ABSTRACT
Environmental history is one of the fastest growing and most innovative fields of scholarly research. This chapter, which charts its rapid growth, is organised in three parts. Firstly, it examines the origins and aims of this relatively new discipline. Secondly, it outlines the main approaches to ‘doing’ environmental history, as well as the inclusive and interdisciplinary nature of its methodology. Lastly, it discusses its scale and scope, showing how environmental history has encouraged fresh thinking about space and time. It provides a useful, up-to-date introduction to environmental history for anyone unfamiliar with the field.
