Alison Frank Johnson

This project uses the central and eastern European Alpine region to explore different meanings of the phrase “healthy environment.” Since its defining unit of analysis is a geographical space rather than a specific nation or national group, it facilitates the discovery of commonalities between western, central, and eastern European regions. By braiding together four different but complementary strands of inquiry, it combines cultural, economic, environmental, and social history with the history of science. Those strands are 1) marketing mountain air (economic development and public health); 2) the impact of new technologies in transportation and communication (history of technology/science); 3) private property rights and environmental conservation; and 4) the intersection of religion and tourism.