Author Archives: jedstevenson

A day in the life, in the Congo rainforest

Posted on December 29, 2013 by jedstevenson

A further installment from last summer’s research trip to the Congo   Within an hour of sunrise, I was woken by the heat. Outside my tent, Jerome sat on a makeshift bench, with his laptop open in front of him. … Continue reading →

Posted in anthropology, Congo, food, hunter-gatherers | Leave a comment

The roots of egalitarianism

Posted on July 15, 2013 by jedstevenson

Are we natural democrats? Or will tyrants always be with us?   IN THE TWENTIETH CENTURY, a handful of anthropologists, living with hunter-gatherers, described the workings of societies without leaders, where food seemed to be equally available to all. [1] … Continue reading →

Posted in evolution, politics | Tagged , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Hunter-gatherer conference: day 1

Posted on June 25, 2013 by jedstevenson

  Today was the first day of the international Conference on Hunting and Gathering Societies (CHaGS).   The 10th meeting of its kind since 1966, it’s brought together approximately 200 delegates — scholars from all four continents, and from the … Continue reading →

Posted in anthropology, hunter-gatherers | Tagged , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Four ways to change the world, from university

Posted on June 24, 2013 by jedstevenson

Last week a conference at University College London made me reconsider what universities are, and what they might be. These thoughts seem so vital right now that I’m interrupting the narrative of my trip to Congo to share them. The … Continue reading →

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Into the forest

Posted on June 14, 2013 by jedstevenson

ON THE ROAD out of Pokola, I feel excited. It’s been two weeks since we got to Congo, and now at last we’re entering the forest. At one point not far out of town, trees form a green tunnel, bending … Continue reading →

Posted in Congo | Tagged , , , , , | 8 Comments

Arriving in Congo

Posted on June 13, 2013 by jedstevenson

FROM THE RIVERSIDE, you can see both of the Congos at once. Across the Pool Malebo, the widest point on the river, Brazzaville and Kinshasa — the capitals of the Republic of Congo and the Democratic Republic of Congo (the … Continue reading →

Posted in Congo | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

Fieldwork in Congo

Posted on June 12, 2013 by jedstevenson

Last week I got back from two months in the Congo. The trip was in aid of the Hunter-Gatherer Resilience project at University College London, which I’m working on as a post-doc. Under the guidance of Andrea Migliano (the PI) … Continue reading →

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Why we’re blind to climate change

Posted on December 14, 2012 by jedstevenson

For most people in the developed world both the causes and the effects of climate change are essentially invisible. Hunkered in a mountain cabin in the 1960s, listening to the rain drumming on the roof, Thomas Merton reflected on the … Continue reading →

Posted in climate | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

Born unequal

Posted on December 3, 2012 by jedstevenson

The first capital of the United States, Philadelphia lends itself to new ventures. It’s an apt place to launch this blog. Its history is bound up with humanism and democracy. Flagship social contracts of the modern era, the Declaration of … Continue reading →

Posted in anthropology, USA | Tagged , , , | 6 Comments

About this blog

Posted on December 3, 2012 by jedstevenson

“THE INDEFINITE ARTICLE is not without its uses,” wrote Nicholas Humphrey in his book, A History of the Mind (1992: xv). (“While it would have been wrong to call this book ‘The History of the Mind’,” he went on, “I … Continue reading →

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