CfP: Wild Invasions: How Animals Transformed Wartime East Asia

Call for Chapter Contributors: Wild Invasions: How Animals Transformed Wartime East Asia

We invite proposals for chapters in an edited volume provisionally titled Wild Invasions: How Animals Transformed Wartime East Asia. The book will explore how animals—both wild and domesticated—reshaped wartime landscapes, economies, and cultural attitudes toward nature in China and Imperial Japan between 1894 and 1945. We seek contributions that engage with the historical, environmental, and cultural impacts of animals, including their roles in human-wildlife conflict, conservation, combat, and ecological transformation. Other possible topics include but are not limited to:

Invasive Species & Ecological Disruptions – How introduced animals (e.g., raccoons, feral boars, non-native fish) have altered native ecosystems.
Zoonotic Disease & Public Health – The role of animals in disease outbreaks (e.g., rabies, bubonic plague, leptospirosis) and their impact on public health policies.
War & Wildlife Disruption – How the pressures of military provisioning and military operations affected wildlife populations.
Rewilding & Conservation – Efforts to restore endangered species and their broader ecological and social consequences.
Urbanization & Wildlife Encounters – The impact of rapid urbanization on animal habitats and the emergence of urban wildlife.
Animals in Cultural & Political Narratives – The role of animals in shaping national identity, environmental policy, and public discourse.

The volume aims to reach a broad readership, including environmental historians, military historians, students, and general readers interested in Japan. As such, we encourage accessible writing that adheres to rigorous standards of scholarship. Interested contributors should submit:

1. An abstract (300-500 words) that outlines the proposed chapter’s main argument and contribution to the volume.
2. A CV.

Please send submissions and inquiries to Puck Brecher at wbrecher[at]wsu.edu by March 15, 2025.