Cultural Encounters in the Name of Biology

Eunice Blavascunas explores the environmental history and ethnography of the Białowieża Forest, highlighting the roles of biologists, foresters, and peasant farmers in shaping the forest’s ecology and administrative structures. She examines contests over forest use and expertise while focusing on the human stories within the forest, particularly those of two aging brothers who embody the tensions between domestic and wild nature. Blavascunas reflects on her own journey into interdisciplinary environmental studies, beginning with a career in biology and expanding into cultural geography and political ecology.