Multiple and competing origin stories of oil are central to our contemporary energy-intensive societies. Since the early 20th century, debates surrounding oil exploration focused on uncovering the genesis of hydrocarbons, specifically with a view to facilitating the location of new petroreserves across the globe. Were hydrocarbons biotic in origin – that is, the product of decomposing organic matter on our planet? Or were they abiotic – the product of physical processes either deep in Earth’s core, or within other extraterrestrial bodies? This talk examines the important exchange that occurred between Canadian, American and Soviet scientists over the course of the 20th century, and the scientific as well as speculative ways in which they addressed the relationship between organic life and hydrocarbons through discussions on the Alberta Tar Sands and other “strange oils.” How have the hydrocarbon origin debates actually shaped our ability to conceive of climate change, the finite nature of resources, and our planetary future?

Dr. Sabrina Perić is a historical anthropologist whose work has focused on the role of scientists in governance and statecraft. Her previous work was in Southern Europe, but she now conducts research on the politics of science and resource development in the circumpolar north. She is currently working on a new project on the history of permafrost in the context of northern science and resource extraction, and settler colonial relationships to icy environments in 20th and 21st centuries. Her work has been published in North American and European journals, and she is the author of a forthcoming monograph on wartime violence in Bosnian mining towns. Her work has been funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, the Wenner-Gren Foundation, and the Krupp Foundation, amongst others. She is an Associate Professor in the Department of Anthropology and Archaeology at the University of Calgary, and co-convenor of the Energy in Society Research Group at the Calgary Institute for the Humanities.

This lecture is part of the Department of Sociology and Anthropology Winter 2019 Colloquium Series: The Sociology and Anthropology of Climate Change. It is co-sponsored by Climate Commons.