William Bennet Munro History Seminar

Poop was a hot commodity in the cities of nineteenth-century Japan. In this (not even slightly gross) talk, Howell will give an overview of the excremental economy, which turned urban waste into the vegetables that fed the residents of Tokyo, Osaka, and other urban centers. The recycling of waste products has become the unlikely focus of national pride in Japan, at the cost of serious questions about infrastructure, public health, and the nature of Japan's encounter with Western-style modernity.