Phoebe S. K. Young

Phoebe S. K. Young is a Professor and Department Chair at the University of Colorado, focusing on cultural and environmental history of the modern United States and the American West. Her research integrates public memory, outdoor recreation, and the intersection of nature and culture.

Education:

• B.A., Bryn Mawr College
• Ph.D., University of California, San Diego

Her research interests include the history of camping and public spaces, memory in American culture, and the cultural dimensions of environmental policy. Recent work examines how recreational practices like camping shape collective identities and political movements.

Awards:

• 2022 Norris and Carol Hundley Award
• 2020 Teaching with Technology Award
• 2016 Boulder Faculty Teaching Award

Advising & Grants: Accepts M.A./Ph.D. students, with recent advisees researching topics like immigrant detention, transnational black consciousness, and Colorado coal strikes. Supported by grants from the Huntington Library, Smithsonian Institution, and ACLS.

Collaborations: Co-edits the book series The Outdoors: Recreation, Environment, and Culture (U. of Washington Press) and co-authored essays on nature-culture intersections.