Published 09/01/2026 - As climate change continues to reshape societies around the world, scholars are increasingly looking for new ways to connect human history with environmental change. Benjamin Goossen, Assistant Professor of International History at the Pardee School, is helping lead that effort through a newly funded international research collaboration that will explore the relationship between Asia and the Anthropocene.

Goossen and Julia Adeney Thomas, Professor of History at the University of Notre Dame, have been awarded a substantial grant from the Franco Family Institute for Liberal Arts and the Public Good for their project, "Asia and the Anthropocene: Bringing Human Histories and Earth History Together." As part of Notre Dame's Research Innovation Cohort for 2026-2027, the project will examine how Asian perspectives can deepen global understandings of the Anthropocene, the proposed geological epoch defined by humanity's profound impact on Earth's systems. The collaboration seeks to explore both the value and limitations of using the Anthropocene as a framework for understanding Asian histories and contemporary environmental challenges.

Prof. Julia Adeney Thomas

The grant will support a series of conferences planned for 2027 and 2028 that will bring together scholars from across disciplines to examine the intersections of history, climate change, sustainability, and environmental transformation. By centering Asian experiences and perspectives, the project aims to broaden conversations about global climate change and encourage new approaches to understanding the relationship between people and the planet.

The award builds on momentum generated by a recent workshop on the same theme held at BU in late July. Co-organized by Goossen and Rui Hua of Boston University, the workshop convened scholars to discuss the historical and contemporary dimensions of the Anthropocene in Asia. The event was co-sponsored by the Pardee School's Global Security Initiative (GSI), the BU History Department, the Boston University Center for the Study of Asia (BUCSA), and the University of Notre Dame, reflecting the collaborative and interdisciplinary nature of the project from the beginning.

Through this new grant, Goossen and Thomas will continue advancing conversations about climate change, sustainability, and global history while fostering greater understanding of how regional perspectives can inform responses to some of the world's most pressing environmental challenges.

Benjamin W. Goossen is Assistant Professor of International History at Boston University's Frederick S. Pardee School of Global Studies. His research and teaching concern European and international history, science and technology studies, and the history of the environment. Read more about Benjamin W. Goossen on his faculty profile.