James Beattie is an environmental and world historian whose work focuses on the Asia-Pacific region, mostly over the last 200 years. He is especially interested in cross-cultural exchanges occasioned by British imperialism, and the nexus between environment, gardens, health, and art. James’s work bridges different disciplines and has appeared in a variety of journals, such as Studies in the History of Gardens and Designed Landscapes, Environment and History, WIRES: Climate Change, East Asian History, Health History, and Australian and New Zealand Journal of Art. In addition, he has worked on books, a feature-length documentary film and curated exhibitions with Richard Bullen on cultural diplomacy and Chinese art. He is founding editor of the interdisciplinary, refereed journal, International Review of Environmental History, and coedits the book series, Palgrave Studies in World Environmental History.
James is also working on several other projects, including works on gardens and parks in environmental history, ecological change, and Chinese art and cultural diplomacy.