ABERDEEN, S.D. — Dr. Kristen Brown, assistant professor of English at Northern State University, has co-edited a new book examining how literature, culture and Indigenous perspectives can reshape approaches to environmental stewardship and land management.
Published by Routledge as part of its Environmental Humanities Series, "Redefining Land Management in North American Literature and Culture: From Resource to Reciprocity" brings together research from 25 contributors, including professionals working in state and national parks across the United States.
Brown co-edited the collection with Jada Ach of Arizona State University. The project grew out of a conference hosted by the Association for the Study of Literature and the Environment, an international professional organization focused on literature, culture and the environment.
The collection examines human-environmental relationships across diverse media and disciplines. Topics range from dam construction and uranium extraction to traditional ecological practices, including gathering pollen and using prairie soils to create paint pigments.
A central theme is the importance of Indigenous ecological knowledge and approaches to living in relationship with land and water. In the introduction, Brown and Ach argue that environmental challenges are not only scientific problems, but also—and always—cultural, ethical, and historical ones that the humanities are uniquely equipped to address.
In addition to co-writing the book's introduction, Brown contributed a chapter titled “‘Back to Belonging’: Sound, Ceremony, and Resonance in a Re-membered Commons.” Her chapter examines the role of sound and listening in environmental stewardship through an analysis of "Ceremony," a novel by Laguna Pueblo author Leslie Marmon Silko.
Brown's research considers how attentive listening can deepen relationships between people and their environments, encouraging a greater sense of responsibility for the natural world.
“It is so satisfying to see this collection come into the world,” Brown said. “I wanted to be intentional about the voices that shaped it, so I reached out to Lakota scholar-activist Joseph Gazing Wolf for the foreword. Another North Dakotan contributor works in grasslands conservation and advocates for working lands. A shared attention to and affection for place unites these contributions. The project has been deeply collaborative and community-focused.”
Brown brings similar themes into her teaching at Northern, where her courses and research explore Indigenous literature, environmental ethics and the relationships between culture and the natural world.
She has also incorporated student environmental research into the College of Arts and Sciences' Wolftrax Podcast. To date, Brown has produced five podcast episodes featuring student research, providing opportunities for students to share their work with audiences beyond the classroom.
Brown hopes to continue expanding podcasting opportunities at Northern through collaboration with colleagues, supported in part by a Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning Pedagogy Grant.
Brown joined Northern's faculty in 2022 after teaching at institutions in the eastern and southwestern United States. Her research focuses on Indigenous studies, environmental ethics, literature and sound studies. Her scholarship has appeared in publications including "Western American Literature" and "Resonance: The Journal of Sound and Culture."
She earned her doctorate in English and American literature from the University of South Carolina, a master's degree in English from Gannon University and a bachelor's degree in English from Towson University.
More information about "Redefining Land Management in North American Literature and Culture: From Resource to Reciprocity" is available through Routledge. The full text is also available through Northern's library. You can email Brown at kristen.brown@northern.edu. She wants to keep these conversations going.
For more information, contact Chad Hatzenbuhler, director of communications and marketing, at chad.hatzenbuhler@northern.edu or 605-626-2046.