Puerto Rican Environmental Anthropology

Environmental anthropology is a growing sub-discipline of anthropology in Puerto Rico. While some of the earliest anthropological studies ever conducted in Puerto Rico had distinct environmental/ecological components, other interests, such as modernization, urbanization, political economy, and cultural identity studies, have dominated Puerto Rican Anthropology since then. However, some anthropologists have sustained important work in environmental issues throughout, mostly in applied settings, and dealing with coastal, agricultural, and environmental justice concerns. Their work has contributed to anthropological knowledge in Puerto Rico and to the discipline at large. In this chapter, we offer an overview of Puerto Rican environmental anthropology, focusing on the work of some of its practitioners, the major environmental concerns affecting people living in the archipelago, and the overlapping environmental movements. In recent years, the climatic disasters affecting the Caribbean region have made environmental anthropology ever more relevant for understanding adaptation and survival in this era of climate chaos.