Jamie Skillen is interested in the relationships between nature and culture in the North American context, particular in the West. His regular course offerings in environmental studies include Human modifications of the Global Environment, Environment and Society, and The History and Philosophy of Environmental Thought. In the 2009-2010 academic year, he will begin offering a course in environmental law and a field course in Oregon on federal land and resource management. In his research, Jamie has focused primarily on the history of federal land and resource management. His first book, The Nation’s Largest Landlord: The Bureau of Land Management in the American West, is due out from the University of Kansas Press in June of 2009, and his new book project traces the political and intellectual history of ecosystem management and its implications for land and resource agencies. Jamie also writes occasional papers on Christianity and the environment, examining the relationships between religious commitments and environmental values.
Jamie holds a B.S. in environmental science from Wheaton College, an M.A. in theology from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, and a Ph.D. in natural resource policy from Cornell University. His work also draws on experience working seasonally for the U.S. Forest Service and thru-hikes of the Colorado Trail and the Pacific Crest Trail.

When he isn’t teaching or writing, Jamie enjoys almost any excuse to spend time in the woods and is committed to taking his children to snow-covered mountains at least once every summer. He also enjoys baking and will be building a wood-fired bread oven in his yard this coming summer.