African Ivory Research Network Seminar #5
Thinking aloud: Elephants and ivory in Mozambique
Edward A. Alpers (University of California, Los Angeles)
Online | May 17, 2023 | 6 PM (GMT)
ZOOM Meeting: https://videoconf-colibri.zoom.us/j/96426713497
Organization | African Ivory Research Network and Centro de História da Universidade de Lisboa
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Abstract
How did hunting for the ivory trade affect the elephant populations of Mozambique? Was there a meaningful reduction in elephant populations? If so, how did this diminution in elephant populations alter the lands(Emeritus)cape of Mozambique? My thinking draws upon primary and secondary published sources on elephants and ivory in Mozambique, as well as research by environmental scientists and ecologists on modern elephant populations in Mozambique to see how evidence and hypotheses developed by these researchers might help us to understand the history of elephants and ivory in Mozambique.
Edward A. Alpers
Edward A. Alpers is Research Professor of History (Emeritus) at the University of California, Los Angeles. He has published widely on the history of East Africa and the Indian Ocean. His major publications include Ivory and Slaves in East Central Africa (1975); East Africa and the Indian Ocean (2009); and The Indian Ocean in World History (2014). He has just completed A Primer for Teaching Indian Ocean World History with Thomas F. McDow to be published later this year.
About the AIRN Seminar
The African Ivory Research Network (AIRN) runs a seminar at the Centre for History of the School of Arts and Humanities of the University of Lisbon. This seminar addresses African ivory from any historical period and from a variety of historical perspectives, including economic history, cultural history, art history, environmental history and archaeology. In addition, it also intends to promote sessions related to heritage preservation, wildlife protection, ecology, law and illegal trade, among other issues relevant to this topic.
Contributors to this seminar include academics from around the world who have researched or are researching any topic related to African ivory and are willing to share their research with a wider community of researchers and experts, including sharing ongoing research. The main goal of this seminar is to promote an open discussion on any issue related with African ivory, profiting from the different theoretical frameworks and research interests followed by each speaker.
The seminar consists of monthly conferences to be held from January to May including a 50-60 minutes talk followed by a 20-30 minutes discussion. Sessions take place on Wednesdays starting at 6 PM (GMT) in online format, via zoom, although some may be in hybrid format (see below). Hybrid sessions take place at the School of Arts and Humanities, Room B112.G (limited availability).
AIRN is an offspring of a joint research project developed by the universities of Lisbon and Minas Gerais on the history of African ivories in the Atlantic world, which was carried out between 2016 and 2019 under the supervision of Peter Mark (https://africanivoriesul.wordpress.com/).
