Timescapes of Modernity

Timescapes of Modernityfocuses on time to facilitate a deeper understanding of the interactions between environmental, economic, political and socio-cultural concerns. Thinking of the environment as a timescape allows us to see the hazards of the industrial way of life in a new light. Barbara Adam argues that environmental hazards are inescapably tied to the successes of the industrial way of life, global markets and economic growth, large-scale production of food, the speed of transport and communication, the 24 hour society, and even democratic politics. Using examples including the aftermaths of Chernobyl and the treatment of Bovine Spongiform Encephalopath (BSE), Adam dislodges taken-for-granted assumptions about environmental change and provides innovative new strategies to deal with some of the most severe environmental hazards of our time.