The History Department at Cal Poly Humboldt is excited to host Dr. Daniel Vandersommers, one of the pioneers in the new field of Zoo Studies, as a keynote speaker for the annual Student History Conference. His keynote, entitled “Following Runaway Animals: Stories from the Zoo for Wilding History,” will take Friday, April 21, from 5-7 p.m. in Founders Hall 118.

What is Zoo Studies? “Zoo studies considers the modern zoo from a range of approaches and disciplines, united in a desire to blur the boundaries between human and nonhuman animals.”

Dr. Vandersommers is an assistant professor of environmental history at the University of Dayton.  He teaches classes on animal history, climate history, wilderness history, and the history of ecological thought.  His research combines environmental history, animal studies, science studies, and posthumanism.

After earning a Bachelor’s degree in Biology, Vandersommers received his Ph.D. from the Ohio State University. He was a NEH Postdoctoral Fellow at the Consortium for the History of Science, Technology and Medicine in Philadelphia, and an SSHRC Postdoctoral Fellow in Animal History at MacMaster University in Ontario, Canada.

His publications include Zoo Studies: A New Humanities (2019) **Winner of the Choice Outstanding Academic Title” award for 2020.  Vandersommers is currently at work on two projects: a study of how racial violence shaped zoological thought and vice versa; and a history of veterinary medicine and its influences on human medicine.  Finally, he is planning a book on the global history of goldfish. 

On Saturday, April 22, students will present their research projects in Founders Hall 232 from 9 a.m.-3:30 p.m. For a copy of the conference program, contact the History Department at histdept@humboldt.edu.

This event is open to Cal Poly Humboldt students, faculty, staff and the community. Persons who wish to request disability related accommodations should contact the History Department at 707-826-3641 or histdept@humboldt.edu as soon as possible.