Telling YSE’s Story: A Conversation with Historian James Lewis

As environmental challenges have grown more complex, the Yale School of the Environment has expanded its areas of expertise and strengthened its solutions-oriented, interdisciplinary approach. A new history of the school traces how this evolution has shaped YSE’s present and can help guide its future. Published by the Forest History Society and co-authored by historians James Lewis, Char Miller, Rachel D. Kline, and Senior Associate Dean of The Forest School Mark Ashton ’85 MF, ’90 PhD, the Morris K. Jesup Professor of Silviculture and Forest Ecology, the book draws on archival photographs, meeting notes, and decades-old correspondence. Historian James Lewis reflects on the lessons embedded in YSE’s past and how they might help guide the school’s future.

Q. As you moved through the archives and interviews, what moments, themes, or figures most surprised you or changed how you understood YSE’s past?

I was struck by how quickly the school attracted international students and began having an impact beyond North America. Janero Lagdameo was the first student from overseas to earn an MF; he graduated in 1905, the first of many from the Philippines to do so. It’s intriguing that students came from South Africa and Scandinavia to attend this new, unproven school when they could have chosen long-established institutions in Germany or France.

I was also surprised to learn that the university considered shuttering the school on multiple occasions. One pivotal moment came in the 1960s, when François Mergen helped prevent that outcome. The crisis ultimately proved to be a turning point, with the school emerging with renewed energy and an expanded focus.

Q. As a historian, how did writing about a living institution — one whose members will see themselves in these pages — shape the way you approached the narrative?

I’ve been through this before, and so has my co-author, Char Miller. Early on, we talked about the need to set aside the fact that people who are alive will read this book and may disagree with our interpretations or with the decisions we made about which programs to discuss and at what depth. We followed the records, filled in gaps through interviews, and developed a narrative we hoped would be both engaging and accurate. That’s a difficult balance to maintain over 100,000 words, especially while also conveying the larger themes of YSE’s story.

To help achieve those goals, we asked a mix of historians familiar with the school and YSE community members to review the manuscript. Having readers from “inside” the school helped us better understand how the university works and how our narrative might be received.

Q. This project involves a number of co-authors. How did including Mark Ashton shape the book’s approach or perspective?

We couldn’t have done this without Mark. Without him, we would have had to stop at around the year 2000 because we’d never have been able to account for all the changes over the last 25 years. That would have been a disappointment and disservice to readers because the school has dramatically changed in that period, and that really needed to be part of this story. He brought both insider knowledge and a unique perspective on the history of the school.

Q. Were there ideas or approaches once considered marginal or controversial at YSE that later became central to the school’s work?

The most obvious is the admission of women to the school and the impact that they had. Another is the Yale Conservation Program, established in the 1950s. That interdisciplinary degree planted the seed that later grew into the MES (now MESc) and MEM degree programs.

Q. For current faculty, staff, students, and alumni, what do you hope they take away from this history — and how might it help inform YSE’s future?

I hope they enjoy the book and come away with a sense of pride in the school. Younger alumni, in particular, may recognize their own experiences in the stories of earlier generations — especially camp life and field trips — and realize that, in some ways, not much has changed beyond the technologies used in the classroom and field. The founders’ desire to build an esprit de corps within the student body was realized.

I also hope readers see that the school has constantly evolved — frequently revising its curriculum to serve the greater good: the health and well-being of the school and, more importantly, the planet. That process began within a few years of the school’s founding and continues today, shaped in part by alumni input. There’s more than one way to give back.