Sustainability Matters

Sociocognitive abilities of animals have been studied over the past few decades, but there is still a huge gap in research looking at animal ethics. What are the implications of this and how does this influence human behavior towards animals? 

In a new podcast, Dr. Judith Benz-Schwarzburg, Senior Postdoctoral Researcher at the University for Veterinary Medicine, Vienna, talks about pertinent questions on studying the cognitive and emotional abilities of animals and why they are important. Her discussion is an extension of her book titled “Cognitive Kin, Moral Strangers? Linking Animal Cognition, Animal Ethics & Animal Welfare,” published in the Human-Animal Studies series of Brill.

Guest: Dr Judith Benz-Schwarzburg 
Host: Leigh Giangreco  

In the wake of the novel coronavirus pandemic, the world has turned to science for effective solutions. However, using scientific research to influence government policies, especially in the middle of a crisis, requires the use of multiple other skills, which the humanities can provide. The field of humanities is more relevant now than ever before. 

In this podcast episode, Dr. Amy Daughton, Lecturer and Head of the Department of Theology and Religion at the University of Birmingham, discusses the importance of humanities amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. This discussion is based on Prof Charlotte Hempel’s paper “Let’s hear it for the humanities in the fight against COVID-19,” originally published in Brill’s Religion Media Centre. 

Guest: Dr Amy Daughton
Host: Leigh Giangreco 

Miniature ivory anatomical models or “manikins” were first created in the late 17th century, but their history as props for man-midwives, or even as kunstkammer objects, has not been fully explored.

In this podcast episode, Dr. Cali Buckley, of the Pennsylvania State University College, discusses how manikins grew as figures that mechanically and emotionally engaged with its owners, arousing their response. Her discussion is an extension of her paper “Pathos, Eros, and Curiosity: The History and Reception of Ivory Anatomical Models from the Seventeenth Century to Today,” which is published in the Brill journal Nuncius.

Guest: Dr Cali Buckley
Host: Leigh Giangreco 

Is morality solely a human creation? Or can we find evidence of morality in other parts of nature? Honeybees and flowers have co-evolved to form a mutualistic relationship. This means that these creatures have developed optimization processes that ultimately contribute to the continuity of life itself, pointing towards the existence of morality between the two. 

In this podcast episode, Dr. Christopher Ketcham, an independent researcher, discusses his theories on how studying the flower and honeybee facultative mutualism can help us to gain insight into the emergence of morality in nature. His discussion is an extension of his book “Flowers and Honeybees: A Study of Morality In Nature” published in the Critical Plant Studies series of Brill.

Guest: Dr Christopher Ketcham
Host: Leigh Giangreco 

Rwanda witnessed a 100-day mass genocide back in 1994, when the ethnic Hutu government and its supporters led a campaign that left around 800,000 people, including Tutsis and moderate Hutus, dead. And while, shockingly, the event was not given enough attention by the international community at the time, Rwanda’s genocide later led to reform and innovation in order to prevent and respond to such crises and to help the recovery of societies post conflicts.

In this episode, Dr. Philip Drew, Associate Professor at Australia National University and Assistant Dean of Faculty of Law at Queens University, and Dr. Bruce Oswald, Professor at Melbourne Law School talk about what led to the events of 1994 and how it generated more focus on international communities’ responses to government-sponsored violence in the future. This discussion is an extension of a special issue of Brill’s Journal of International Peacekeeping, called “Rwanda Revisited: Genocide, Civil War, and the Transformation of International Law.” 

Guests: Dr Philip Drew and Dr Bruce Oswald
Host: Leigh Giangreco

Rwanda witnessed a 100-day mass genocide back in 1994, when the ethnic Hutu government and its supporters led a campaign that left around 800,000 people, including Tutsis and moderate Hutus, dead. And while, shockingly, the event was not given enough attention by the international community at the time, Rwanda’s genocide later led to reform and innovation in order to prevent and respond to such crises and to help the recovery of societies post conflicts.

In this episode, Dr. Philip Drew, Associate Professor at Australia National University and Assistant Dean of Faculty of Law at Queens University, and Dr. Bruce Oswald, Professor at Melbourne Law School talk about what led to the events of 1994 and how it generated more focus on international communities’ responses to government-sponsored violence in the future. This discussion is an extension of a special issue of Brill’s Journal of International Peacekeeping, called “Rwanda Revisited: Genocide, Civil War, and the Transformation of International Law.” 

Guests: Dr Philip Drew and Dr Bruce Oswald
Host: Leigh Giangreco

In addition to battling poverty, malnutrition, and disease, African countries today find themselves also having to fend off the numerous perils of climate change. The African problem is unique— socioeconomic development is crucial, but that also shouldn’t come at the cost of environmental destruction. 

In this episode, Dr Robin Attfield, Professor Emeritus at the School of English, Communication and Philosophy at Cardiff University, talks about how Africa finds itself vulnerable to not only drought but also the flooding of its coastline, among other untoward environmental effects of climate change and civil war. And how it is in the best interest of African nations to develop in a climate-friendly manner. 

This discussion is based on his paper “Africa and Climate Change” published in Brill’s Utafiti: Journal of African Perspectives.

Guest: Professor Robin Attfield
Host: Leigh Giangreco 

Jewish religious architecture is central to the Jewish religion. Across the centuries, Jewish temples and synagogues have been treated as symbols of hope, representations of collective memory, and focal points of conflict. They are built around the Jewish way of life and in turn, define it. 

What are the foundations of Jewish architecture? And what cultures and ideologies have shaped it? With particular reference to Herod’s Temple, these are questions that Professor Steven Fine, Director at the Center for Israel Studies at Yeshiva University, discusses in this podcast, based on the Brill publication Jewish Religious Architecture: From Biblical Israel to Modern Judaism.

Guest: Dr Steven Fine
Host: Leigh Giangreco 

From the time of his introduction in the Detective Comics in 1940s, the Joker is a character that has both fascinated and repelled the collective psyche of the fans of the comic subculture and beyond.

In a new book titled “The Sign of the Joker: The Clown Prince of Crime as a Sign” published in the Brill Research Perspectives series, Joel West of the University of Toronto, Canada, analyzes the history and personality of the character, speculates on the character’s sexuality, and ultimately suggests what exactly gave the Joker his iconic status today.

Guest: Joel West
Host: Leigh Giangreco 

In 1999, the Organization of African Unity cited dissatisfaction with the solely “global” approach that the UN had applied in their International Decade for Disabled Persons (1983–1992), and declared an African Decade of Persons with Disabilities (1999–2009) to explore “local” approaches. 

Was the UN’s approach truly detached from the ground reality? In this podcast, Sam De Schutter discusses his award-winning paper “A Global Approach to Local Problems? How to Write a Longer, Deeper, and Wider History of the International Year of Disabled Persons in Kenya” published in Brill’s Diplomatica, where he argues that to get to the truth historians must go beyond the global-local dichotomy. Sam de Schutter won the Brill/Diplomatica Mattingly Prize 2019 for this paper.

Guest: Sam de Schutter
Host: Leigh Giangreco