Energy's History

“This path-breaking book documents and advances a radical break in the field of energy history. It moves us from a Eurocentric to a planetary-wide perspective on the ideas, events, and forms of defiance that have shaped the human use of energy. The new approach will shape contemporary debates about global justice in the face of climate crisis.”
—Timothy Mitchell, author of Carbon Democracy: Political Power in the Age of Oil “Methodologically innovative and eminently teachable, Energy’s History highlights the most exciting research in the field. At a moment when climate pessimism abounds, it reminds us that our fossil-fueled world was not inevitable—a powerful lesson as we collectively envision what a more democratic and equitable energy system might look like.”
—Leah Aronowsky, Columbia University “In the shadow of the planetary emergency, a frantic effort is underway to understand the historical causes of environmental change. This scintillating primer rejects a one-size-fits-all explanation, takes seriously the multiple pathways of energy-rich societies, and insists on the crucial role of ideas and culture in the making of energy regimes. This book marks a major step towards a new planetary history.”
—Fredrik Albritton Jonsson, University of Chicago

Daniela Russ is a historical sociologist at the University of Leipzig’s Global and European Studies Institute.

Thomas Turnbull is a historical geographer at the Max-Planck-Institute for the History of Science, Berlin.

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