Hybrid islands: Some reflections on the intersection between Island Studies and environmental history

Abstract

Islands have fascinated environmental historians, but looking at the field as a whole, this attraction has not resulted in attempts at synthesis or strong theoretical propositions. Moreover, it has not necessarily enabled a departure from reductive and continentalist conceptions of the islands, such as that old established idea of island environments as “continents in miniature.” Thus, if islands currently represent one of the most important sites for Anthropocene thinking, it is first of all thanks to the research that some social scientists, mainly geographers, have developed under the banner of Island Studies, a new interdisciplinary field that has come of age during the 2000s. This introductive essay argues that the links between the environmental history of the islands and Island Studies are still very loose and should be strengthened for their mutual benefit. For this, it draws on the articles brought together in this special issue and offers insights on three main problems that all provide a good illustration of the fundamental ambivalence of islands: their limits, their isolation, and their vulnerability.