A new documentary from two 91探花 professors tells the story of a man accused of starting a wildfire while illegally removing trees from the Olympic National Forest.

was produced by , professor of history, and , professor of anthropology and of international studies at the Jackson School. Michael Sanderson, Thomas鈥� husband who is a lawyer and a photographer, was also a co-producer.

Federal prosecutors alleged that Justin Wilke while destroying a beehive at the base of a tree he鈥檇 planned to cut down. The fire burned more than 3,000 acres of the Olympic National Forest near Hood Canal.

Wilke was searching for figured bigleaf maple, a wood that has a unique pattern and is often used in the crafting of musical instruments, particularly guitars and violins. Tree DNA evidence matched wood allegedly sold by Wilke to the remains of poached trees in the area where the fire started.

Wilke, who admitted to taking one tree but denied starting the fire, was convicted of multiple charges in July 2021, including theft of public property and trafficking in unlawfully harvested timber. The jury did not convict Wilke of the two counts related to the fire. He was sentenced to 20 months in prison, and he鈥檚 currently serving the final five.

Before his sentencing, Wilke met multiple times with the filmmakers. They followed him through the forest, capturing his thoughts on the surrounding trees while weaving together a story of rural poverty, addiction, the supply chain for forest products and the different ways people love and value the woods.

A final cut was screened at the 91探花on March 30. The documentary is the first project in the 聽 series, sponsored by the . Unthinkable Films gathers 91探花faculty members 鈥渢o develop short documentary films that speak and theorize on our planet鈥檚 cataclysmic, unpredictable or unprecedented future.鈥�

Hoffman and Thomas hope viewers leave the film with an understanding of Wilke鈥檚 complex relationship with the forest.

鈥淵ou don鈥檛 have to condone poaching trees or starting a wildfire to feel like it鈥檚 worth trying to understand a little bit more about Justin and the world he comes from,鈥� Hoffman said. 鈥淵ou don鈥檛 have to apologize for him but can recognize that he is part of a backstory around this fire.

鈥淲e鈥檙e not going to be able to address the future of local forests if we don鈥檛 think about what it is that Justin represents and that he has a relationship to the environment. It鈥檚 just too easy to write it off, to everybody鈥檚 detriment.鈥�

Thomas originally set out to compare rainforests in the United States and East Africa. But when the COVID-19 pandemic hit, she shifted her focus to become more local. News of the Maple Fire trial caught her attention, and she decided to focus on it and figured bigleaf maple.

Wilke was enthusiastic about the project, and his charisma made an impression. The trio quickly realized the film would center him.

鈥淛ustin was such a good storyteller and so eager to talk,鈥� Thomas said. 鈥淲e were incredibly lucky that he wanted to talk to us and he had so much to say. We really enjoyed going into the woods with him and seeing the woods from his perspective.

鈥淭here are so many different elements of it, but what鈥檚 really important is the combining of aesthetics and the economics 鈥� for Justin, the beauty of the woods and their economic value are totally inseparable and intertwined.鈥�

Hoffman, who started working in film more than a decade ago, launched Unthinkable Films. The idea is to give scholars in the social sciences and humanities a way to contribute to the conversation around climate change and the environment.

鈥淚t鈥檚 not always clear how to play a productive role as scholars in the humanities and social sciences,鈥� Hoffman said. 鈥淗ow do you use these tools and areas of expertise that we have? It鈥檚 sometimes a little easier to see the logic of where the hard sciences fit into how you address climate change. We hope this opens the space to have conversations about what we can contribute. That鈥檚 a major part of what this whole project is about.鈥�

“The Maple Cutter” will be shown at the 91探花for the second time on Friday, April 22 in the Allen Auditorium in Allen Library at 3 p.m. The documentary has also been submitted to multiple film festivals, and the creators are interested in holding further screenings.

For more information, contact Hoffman at djh13@uw.edu or Thomas at lynnmt@uw.edu.

Recent notable books by 91探花 faculty members look at gentrification and inequity in a New York neighborhood, skin lighteners though history, female agency in Arthurian legend and biographical epitaphs in China across many centuries.

91探花Bothell’s Christian Anderson explores gentrification of a NYC neighborhood in ‘Urbanism Without Guarantees’

The gentrification of a single street in New York City’s Clinton/Hell’s Kitchen neighborhood is the scene for this in-depth ethnographic study of urban transformation by , associate professor in the 91探花Bothell School of Interdisciplinary Arts.

“” was published in March by University of Minnesota Press. The book looks at how residents work to preserve the quality of life of their neighborhood and both define and maintain their values of urban living, taking actions that connect their daily lives to broader structural inequities, for better and worse.

Notes from the publisher call it “a unique more-than-capitalist take on urban dynamics,” adding, “Examining how residents are pulled into these systems of gentrification, Anderson proposes new ways to think and act critically and organize for transformation of a place 鈥� in actions that local residents can start to do wherever they are.”

For more information, contact Anderson at cmander@uw.edu.

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Lynn Thomas studies skin lighteners through history in new book

Skin lighteners have been used by consumers for centuries even while being opposed by medical professionals, consumer health advocates and antiracist thinkers and activists.

In her new book, 91探花history professor traces the changing meanings of skin color, in South Africa and beyond, from precolonial times to the present.

“” was published in January by Duke University Press.

Thomas shows how “the use of skin lighteners and experiences of skin color have been shaped by slavery, colonialism and segregation, as well as consumer capitalism, visual media, notions of beauty, and protest politics,” publisher’s notes said.

Calling the book “nothing short of a tour de force,” one reviewer wrote: “Carefully attending to the complex politics of race and color that are grounded in skin, Thomas at once provides a vibrant history of South Africa and a global history of commodity, beauty and the body. This landmark study sets a new standard in the field.”

For more information contact Thomas at lynnmt@uw.edu.

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Remembered lives: Historian Patricia Ebrey co-edits book on Chinese funerary biographies

Funerary biographies are epitaphs engraved on stone and placed in a grave. They usually focus on the deceased’s life, words and deeds. Tens of thousands of these biographies survive from Imperial China, providing a glimpse into the lives of many people not documented by more conventional sources.

“,” co-edited by 91探花history professor , is an anthology of translations of such funerary biographies covering nearly 2,000 years 鈥� from the through the 19^th century. The book was published in January by 91探花 Press.

Editing the volume with Ebrey were of California State University and of the University of Virginia.

Biographies in the anthology, 91探花Press notes say, were chosen for their value as teaching material on Chinese history, literature, and women’s studies as well as world history. “Because they include revealing details about personal conduct, families, local conditions, and social, cultural, and religious practices, these epitaphs illustrate ways of thinking and the realities of daily life.”

Ebrey is the author or editor of several books on China, most recently “Emperor Huizong,” in 2014.

For more information, contact Ebrey at ebrey@uw.edu.

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Annegret Oehme of Germanics publishes book on adaptations of Arthurian tale

, an assistant professor in the Department of Germanics, has published a new book about adaptations and translations of , a centuries-old tale describing the adventures of an Arthurian knight, across different languages and media.

“” was published in January by De Gruyter.

The publication explores two previously dismissed pre-modern adaptations of the Middle High German 1215 verse-novel “Wigalois,” and their different approaches to female agency in comparison with the original text and later Yiddish and German versions, in the 14^th and 15^th centuries respectively.

Read more on the department . For more information, contact Oehme at oehme@uw.edu.

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Other book notes:

Epilogue on ecocriticism: , 91探花associate professor of French, has written the epilogue for a new book that discusses the relationship between contemporary ecological thought and early modern French literature.

“,” edited by Pauline Goul of Vassar and Phillip Usher of New York University, was published in March by Amsterdam University Press.

Publisher’s notes say the volume “foregrounds not how ecocriticism renews our understanding of a literary corpus, but rather how that corpus causes us to rethink or to nuance contemporary eco-theory.”

Read more on the French & Italian Studies Department .

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What are you reading? 91探花Notebook seeking ‘comfort reading’ recommendations

Though faculty and staff continue to work hard during the coronavirus shutdown, some of us may also have a little more time on our hands for reading. Sometimes an old favorite book can be a comfort.

What are you reading to relax these days? What books would you recommend to fellow faculty and staff as comfort reading?

For me, it’s a re-read of J.R.R. Tolkien’s “The Two Towers” and classic science fiction short stories by Ray Bradbury in “The Illustrated Man.” And then maybe an epic novel by Herman Wouk 鈥� or even a midsummer revisit to “Charlotte’s Web.”

91探花faculty and staff colleagues: Email me at kellep@uw.edu and I’ll mention some favorite books in subsequent book stories, and possibly on social media. 91探花Notebook.

“” is the title of the History Lecture Series featuring four 91探花faculty, each discussing slavery from a different angle. The lectures will be from 7 to 9 p.m. on Oct. 23 and 30 and Nov. 6 and 13. The first three will be in 130 Kane Hall, the fourth next door in 120 Kane.

Lynn Thomas, professor and chair of the department, said the series notes the 150^th anniversary of Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation.

“The core message of the series is that slavery and freedom have been foundational to the making of the United States,” Thomas said. “Not just in the years surrounding the Civil War but over our entire history. A set of four amazing 91探花faculty will tell this story.”

Oct. 23: , “Ancient Roman Slavery and American Slavery.” Slaveholders from colonial times through the 19^th century in the United States often aspired to emulate Ancient Rome as a civilization. But how did the Romans themselves conceive and institutionalize slavery? And how did their understanding of freedom hinge on the development of a slave system?

Oct. 30: , “Slavery, Race and the Origins of American Freedom.” Slavery was key to European colonization of America, but how could it flourish in the revolutionary world of the late 18th century? Haiti and the United States provide contrasting examples.

Nov. 6: , “Slavery: Antebellum America鈥檚 National Institution.” Slavery was not just a southern institution but a national one, and wealth produced by the enslaved helped to deepen the U.S. commitment to slavery in the 19^th century.

Nov. 13: , “Race, Empire, and Post-Emancipation Struggles for Freedom.” Race continued to define access to citizenship even after the U.S. abolished slavery. What have been the limitations and contradictions of emancipation in the decades following the Thirteenth Amendment, and how have different peoples and movements struggled for freedom after emancipation?

for lectures are $5-$10, full series $15-$35. For more information, call 206-543-5790.