On Friday, July 1, 2022, the Faculty of Arts welcomed Professor Gregory Barton and Associate Professor Brett Bennet from University of Johannesburg, South Africa. The meeting started from the two professors’ plan to work joint research with Associate Professor Wasana Wongsurawat, Head of the Department of History. The collaboration plan has expanded to the whole Faculty with more possible activities in the picture such as exchange of students and staff and joint research in other fields in the humanities. The research collaboration is promising as the Department of History at the University of Johannesburg is interested in the Asia Pacific areas. Impressive amounts of research funds are also provided by the University. The exchange programs at the University of Johannesburg are likely to be of interest to Thai students as the cost of living in South Africa is not too high, South Africans speak English, and the University is welcoming international students.
Professor Greg Barton is a historian of British, world, and environmental history. He was the founding editor of the historical journal, Britain and the World and currently holds appointments at the University of Johannesburg and Western Sydney University. His current interest is on emergence of the health food movement globally and on the history of ideas of climate change involving forests before global warming. His publications are for example, The Global History of Organic Farming, Informal Empire and the Rise of One World Culture, and Lord Palmerston and the Empire of Trade. https://www.uj.ac.za/members/greg-barton/
Associate Professor Brett Bennett studies how the interaction of human actions and natural processes created contemporary ecosystems, scientific ideas, and conservation policies. He co-authored with Gregory Barton on Saving the world the first time: ideas of climate change before global warming. Professor Bennett works with historians, geographers, ecologists, heritage experts and local communities to explore the legacy and meanings of human-plant, human-animal, and human-climate relations. https://www.uj.ac.za/members/brett-bennett/
