the global, Heise addresses 1) Staying Put vs. Migration, 2) Problems with Ecocriticism, 3) Problems with defining local, and 4) Sense-of-place discourse. This is where she talks about the American nomad.

4. "Deterrorialization and Eco-cosmopolitanism"

• Heise argues that reconsidering these ideas will lead to a more accurate understanding of how individuals and communities inhabit particular sites.
• This is where we get into barrier-breakdowns; our in-class discussion touched on the idea of imported products and television and how this deterritorialization can lead to eco-cosmopolitanism.

5. "Forms of the Global:

• Heise's goal here is to create a nuanced understanding of how aesthetic forms like allegory and collage have shaped the environmental imagination of the global.
• She uses Google Earth and Kilma's installation called Earth to exemplify a push towards an eco-cosmopolitan perception/imagination of the global.