Participation Type
Paper
Session Title
Session 6.11 Tourism and Development
Presentation #1 Title
Hope and Uncertainty in East Kentucky: Imagining a Future With and Without Coal
Presentation #1 Abstract or Summary
This regional study of East Kentucky looks at the ways in which political forces, citizens, non-profits and businesses engage with uncertainty and crisis, and in doing so--actively shape the future of the region. It is no secret that coal has been Appalachian Kentucky’s keystone industry for over a century. However, in 2012 and 2013 coal production plummeted, driving industry employment to its lowest levels since 1927. Dramatic production declines have prompted the region to seriously consider: what’s next? This research is a holistic examination of the recent decline in coal production in Appalachian Kentucky, it: 1) traces the historical development of the current coal industry crisis; 2) deconstructs the narratives that the coal lobby has propagated to explain this crisis; 3) employs ethnographic analyses to understand how communities interpret and experience the effects of a flagging coal industry and related political rhetoric; and 4) demonstrates how people are taking matters into their own hands and experimenting with economic alternatives.
At-A-Glance Bio- Presenter #1
Shelly Biesel is a Master's Candidate in the Department of Anthropology at the University of Louisville. She is currently working on her thesis, which applies political ecological theory to Appalachian poetics and discourse. Her research interests are: labor, social movements, capitalism, neoliberalism, political ecology and anything related to Kentucky and/or resource extraction.
Hope and Uncertainty in East Kentucky: Imagining a Future With and Without Coal
Harris Hall 236
This regional study of East Kentucky looks at the ways in which political forces, citizens, non-profits and businesses engage with uncertainty and crisis, and in doing so--actively shape the future of the region. It is no secret that coal has been Appalachian Kentucky’s keystone industry for over a century. However, in 2012 and 2013 coal production plummeted, driving industry employment to its lowest levels since 1927. Dramatic production declines have prompted the region to seriously consider: what’s next? This research is a holistic examination of the recent decline in coal production in Appalachian Kentucky, it: 1) traces the historical development of the current coal industry crisis; 2) deconstructs the narratives that the coal lobby has propagated to explain this crisis; 3) employs ethnographic analyses to understand how communities interpret and experience the effects of a flagging coal industry and related political rhetoric; and 4) demonstrates how people are taking matters into their own hands and experimenting with economic alternatives.
