In an increasingly globalized world, place matters more than ever. Nowhere is that more true than in Appalachian studies -- a field which brings scholars, activists, artists, and citizens together around a region to contest misappropriations of resources and power and combat stereotypes of isolation and intolerance. In Appalachian studies, the diverse ways in which place is invoked, the person who invokes it, and the reasons behind that invocation all matter greatly. In Appalachia in Regional Context: Place Matters, Dwight B. Billings and Ann E. Kingsolver bring together voices from a variety of disciplines to broaden the conversation. The book begins with chapters challenging conventional representations of Appalachia by exploring the relationship between regionalism, globalism, activism, and everyday experience theoretically. Other chapters examine foodways, depictions of Appalachia in popular culture, and the experiences of rural LGBTQ youth. Poems by renowned social critic bell hooks interleave the chapters and add context to reflections on the region. Drawing on cultural anthropology, sociology, geography, media studies, political science, gender and women's studies, ethnography, social theory, art, music, literature and regional studies pedagogy, this volume furthers the exploration of new perspectives on one of America's most compelling and misunderstood regions.

In an increasingly globalised world, place matters more than ever. Nowhere is that more true than in Appalachian studies. Drawing on cultural anthropology, sociology, geography, media studies, political science, gender studies, ethnography, social theory, art, music, and literature, this volume furthers the exploration of new perspectives on one of America's most compelling and misunderstood regions.

In an increasingly globalized world, place matters more than ever. This concept especially holds true in Appalachian studies—a field that brings scholars, activists, artists, and citizens together around the region to contest misappropriations of resources and power and to combat stereotypes of isolation and intolerance. In Appalachia in Regional Context: Place Matters, Dwight B. Billings and Ann E. Kingsolver assemble scholars and artists from a variety of disciplines to broaden the conversation and challenge the binary opposition between regionalism and globalism. In addition to theoretical explorations of place, some of the case studies examine foodways, depictions of gendered and racialized Appalachian identity in popular culture, the experiences of rural LGBTQ youth, and the pitfalls and promises of teaching regional studies. Drawing on ideas from cultural anthropology, sociology, and a variety of other fields, and interleaved with poems by bell hooks, this volume furthers the examination of new perspectives on one of America's most compelling and misunderstood regions.

Known for its dramatic beauty and valuable natural resources, Appalachia has undergone significant technological, economic, political, and environmental changes in recent decades. Home to distinctive traditions and a rich cultural heritage, the area is also plagued by poverty, insufficient healthcare and education, drug addiction, and ecological devastation. This complex and controversial region has been examined by generations of scholars, activists, and civil servants -- all offering an array of perspectives on Appalachia and its people. In this innovative volume, editors William Schumann and Rebecca Adkins Fletcher assemble both scholars and nonprofit practitioners to examine how Appalachia is perceived both within and beyond its borders. Together, they investigate the region's transformation and analyze how it is currently approached as a topic of academic inquiry. Arguing that interdisciplinary and comparative place-based studies increasingly matter, the contributors investigate numerous topics, including race and gender, environmental transformation, university-community collaborations, cyber identities, fracking, contemporary activist strategies, and analyze Appalachia in the context of local-to-global change. A pathbreaking study analyzing continuity and change in the region through a global framework, Appalachia Revisited is essential reading for scholars and students as well as for policymakers, community and charitable organizers, and those involved in community development.

The study of diverse yet comparable regions uncovers structural similarities that override the defective culture theory of developing regions as well as the belief that they are unique ecological phenomena. This collected work establishes Appalachia as a case study for a coherent cross-national perspective. Written by authorities on the social and economic problems of these regions, this work should assist in alleviating some of the most striking misconceptions about regional development.

This award-winning history examines the politics of progress in America through a close look at industrial development in Appalachia since WWII. Appalachia has played a complex role in the unfolding of American history. Early-twentieth-century critics of modernity saw the region as a remnant of frontier life that should be preserved and protected. However, supporters of material production and technology decried what they saw as a the isolation and backwardness of the region and sought to “uplift” its people through education and industrialization. In Uneven Ground, Ronald D. Eller examines the politics of development in Appalachia while exploring the idea of progress as it has evolved in America. “Passionate, clear, concise, and at times profound,” this volume demonstrates that Appalachia's struggle to overcome poverty, to live in harmony with the land, and to respect the value of community is a truly American story (Chad Berry, author of Southern Migrants, Northern Exiles). Winner of the Appalachian Studies Association’s Weatherford Award and the Southern Political Science Association’s V.O. Key Award