Coordinators
Gaetano Di Tommaso
Gaetano Di Tommaso’s research focuses on the role of natural resources in US history. He is interested in how US extraction and use of specific raw materials, especially fossil fuels, have impacted life and politics on different scales, from local environments and communities to global ecosystems. In his dissertation, completed during his double PhD program between the University of Bologna in Italy and Sciences Po-Paris, Dr. Di Tommaso studied the US management of energy sources in the Progressive Era, looking at how the newfound need for access to hydrocarbons and other minerals redefined the notions of national interest, security, and modernity. He is currently developing a project investigating the environmental health implications of petroleum and petrochemical production, especially in coastal regions.
Dario Fazzi
As of 1 September 2023, Dario Fazzi is the new Professor by Special Appointment at the Roosevelt Institute for American Studies and Leiden University’s Institute for History. Fazzi plans to position the RIAS as a leading center in continental Europe for studying environmental history. He will broaden the RIAS research scope by encouraging the study of “blue history” — an in-depth look at the complex relationships between water bodies and human culture and societies, particularly those affecting the Atlantic in the modern era. In this context, the blue history focus serves as an invitation to shift away from land-based views and place water-human relationships at the center of historical research.
