Green Creativity

From creative writing to community service to laboratory research, Eberly College students of all majors are studying environmental issues in the classroom and beyond.

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The relationship between the people who live in Appalachia and its natural wonders has been fraught for centuries. Forests, coal seams, rivers and wildlife affect the region’s economy as well as its identity.

Through fiction, nonfiction, poetry, music and film, English 352: Appalachian Literature of the Environment provides fertile ground to explore these dilemmas.

“Being Appalachian often means grappling with painful dilemmas involving the natural world,” said Ann Pancake, writer-in-residence at the WVU Humanities Center and renowned Appalachian author who taught the course in spring 2021. “We grow up being taught to love our homes, that we come from one of the most beautiful places in the world. At the same time, we grow up learning that if we don’t want to be poor, we must sacrifice that natural world that sustains us, physically and psychologically.”

Three students from Pancake’s class reflected on the environmental impacts of the region and how they see the humanities playing a role in the larger conversation around sustainability and climate change.

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What motivated you to enroll in ENG 352?

VB: I was drawn to the course both because of its subject matter and because I had heard that the professor who would be teaching it, Dr. Pancake, had published influential writing about Appalachia. I believed that, through ENGL 352, I could learn a lot more about the Appalachian experience, which I felt pretty isolated from, living in the eastern panhandle (a part of Appalachia that has not really been affected by recent resource extraction). Additionally, as a creative writer who has lived in Appalachia for most of their life, I felt that I would be remiss not to take some time to delve into Appalachian creative work—and not only delve into the work of other Appalachians, but also learn directly from an Appalachian creative writer whose novel had been both published and praised.

ML: As somebody who loves literature and is fascinated by Appalachia and our connections to the natural environment, I felt like it was the perfect course for me.

What was your favorite part about the course?

VB: My favorite parts were writing poetry about Appalachia and the natural world for course projects and the open, honest and deep conversations. Dr. Pancake not only encouraged us to develop our creative writing but also gave us the space and creative freedom to do so. She continuously challenged us to dig deeper in our analyses as well as our creative work, to write from the soul and to trust our intuition, which I think has grown my own writing skills immensely. Dr. Pancake was also wonderful at creating a discussion that was inclusive and constructive. She made it clear that she valued the insights of everyone in the class and wasn’t rigid with the lesson plan if the discussion was heading in a different direction. Class with Dr. Pancake felt more like an ongoing, deep, collective conversation than it did a series of lectures, which I found refreshing.

HC: I have enjoyed expanding my breadth of Appalachian writers to read. I spent a large portion of my winter break hunting for recent collections and novels by Appalachians. I started with "Appalachian Reckoning" edited by Meredith McCarroll and kept hunting and reading. Another thing that I have loved about this class is the journeys it has taken me on within myself. I have been exploring and challenging my place in nature and Appalachia, and it has been heavy. There have been days that I have left this class just hurting for my slice of Appalachia, and that has given me space to think and find my voice to articulate the hurt.

What did you learn that surprised you?

HC: I always thought environmental problems didn't happen in my neck of the woods. I thought that the pipelines and landslides were distant, but they aren't. My hometown sits snuggly in the chemical valley, between Point Pleasant and Nitro, so safe to say that environmental problems are plentiful there. However, I never thought about the environmental things that were always happening around me. Through taking this class and talking about what is happening with the environment in Appalachia, I'm realizing that the things I have witnessed are just as severe as mountaintop removal or fracking, and even those aren't as far from my backyard as I originally thought.

ML: I learned that there is more than one valid way of talking about or experiencing the natural environment. Though I already knew this in a sense, I had never been in an atmosphere where other perspectives were talked about with the same importance as the STEM perspective or the extractive industry perspective. Reading about other cultures' and peoples' connections with the Earth inspired and challenged me to explore my own connection.

How do you see the humanities playing a role in the larger conversation about and activism around climate change?

VB: As humans we learn and understand other perspectives best through stories. Often these are told to us by loved ones and people we trust. But some of the greatest stories are also set down on paper and in verse and thankfully can have the same effect as those told by our loved ones. Stories, both in poetry and in prose, allow the reader to tangibly experience what another person is going through. Through them, the reader can transcend their own bubble of experiences and view the world—for just a moment—from the perspective of another.

Natural resource extraction and the climate change resulting from it has adversely affected so many in Appalachia (and the rest of the world), and I know there are countless stories out there that have been recorded or are just waiting to be. It is creative writing, with its narrative structure, appeal to the senses and its ability to move, to shock, to anger that will set the stage for future conversations and action on climate change. I know that my own readings on resource extraction have affected my own stance on these issues, moving me from apathy to empathy and action. Writing has power, and that power can be used to poignantly to shed light on the devastation resulting from reckless resource extraction and climate change.

HC: Words have power. Dr. Pancake repeatedly told our class that the humanities are powerful because you are learning to think non-linearly. The humanities give you the tools and courage to challenge the systems in place. The humanities are called the humanities for a reason. You use your own humanity as the driving force behind you, and that doesn't change in activism. It's our humanity that gives us power, and by appealing to others’ humanity, we will make a difference.

ML: I believe the humanities' role in activism and climate change is vital. You can have all the science you want, but if you can't touch people's hearts or inspire them into action in a very human way, that science is worthless. That's where literature, poetry and music excel because they are often more accessible than science. The humanities can connect people by capturing the experiences and feelings of people dealing with aspects climate change in very honest ways. These perspectives challenge and inspire others to do something about it, even if it's something as simple as reconsidering the way they view the tree in their backyard.

What topics or actions do you hope to explore further after taking this course?

VB: I would like to continue to write creatively about the natural world and the Appalachian experience (which is anything but homogenous). I will also get involved in environmental activism when I can. I love the natural world and the people that inhabit it too much to let them be destroyed by greed.

HC: I want to keep my feelings and mentality in the places that they are during this class. I want to keep my writing focused on Appalachia, activism and my place in it because I am learning so much about myself and my identity. I want to keep writing about these topics with the hope that it will be exactly what someone needs.

ML: This course has really shown me what I want to do with my life, and I mean that in a way that means more than just a career. I hope to keep reading about the different perspectives we learned about in class, exploring my own connection to the Earth and imagining ways forward for Appalachia. I am also beginning to find ways of incorporating my music and literature in grassroots activism I am doing in my community.