My research focuses on systems of production, consumption, and disposal. I explore the social and cultural value of discarded objects, and the labor and policy used to create more sustainable economies.
Research Projects
2023-Present: Chasing the Charge: Electric vehicle charging practices.
2020-2022: Convergence around the circular economy. National Science Foundation.
2018-2022: Rethinking resilience and reuse in rural America’s depleted communities. National Science Foundation.
2016-2022: Materials Management in Maine. Multiple funders.
Publications
2024
Berry, Brieanne; Blackmer, Travis; Haedicke, Michael; Lee, Susanne; MacRae, Jean; Miller, T. Reed; Nayak, Balunkeswar; Rivet-Préfontaine, Louis; Saber, Deborah; Silka, Linda; Thakali, Astha; Wildwistle, Jared; Yoder, Chyanne; Isenhour, Cindy
Safe Circular Food Systems: A Transdisciplinary Approach to Identify Emergent Risks in Food Waste Nutrient Cycling Journal Article
In: Foods, vol. 13, iss. 15, pp. 2374, 2024, ISSN: 2304-8158.
@article{nokey,
title = {Safe Circular Food Systems: A Transdisciplinary Approach to Identify Emergent Risks in Food Waste Nutrient Cycling},
author = {Brieanne Berry and Travis Blackmer and Michael Haedicke and Susanne Lee and Jean MacRae and T. Reed Miller and Balunkeswar Nayak and Louis Rivet-Préfontaine and Deborah Saber and Linda Silka and Astha Thakali and Jared Wildwistle and Chyanne Yoder and Cindy Isenhour},
doi = {10.3390/foods13152374},
issn = {2304-8158},
year = {2024},
date = {2024-07-27},
urldate = {2024-07-27},
journal = {Foods},
volume = {13},
issue = {15},
pages = {2374},
abstract = {With growing awareness of the environmental, economic, and social costs associated with food waste, there is a concerted effort on multiple scales to recover the nutrient value of discarded food. These developments are positive, but the rapid movement toward alternatives and the complexity of solving problems located at the intersection of economic, social, and environmental systems also have the potential to produce unanticipated risks. This paper draws upon long-term stakeholder-engaged research throughout New England, with a focus on Maine, to develop a transdisciplinary, systems-based model of the potential social, economic, and environmental risks of food waste nutrient cycling. Our effort is intended to help inform the creation of safe, functional, and environmentally benign circular food systems.},
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With growing awareness of the environmental, economic, and social costs associated with food waste, there is a concerted effort on multiple scales to recover the nutrient value of discarded food. These developments are positive, but the rapid movement toward alternatives and the complexity of solving problems located at the intersection of economic, social, and environmental systems also have the potential to produce unanticipated risks. This paper draws upon long-term stakeholder-engaged research throughout New England, with a focus on Maine, to develop a transdisciplinary, systems-based model of the potential social, economic, and environmental risks of food waste nutrient cycling. Our effort is intended to help inform the creation of safe, functional, and environmentally benign circular food systems.
2023
Isenhour, Cindy; Berry, Brieanne; Victor, Erin
Circular economy disclaimers: Rethinking property relations at the end of cheap nature Journal Article
In: Frontiers in Sustainability, vol. 3, 2023, ISSN: 2673-4524.
@article{nokey,
title = {Circular economy disclaimers: Rethinking property relations at the end of cheap nature},
author = {Cindy Isenhour and Brieanne Berry and Erin Victor},
doi = {https://doi.org/10.3389/frsus.2022.1007802},
issn = {2673-4524},
year = {2023},
date = {2023-01-05},
journal = {Frontiers in Sustainability},
volume = {3},
abstract = {Converging environmental crises have inspired a movement to shift dominant economic forms away from linear “take-make-waste” models and toward more circular forms that reimagine discarded materials as valuable resources. With the coming “end of cheap nature”, this invitation to reimagine waste as something more than “the political other of capitalist value” is seen as both an environmental necessity and an opportunity for green growth. Less often discussed is that the circular economy, in its reconfiguration of value, also has the potential to reshape contemporary property relations and dismantle existing forms of circularity. In this paper, we explore potential shifts in property relations through an analysis of three strategies often imagined as key to facilitating the transition to circularity—extended producer responsibility, repair, and online resale. Each case synthesizes existing research, public discourse, and findings from a series of focus groups and interviews with circular economy professionals. While this research is preliminary and demands additional research, all three cases suggest caution given the possibility that some circular economy strategies can concentrate value and control of existing materials stocks, dispossess those most vulnerable, and alienate participants in existing reuse, recycling, and repair markets. Drawing on and adapting Luxemburg's concept of primitive accumulation, Tsing's ideas about salvage accumulation, Moore's work on commodity frontiers and recent research which encourages more attention to processes of commoning—we argue that without careful attention to relations of power and justice in conceptualizations of ownership and the collective actions necessary to transform our economic forms in common, transitions toward the circular economy have the potential to enclose the value of discards and exacerbate inequality.},
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Converging environmental crises have inspired a movement to shift dominant economic forms away from linear “take-make-waste” models and toward more circular forms that reimagine discarded materials as valuable resources. With the coming “end of cheap nature”, this invitation to reimagine waste as something more than “the political other of capitalist value” is seen as both an environmental necessity and an opportunity for green growth. Less often discussed is that the circular economy, in its reconfiguration of value, also has the potential to reshape contemporary property relations and dismantle existing forms of circularity. In this paper, we explore potential shifts in property relations through an analysis of three strategies often imagined as key to facilitating the transition to circularity—extended producer responsibility, repair, and online resale. Each case synthesizes existing research, public discourse, and findings from a series of focus groups and interviews with circular economy professionals. While this research is preliminary and demands additional research, all three cases suggest caution given the possibility that some circular economy strategies can concentrate value and control of existing materials stocks, dispossess those most vulnerable, and alienate participants in existing reuse, recycling, and repair markets. Drawing on and adapting Luxemburg's concept of primitive accumulation, Tsing's ideas about salvage accumulation, Moore's work on commodity frontiers and recent research which encourages more attention to processes of commoning—we argue that without careful attention to relations of power and justice in conceptualizations of ownership and the collective actions necessary to transform our economic forms in common, transitions toward the circular economy have the potential to enclose the value of discards and exacerbate inequality.
Berry, Brieanne
'Each of these things is a person': Notes on the emotional labor of waste and reuse Journal Article
In: Exertions, 2023.
@article{nokey,
title = {'Each of these things is a person': Notes on the emotional labor of waste and reuse},
author = {Brieanne Berry},
url = {https://saw.americananthro.org/pub/each-of-these-things-is-a-person/release/2},
doi = {10.21428/1d6be30e.8180bd01},
year = {2023},
date = {2023-01-18},
journal = {Exertions},
abstract = {Brie Berry (Ursinus College) reflects on the emotional burdens of reuse economies and the problem of waste.},
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Brie Berry (Ursinus College) reflects on the emotional burdens of reuse economies and the problem of waste.
Blackmer, Travis; Berry, Brieanne; Haedicke, Michael A.; Isenhour, Cindy; Lee, Susanne; MacRae, Jean; Saber, Deborah; Victor, Erin
The Disposal Mode of Maine's Waste Governance Journal Article
In: Maine Policy Review, vol. 32, iss. 1, pp. 56-70, 2023.
@article{nokey,
title = {The Disposal Mode of Maine's Waste Governance},
author = {Travis Blackmer and Brieanne Berry and Michael A. Haedicke and Cindy Isenhour and Susanne Lee and Jean MacRae and Deborah Saber and Erin Victor},
url = { https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/mpr/vol32/iss1/9},
doi = {10.53558/OETH3597},
year = {2023},
date = {2023-07-11},
journal = {Maine Policy Review},
volume = {32},
issue = {1},
pages = {56-70},
abstract = {Maine’s materials management system is stuck in a disposal mode of waste gov-
ernance. Despite significant investments in programs and policies designed to
reduce the amount of waste the state buries each year, recent shocks and un-
certainties have resulted in increased waste generation and disposal. This paper
analyzes specific ways through which materials management in Maine has be-
come locked in to a disposal mode of waste governance. We build a framework
to help understand various forms of lock-in and how they might be unlocked. This
framework is applied to the extended producer responsibility packaging law that
is presently under the rule-making process in Maine, the first state to adopt such
a policy in the United States.},
keywords = {},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {article}
}
Maine’s materials management system is stuck in a disposal mode of waste gov-
ernance. Despite significant investments in programs and policies designed to
reduce the amount of waste the state buries each year, recent shocks and un-
certainties have resulted in increased waste generation and disposal. This paper
analyzes specific ways through which materials management in Maine has be-
come locked in to a disposal mode of waste governance. We build a framework
to help understand various forms of lock-in and how they might be unlocked. This
framework is applied to the extended producer responsibility packaging law that
is presently under the rule-making process in Maine, the first state to adopt such
a policy in the United States.
ernance. Despite significant investments in programs and policies designed to
reduce the amount of waste the state buries each year, recent shocks and un-
certainties have resulted in increased waste generation and disposal. This paper
analyzes specific ways through which materials management in Maine has be-
come locked in to a disposal mode of waste governance. We build a framework
to help understand various forms of lock-in and how they might be unlocked. This
framework is applied to the extended producer responsibility packaging law that
is presently under the rule-making process in Maine, the first state to adopt such
a policy in the United States.
2022
Isenhour, Cindy; Haedicke, Michael A.; Berry, Brieanne; MacRae, Jean; Blackmer, Travis; Horton, Skyler
Toxicants, entanglement, and mitigation in New England’s emerging circular economy for food waste Journal Article
In: Journal of Environmental Studies and Sciences, vol. 12, iss. 2, pp. 341-353, 2022, ISSN: 2190-6491.
@article{nokey,
title = {Toxicants, entanglement, and mitigation in New England’s emerging circular economy for food waste},
author = {Cindy Isenhour and Michael A. Haedicke and Brieanne Berry and Jean MacRae and Travis Blackmer and Skyler Horton},
url = {https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s13412-021-00742-w},
doi = {10.1007/s13412-021-00742-w},
issn = {2190-6491},
year = {2022},
date = {2022-01-03},
urldate = {2022-01-03},
journal = {Journal of Environmental Studies and Sciences},
volume = {12},
issue = {2},
pages = {341-353},
abstract = {Drawing on research with food waste recycling facilities in New England, this paper explores a fundamental tension between the eco-modernist logics of the circular economy and the reality of contemporary waste streams. Composting and digestion are promoted as key solutions to food waste, due to their ability to return nutrients to agricultural soils. However, our work suggests that food waste processors increasingly find themselves responsible for policing boundaries between distinct “material” and “biological” systems as imagined by the architects of the circular economy—boundaries penetrable by toxicants. This responsibility creates significant problems for processors due to the regulatory, educational, and structural barriers documented in this research. This paper contributes to scholarship which suggests the need to rethink the modernist logics of the circular economy and to recognize the realities of entangled material and biological systems. More specifically, we argue that if circularity is the goal, policy needs to recognize the barriers food waste processors face and concentrate circularity efforts further upstream to ensure fair, just, and safe circular food systems.},
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pubstate = {published},
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Drawing on research with food waste recycling facilities in New England, this paper explores a fundamental tension between the eco-modernist logics of the circular economy and the reality of contemporary waste streams. Composting and digestion are promoted as key solutions to food waste, due to their ability to return nutrients to agricultural soils. However, our work suggests that food waste processors increasingly find themselves responsible for policing boundaries between distinct “material” and “biological” systems as imagined by the architects of the circular economy—boundaries penetrable by toxicants. This responsibility creates significant problems for processors due to the regulatory, educational, and structural barriers documented in this research. This paper contributes to scholarship which suggests the need to rethink the modernist logics of the circular economy and to recognize the realities of entangled material and biological systems. More specifically, we argue that if circularity is the goal, policy needs to recognize the barriers food waste processors face and concentrate circularity efforts further upstream to ensure fair, just, and safe circular food systems.
Isenhour, Cindy; Berry, Brieanne; Blackmer, Travis; Scruton, Emily; Searing, Llewellyn; Chakraborty, Sujan; Bonnet, Jennifer
Resourceful ME: Exploring multiple forms of value in Maine's reuse sector Technical Report
2022.
@techreport{nokey,
title = {Resourceful ME: Exploring multiple forms of value in Maine's reuse sector},
author = {Cindy Isenhour and Brieanne Berry and Travis Blackmer and Emily Scruton and Llewellyn Searing and Sujan Chakraborty and Jennifer Bonnet},
url = {https://brieanneberry.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/ResourcefulME_ProgramBrief.pdf},
year = {2022},
date = {2022-04-14},
urldate = {2022-04-14},
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Berry, Brieanne
Glut: Affective labor and the burden of abundance in secondhand economies Journal Article
In: Anthropology of Work Review, vol. 43, iss. 1, pp. 26-37, 2022, ISSN: 1548-1417.
@article{nokey,
title = {Glut: Affective labor and the burden of abundance in secondhand economies},
author = {Brieanne Berry},
url = {http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/awr.12233},
doi = {http://doi.org/10.1111/awr.12233},
issn = {1548-1417},
year = {2022},
date = {2022-06-21},
urldate = {2022-06-21},
journal = {Anthropology of Work Review},
volume = {43},
issue = {1},
pages = {26-37},
abstract = {This paper explores the interlinkages between the abundance of stuff moving through community-based reuse organizations and the labor needed to manage this material. The glut of donations is due to the sheer volume of materials moving through a wasteful linear economic system, as well as the practice of donation dumping, where unusable used goods move through reuse economies, washing their previous owners free of guilt while entangling laborers in messy relationships with objects. I draw on theories of gendered, social reproductive labor to explore how the work of localized reuse, disproportionately borne by unpaid women, reproduces communities. Following calls for work that explores the social dimensions of circular economies, this research uses a qualitative approach that draws on two main methods: participant observation in reuse establishments and in-depth interviews with reuse participants. This qualitative data provides a picture of reuse activities at a local scale and helps us understand the complex relationships formed and perpetuated through reuse. I find that the labor of volunteers is often unseen and undervalued and suggest that policies designed to address material surplus do so with these laborers in mind.},
keywords = {},
pubstate = {published},
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This paper explores the interlinkages between the abundance of stuff moving through community-based reuse organizations and the labor needed to manage this material. The glut of donations is due to the sheer volume of materials moving through a wasteful linear economic system, as well as the practice of donation dumping, where unusable used goods move through reuse economies, washing their previous owners free of guilt while entangling laborers in messy relationships with objects. I draw on theories of gendered, social reproductive labor to explore how the work of localized reuse, disproportionately borne by unpaid women, reproduces communities. Following calls for work that explores the social dimensions of circular economies, this research uses a qualitative approach that draws on two main methods: participant observation in reuse establishments and in-depth interviews with reuse participants. This qualitative data provides a picture of reuse activities at a local scale and helps us understand the complex relationships formed and perpetuated through reuse. I find that the labor of volunteers is often unseen and undervalued and suggest that policies designed to address material surplus do so with these laborers in mind.
Berry, Brieanne; Isenhour, Cindy; MacRae, Jean; Victor, Erin; Blackmer, Travis; Entwistle, Jared; Silka, Linda; Haedicke, Michael A.; Lee, Susanne; Saber, Deborah
After the Perfect Storm: Learning from Disruptions in Maine's Materials Management System Journal Article
In: Case Studies in the Environment, vol. 6, iss. 1, pp. 1-11, 2022, ISSN: 2473-9510.
@article{nokey,
title = {After the Perfect Storm: Learning from Disruptions in Maine's Materials Management System},
author = {Brieanne Berry and Cindy Isenhour and Jean MacRae and Erin Victor and Travis Blackmer and Jared Entwistle and Linda Silka and Michael A. Haedicke and Susanne Lee and Deborah Saber},
url = {https://online.ucpress.edu/cse/article-abstract/6/1/1706963/185896/After-the-Perfect-StormLearning-From-Disruptions?redirectedFrom=fulltext},
doi = {https://doi.org/10.1525/cse.2022.1706963},
issn = {2473-9510},
year = {2022},
date = {2022-07-04},
urldate = {2022-07-04},
journal = {Case Studies in the Environment},
volume = {6},
issue = {1},
pages = {1-11},
abstract = {Recent disruptions in waste management, including the COVID-19 pandemic and China’s decision to limit waste imports from the United States, have shocked materials management systems across the United States. In Maine, these disruptions have been exacerbated by significant disturbances in the state’s waste management infrastructure. These shocks, emerging on multiple scales, combine to strongly impact Maine’s communities. Drawing on interviews with stakeholders involved in waste hauling, processing, outreach and education, as well as state and municipal government. Our paper explores how participants are leveraging these experiences to envision a more resilient materials management system for the state. However, as this case study illustrates, the complexity of materials management systems means that there is no single solution for ongoing, emergent, and unforeseen disruptions. Our research identifies tensions related to how to define system boundaries, the respective roles of the government and markets, issues of scale, and the dual need for both centralized and distributed solutions. Our exploration of materials management disruptions in Maine demonstrates the complexity of building and managing systems that attempt to balance the social, economic and ecological dimensions of materials management systems.},
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Recent disruptions in waste management, including the COVID-19 pandemic and China’s decision to limit waste imports from the United States, have shocked materials management systems across the United States. In Maine, these disruptions have been exacerbated by significant disturbances in the state’s waste management infrastructure. These shocks, emerging on multiple scales, combine to strongly impact Maine’s communities. Drawing on interviews with stakeholders involved in waste hauling, processing, outreach and education, as well as state and municipal government. Our paper explores how participants are leveraging these experiences to envision a more resilient materials management system for the state. However, as this case study illustrates, the complexity of materials management systems means that there is no single solution for ongoing, emergent, and unforeseen disruptions. Our research identifies tensions related to how to define system boundaries, the respective roles of the government and markets, issues of scale, and the dual need for both centralized and distributed solutions. Our exploration of materials management disruptions in Maine demonstrates the complexity of building and managing systems that attempt to balance the social, economic and ecological dimensions of materials management systems.
Berry, Brieanne; Haverkamp, Jamie; Isenhour, Cindy; Bilec, Melissa M.; Lowden, Sara Sophia
Is Convergence Around The Circular Economy Necessary? Exploring the Productivity of Divergence in US Circular Economy Discourse and Practice Journal Article
In: Circular Economy and Sustainability, 2022, ISSN: 2730-5988.
@article{nokey,
title = {Is Convergence Around The Circular Economy Necessary? Exploring the Productivity of Divergence in US Circular Economy Discourse and Practice},
author = {Brieanne Berry and Jamie Haverkamp and Cindy Isenhour and Melissa M. Bilec and Sara Sophia Lowden},
doi = {10.1007/s43615-022-00199-1},
issn = {2730-5988},
year = {2022},
date = {2022-08-08},
journal = {Circular Economy and Sustainability},
abstract = {Amid the growth of circular economy research, policy, and practice, there are increasingly loud calls for a unified and singular definition of circularity. This unity is needed, proponents argue, to enable swift action in the face of climate and environmental crises. Our work interrogates the ideal of convergence around the circular economy. We ask whether circularity must be singular and uniform in order to be effective. Based on convergence science research and social theory rooted in ideas of divergence, our paper draws on observations of a convergence science workshop, focus groups, interviews, and questionnaires with US-based circular economy professionals to explore shared and divergent understandings and practices of circularity. We find that even among a relatively homogeneous group of research participants (in terms of race, class, and education), there is significant divergence in terms of both practices and perceptions of circular economy principles. We focus in this paper on how research participants understand innovation in the circular economy as just one potential illustration of divergent circularity. Our research contributes to an understanding of circular economy knowledge politics, illuminating how circularity is contested even among those who advocate most strongly for its implementation. We ultimately find opportunity and promise precisely in the spaces of contestation, and see divergence as a way to hold space for multiple ways of being and relating to economies, materials, and beings. These more inclusive pathways, we argue, may be necessary to ensure just and effective transitions to more circular economic forms.},
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Amid the growth of circular economy research, policy, and practice, there are increasingly loud calls for a unified and singular definition of circularity. This unity is needed, proponents argue, to enable swift action in the face of climate and environmental crises. Our work interrogates the ideal of convergence around the circular economy. We ask whether circularity must be singular and uniform in order to be effective. Based on convergence science research and social theory rooted in ideas of divergence, our paper draws on observations of a convergence science workshop, focus groups, interviews, and questionnaires with US-based circular economy professionals to explore shared and divergent understandings and practices of circularity. We find that even among a relatively homogeneous group of research participants (in terms of race, class, and education), there is significant divergence in terms of both practices and perceptions of circular economy principles. We focus in this paper on how research participants understand innovation in the circular economy as just one potential illustration of divergent circularity. Our research contributes to an understanding of circular economy knowledge politics, illuminating how circularity is contested even among those who advocate most strongly for its implementation. We ultimately find opportunity and promise precisely in the spaces of contestation, and see divergence as a way to hold space for multiple ways of being and relating to economies, materials, and beings. These more inclusive pathways, we argue, may be necessary to ensure just and effective transitions to more circular economic forms.
2021
Berry, Brieanne; Farber, Brianna; Rios, Fernanda Cruz; Haedicke, Michael A.; Chakraborty, Sujan; Lowden, Sara Sophia; Bilec, Melissa M.; Isenhour, Cindy
Just by design: exploring justice as a multidimensional concept in US circular economy discourse Journal Article
In: Local Environment, pp. 1-17, 2021, ISSN: 1354-9839.
@article{Berry2021,
title = {Just by design: exploring justice as a multidimensional concept in US circular economy discourse},
author = {Brieanne Berry and Brianna Farber and Fernanda Cruz Rios and Michael A. Haedicke and Sujan Chakraborty and Sara Sophia Lowden and Melissa M. Bilec and Cindy Isenhour},
url = {https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/13549839.2021.1994535},
doi = {10.1080/13549839.2021.1994535},
issn = {1354-9839},
year = {2021},
date = {2021-11-10},
urldate = {2021-11-10},
journal = {Local Environment},
pages = {1-17},
abstract = {Circular economies are often framed as addressing a trio of problems: environmental degradation, economic stagnation, and social ills, broadly defined. Our paper centers on this last claim – that circular economies promise social benefits. There is a dearth of literature focused on the social dimensions of circular economies (Geissdoerfer, Martin, Paulo Savaget, Nancy M. P. Bocken, and Erik Jan Hultink. 2017. “The Circular Economy – A New Sustainability Paradigm?” Journal of Cleaner Production 143 (February): 757–768. doi:10.1016/j.jclepro.2016.12.048.), and even less attention to the meaning of social justice in the context of circular economies, let alone how it might be enacted in policy and practice. Drawing on data generated from focus groups with circular economy experts and a content analysis of US-based governmental, NGO, and business literature on circular economies, we explore whether and how justice emerges in circular economy discourse. We explore the narratives that these actors use to describe justice, and the barriers they see in achieving just and inclusive circular economies. We aim to identify the ways in which social justice is defined and discussed – or not – by the actors who seem to be most actively pushing for a circular economy (CE). Our work addresses the critical need to articulate clearly what it is we mean by social justice in relation to the CE. For if the CE is to contribute to sustainable social transformations, justice must be more than a buzzword – the CE must be just by design.},
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Circular economies are often framed as addressing a trio of problems: environmental degradation, economic stagnation, and social ills, broadly defined. Our paper centers on this last claim – that circular economies promise social benefits. There is a dearth of literature focused on the social dimensions of circular economies (Geissdoerfer, Martin, Paulo Savaget, Nancy M. P. Bocken, and Erik Jan Hultink. 2017. “The Circular Economy – A New Sustainability Paradigm?” Journal of Cleaner Production 143 (February): 757–768. doi:10.1016/j.jclepro.2016.12.048.), and even less attention to the meaning of social justice in the context of circular economies, let alone how it might be enacted in policy and practice. Drawing on data generated from focus groups with circular economy experts and a content analysis of US-based governmental, NGO, and business literature on circular economies, we explore whether and how justice emerges in circular economy discourse. We explore the narratives that these actors use to describe justice, and the barriers they see in achieving just and inclusive circular economies. We aim to identify the ways in which social justice is defined and discussed – or not – by the actors who seem to be most actively pushing for a circular economy (CE). Our work addresses the critical need to articulate clearly what it is we mean by social justice in relation to the CE. For if the CE is to contribute to sustainable social transformations, justice must be more than a buzzword – the CE must be just by design.
Berry, Brieanne; Isenhour, Cindy; MacRae, Jean
Protecting Waterways and Our Food Supply from “Forever Chemicals” Technical Report
2021.
@techreport{nokey,
title = {Protecting Waterways and Our Food Supply from “Forever Chemicals”},
author = {Brieanne Berry and Cindy Isenhour and Jean MacRae},
url = {https://scholars.org/contribution/protecting-waterways-and-our-food-supply},
year = {2021},
date = {2021-11-15},
urldate = {2021-11-15},
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2020
Isenhour, Cindy; Berry, Brieanne
“Still good life”: On the value of reuse and distributive labor in “depleted” rural Maine Journal Article
In: Economic Anthropology, vol. 7, no. 2, pp. 293-308, 2020, ISSN: 2330-4847.
@article{isenhour_still_2020,
title = {“Still good life”: On the value of reuse and distributive labor in “depleted” rural Maine},
author = {Cindy Isenhour and Brieanne Berry},
url = {https://anthrosource.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/sea2.12176},
doi = {10.1002/sea2.12176},
issn = {2330-4847},
year = {2020},
date = {2020-01-01},
urldate = {2020-01-01},
journal = {Economic Anthropology},
volume = {7},
number = {2},
pages = {293-308},
abstract = {This article explores the production of wealth through distributive labor in Maine's secondhand economy. While reuse is often associated with economic disadvantage, our research complicates that perspective. The labor required to reclaim, repair, redistribute, and reuse secondhand goods provides much more than a means of living in places left behind by international capitalism, but the value generated by this work is persistently discounted by dominant economic logics. On the basis of semistructured interviews, participant observation, and statewide surveys with reuse market participants in Maine, we find that the relational value of reuse, produced through caring, flexible, distributive labor, is especially significant. We argue that paying attention to the practices, politics, and value of distribution is critical for understanding wealth in communities perceived to have been left behind by global capitalist systems, particularly as wage labor opportunities and natural resources grow increasingly scarce.},
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This article explores the production of wealth through distributive labor in Maine's secondhand economy. While reuse is often associated with economic disadvantage, our research complicates that perspective. The labor required to reclaim, repair, redistribute, and reuse secondhand goods provides much more than a means of living in places left behind by international capitalism, but the value generated by this work is persistently discounted by dominant economic logics. On the basis of semistructured interviews, participant observation, and statewide surveys with reuse market participants in Maine, we find that the relational value of reuse, produced through caring, flexible, distributive labor, is especially significant. We argue that paying attention to the practices, politics, and value of distribution is critical for understanding wealth in communities perceived to have been left behind by global capitalist systems, particularly as wage labor opportunities and natural resources grow increasingly scarce.
Berry, Brieanne
Reopening Reuse: COVID-19 Safety for Community Reuse in Maine Technical Report
2020.
@techreport{nokey,
title = {Reopening Reuse: COVID-19 Safety for Community Reuse in Maine},
author = {Brieanne Berry},
url = {https://brieanneberry.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/ReopeningReuse_2020-1.pdf},
year = {2020},
date = {2020-09-01},
urldate = {2020-09-01},
abstract = {This document is a collection of guidance, best practices, and current policies adopted by federal and state government, as well as other Maine thrift stores to assist community-based thrift stores in deciding whether and how to reopen safely during the coronavirus outbreak. Our understanding of the virus is emergent, and the resources linked to in this document should be referenced for the most up-to-date information. A list of useful resources for COVID-19 and coronavirus spread can be found at the end of this document. This document is a compilation of available resources, and should not be used as a replacement for medical advice.},
keywords = {},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {techreport}
}
This document is a collection of guidance, best practices, and current policies adopted by federal and state government, as well as other Maine thrift stores to assist community-based thrift stores in deciding whether and how to reopen safely during the coronavirus outbreak. Our understanding of the virus is emergent, and the resources linked to in this document should be referenced for the most up-to-date information. A list of useful resources for COVID-19 and coronavirus spread can be found at the end of this document. This document is a compilation of available resources, and should not be used as a replacement for medical advice.
2019
Berry, Brieanne; Bonnet, Jennifer; Isenhour, Cindy
Rummaging through the Attic of New England Journal Article
In: Worldwide Waste: Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies, vol. 2, no. 1, pp. 1-12, 2019, ISSN: 2399-7117.
@article{berry_rummaging_2019,
title = {Rummaging through the Attic of New England},
author = {Brieanne Berry and Jennifer Bonnet and Cindy Isenhour},
url = {http://www.worldwidewastejournal.com/articles/10.5334/wwwj.16/},
doi = {10.5334/wwwj.16},
issn = {2399-7117},
year = {2019},
date = {2019-01-25},
urldate = {2019-01-25},
journal = {Worldwide Waste: Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies},
volume = {2},
number = {1},
pages = {1-12},
abstract = {The concept of the circular economy has taken off, gaining momentum along with concerns about resource depletion, waste, and the impending ‘end of cheap nature’ (Moore 2014). Environmentalists and industrialists alike have promoted the benefits of reuse as a means toward improved efficiency and reduced resource pressure. Some have called for a new ‘culture of reuse’ (Botsman and Rogers 2010; Stokes et al. 2014). It is in this context that we explore repair, resale, and reuse as practices with deep historical precedent and contemporary continuity. Are there lessons to be learned from places that are already home to circular economies and strong cultures of reuse? And are there dangers inherent in a stronger, more formalized reuse sector? This paper draws on an historical and ethnographic analysis of vibrant reuse practices in the rural northeastern state of Maine. While there is a popular tendency to explain Maine’s persistent reuse practices as a response to economic and geographic marginality, our empirical observations suggest that these explanations do not adequately capture the complexity of reuse markets, discount the power of human agency and sense of place, and preclude important lessons for reuse policy in other contexts. Insights from Maine suggest that any effort to promote reuse would benefit from looking beyond purely economic rationales to attend to matters of place, sociality, and market relationality.},
keywords = {},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {article}
}
The concept of the circular economy has taken off, gaining momentum along with concerns about resource depletion, waste, and the impending ‘end of cheap nature’ (Moore 2014). Environmentalists and industrialists alike have promoted the benefits of reuse as a means toward improved efficiency and reduced resource pressure. Some have called for a new ‘culture of reuse’ (Botsman and Rogers 2010; Stokes et al. 2014). It is in this context that we explore repair, resale, and reuse as practices with deep historical precedent and contemporary continuity. Are there lessons to be learned from places that are already home to circular economies and strong cultures of reuse? And are there dangers inherent in a stronger, more formalized reuse sector? This paper draws on an historical and ethnographic analysis of vibrant reuse practices in the rural northeastern state of Maine. While there is a popular tendency to explain Maine’s persistent reuse practices as a response to economic and geographic marginality, our empirical observations suggest that these explanations do not adequately capture the complexity of reuse markets, discount the power of human agency and sense of place, and preclude important lessons for reuse policy in other contexts. Insights from Maine suggest that any effort to promote reuse would benefit from looking beyond purely economic rationales to attend to matters of place, sociality, and market relationality.
Berry, Brieanne; Isenhour, Cindy
Linking Rural and Urban Circular Economies through Reuse and Repair Journal Article
In: Journal for the Anthropology of North America, vol. 22, no. 2, pp. 112-114, 2019, ISSN: 2475-5389.
@article{berry_linking_2019,
title = {Linking Rural and Urban Circular Economies through Reuse and Repair},
author = {Brieanne Berry and Cindy Isenhour},
url = {https://anthrosource.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/nad.12103},
doi = {10.1002/nad.12103},
issn = {2475-5389},
year = {2019},
date = {2019-01-01},
urldate = {2019-01-01},
journal = {Journal for the Anthropology of North America},
volume = {22},
number = {2},
pages = {112-114},
abstract = {Increasing resource scarcity and what has been called “the end of cheap nature” are prompting policymakers and scholars to foster more circular economies to reduce waste and lengthen the lifespan of material goods. Our essay critically examines the political and economic relationships between urban and rural geographies in the context of secondhand economies. Practices of bartering, swapping, selling, and repairing used goods have long been important to rural people and places, but the increasing commodification of discards risks upending rural livelihoods and ways of being as goods move toward urban centers. We explore the relationship between rural and urban reuse economies and suggest how future scholars of rural North America might contribute to strengthening and supporting localized reuse practices.},
keywords = {},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {article}
}
Increasing resource scarcity and what has been called “the end of cheap nature” are prompting policymakers and scholars to foster more circular economies to reduce waste and lengthen the lifespan of material goods. Our essay critically examines the political and economic relationships between urban and rural geographies in the context of secondhand economies. Practices of bartering, swapping, selling, and repairing used goods have long been important to rural people and places, but the increasing commodification of discards risks upending rural livelihoods and ways of being as goods move toward urban centers. We explore the relationship between rural and urban reuse economies and suggest how future scholars of rural North America might contribute to strengthening and supporting localized reuse practices.
Horne, Lydia; Berry, Brieanne; McGinn, Anna; Shrestha, Sandesh; Hafford-MacDonald, Brooke; Lowden, Sara
On Qualitative Writing: Building an Interdisciplinary Community of Practice Journal Article
In: Spire: The Maine Journal of Conservation and Sustainability, vol. 3, no. 1, 2019.
@article{horne_qualitative_2019,
title = {On Qualitative Writing: Building an Interdisciplinary Community of Practice},
author = {Lydia Horne and Brieanne Berry and Anna McGinn and Sandesh Shrestha and Brooke Hafford-MacDonald and Sara Lowden},
url = {https://umaine.edu/spire/2019/09/18/on-qualitative-writing/},
year = {2019},
date = {2019-01-01},
urldate = {2019-01-01},
journal = {Spire: The Maine Journal of Conservation and Sustainability},
volume = {3},
number = {1},
abstract = {As authors, we are familiar with the “publish or perish” mentality often used to describe academic writing. Despite the centrality of writing to the academic world, writing can often present significant challenges especially given this increasing pressure to produce. Building upon the experience of attending a qualitative writing retreat, two University of Maine graduate students were determined to start their own writing group to better engage with complex sustainability issues using qualitative methods. This writing group now meets regularly and has become a community of practice, holding members accountable and creating a space to help us engage with the research and writing process. In this essay we reflect on the process of qualitative writing and share our experiences as a newly formed writing group in overcoming challenges associated with writing, including how to write across disciplines, how to effectively engage with interdisciplinary research, and how to provide thoughtful feedback. In addition to creating a space for reflection and support, our writing group has led to the publication of journal articles and conference papers, the submission of grant and job applications, and the refinement of thesis chapters and research ideas. We encourage our fellow researchers to develop their own interdisciplinary communities of practice and write throughout the research process to be able to more deeply engage with sustainability challenges.},
keywords = {},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {article}
}
As authors, we are familiar with the “publish or perish” mentality often used to describe academic writing. Despite the centrality of writing to the academic world, writing can often present significant challenges especially given this increasing pressure to produce. Building upon the experience of attending a qualitative writing retreat, two University of Maine graduate students were determined to start their own writing group to better engage with complex sustainability issues using qualitative methods. This writing group now meets regularly and has become a community of practice, holding members accountable and creating a space to help us engage with the research and writing process. In this essay we reflect on the process of qualitative writing and share our experiences as a newly formed writing group in overcoming challenges associated with writing, including how to write across disciplines, how to effectively engage with interdisciplinary research, and how to provide thoughtful feedback. In addition to creating a space for reflection and support, our writing group has led to the publication of journal articles and conference papers, the submission of grant and job applications, and the refinement of thesis chapters and research ideas. We encourage our fellow researchers to develop their own interdisciplinary communities of practice and write throughout the research process to be able to more deeply engage with sustainability challenges.
Horton, Skyler; Nadeau, Hannah; Flynn, Andrew; Patterson, Taylor; Kleisinger, Shayla Rose; Berry, Brieanne
Circular Food Systems in Maine: Findings from an Interdisciplinary Study of Food Waste Management Journal Article
In: Maine Policy Review, vol. 28, no. 1, pp. 59-71, 2019, ISSN: 2643-959X.
@article{horton_circular_2019,
title = {Circular Food Systems in Maine: Findings from an Interdisciplinary Study of Food Waste Management},
author = {Skyler Horton and Hannah Nadeau and Andrew Flynn and Taylor Patterson and Shayla Rose Kleisinger and Brieanne Berry},
url = {https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/mpr/vol28/iss1/8},
issn = {2643-959X},
year = {2019},
date = {2019-01-01},
urldate = {2019-01-01},
journal = {Maine Policy Review},
volume = {28},
number = {1},
pages = {59-71},
abstract = {This paper explores challenges and opportunities for reducing food waste in Maine through five distinct, yet interrelated, case studies. Our research focuses on how Maine might create and support a more circular food system that can reduce waste and promote the use of surplus food in agricultural and industrial processes. This stakeholder-engaged research identifies potential policy interventions across scales, but also highlights the need for more interdisciplinary research opportunities for students. Our research adopts an interdisciplinary approach, and our team members represent diverse academic backgrounds, including nursing, the human dimensions of climate change, environmental engineering, ecology and environmental sciences, biomedical engineering, and anthropology. This interdisciplinary team acts as a model for future groups interested in finding long-term answers to problems that require complex understanding and analysis.},
keywords = {},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {article}
}
This paper explores challenges and opportunities for reducing food waste in Maine through five distinct, yet interrelated, case studies. Our research focuses on how Maine might create and support a more circular food system that can reduce waste and promote the use of surplus food in agricultural and industrial processes. This stakeholder-engaged research identifies potential policy interventions across scales, but also highlights the need for more interdisciplinary research opportunities for students. Our research adopts an interdisciplinary approach, and our team members represent diverse academic backgrounds, including nursing, the human dimensions of climate change, environmental engineering, ecology and environmental sciences, biomedical engineering, and anthropology. This interdisciplinary team acts as a model for future groups interested in finding long-term answers to problems that require complex understanding and analysis.
2017
Berry, Brieanne; Acheson, Ann
Sharing Isn’t Easy: Food Waste and Food Redistribution in Maine K–12 Schools Journal Article
In: Maine Policy Review, vol. 26, no. 1, pp. 47-58, 2017, ISSN: 1064-2587.
@article{berry_sharing_2017,
title = {Sharing Isn’t Easy: Food Waste and Food Redistribution in Maine K–12 Schools},
author = {Brieanne Berry and Ann Acheson},
url = {https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/mpr/vol26/iss1/7},
issn = {1064-2587},
year = {2017},
date = {2017-06-01},
urldate = {2017-06-01},
journal = {Maine Policy Review},
volume = {26},
number = {1},
pages = {47-58},
abstract = {Approximately 30 percent of food in the United States is wasted. When food is landfilled instead of eaten, the economic and natural resources used to produce and transport that food are also wasted. At the same time, however, food insecurity remains a pressing issue both in the United States and within the state of Maine. This paper explores efforts to reduce food waste and address food insecurity in Maine’s K–12 school system, with an emphasis on food redistribution. Research indicates that schools produce substantial amounts of food waste, but little is known about strategies that schools employ to address food waste, either through formal policy or grassroots efforts. Based on an analysis of school board waste policies and interviews with school officials in Maine, this study suggests that the adoption of specific types of practices to reduce food waste is influenced by multiple factors.},
keywords = {},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {article}
}
Approximately 30 percent of food in the United States is wasted. When food is landfilled instead of eaten, the economic and natural resources used to produce and transport that food are also wasted. At the same time, however, food insecurity remains a pressing issue both in the United States and within the state of Maine. This paper explores efforts to reduce food waste and address food insecurity in Maine’s K–12 school system, with an emphasis on food redistribution. Research indicates that schools produce substantial amounts of food waste, but little is known about strategies that schools employ to address food waste, either through formal policy or grassroots efforts. Based on an analysis of school board waste policies and interviews with school officials in Maine, this study suggests that the adoption of specific types of practices to reduce food waste is influenced by multiple factors.
Isenhour, Cindy; Crawley, Andrew; Berry, Brieanne; Bonnet, Jennifer
Maine’s Culture of Reuse and Its Potential to Advance Environmental and Economic Policy Objectives Journal Article
In: Maine Policy Review, vol. 26, no. 1, pp. 36-46, 2017, ISSN: 1064-2587.
@article{isenhour_maines_2017,
title = {Maine’s Culture of Reuse and Its Potential to Advance Environmental and Economic Policy Objectives},
author = {Cindy Isenhour and Andrew Crawley and Brieanne Berry and Jennifer Bonnet},
url = {http://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/mpr/vol26/iss1/6},
issn = {1064-2587},
year = {2017},
date = {2017-06-01},
urldate = {2017-06-01},
journal = {Maine Policy Review},
volume = {26},
number = {1},
pages = {36-46},
abstract = {Policies designed to extend the lifetime of products—by encouraging reuse rather than disposal—are proliferating. Research suggests that reuse can ease pressure on natural resources and improve economic efficiency, all while preventing waste. In Maine, there are clear signs of a tradition of reuse that might be used to advance these goals. But beyond discrete observations, proverbs, and anecdotal stories, little data have been collected upon which to estimate the potential of Maine’s reuse economy. This paper draws upon findings generated during the first year of a five-year interdisciplinary, mixed-methods research project designed to explore the environmental, social, and economic dimensions of reuse in Maine. Our preliminary findings suggest that Maine does, indeed, have a vibrant but underestimated reuse economy. Less expected are findings that suggest reuse has promise to enhance economic resilience and contribute to culturally appropriate economic development.},
keywords = {},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {article}
}
Policies designed to extend the lifetime of products—by encouraging reuse rather than disposal—are proliferating. Research suggests that reuse can ease pressure on natural resources and improve economic efficiency, all while preventing waste. In Maine, there are clear signs of a tradition of reuse that might be used to advance these goals. But beyond discrete observations, proverbs, and anecdotal stories, little data have been collected upon which to estimate the potential of Maine’s reuse economy. This paper draws upon findings generated during the first year of a five-year interdisciplinary, mixed-methods research project designed to explore the environmental, social, and economic dimensions of reuse in Maine. Our preliminary findings suggest that Maine does, indeed, have a vibrant but underestimated reuse economy. Less expected are findings that suggest reuse has promise to enhance economic resilience and contribute to culturally appropriate economic development.
Berry, Brieanne
Best Practices for Reuse and Repair in Rural Maine Communities Technical Report
2017.
@techreport{nokey,
title = {Best Practices for Reuse and Repair in Rural Maine Communities},
author = {Brieanne Berry},
url = {https://brieanneberry.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Reuse_Repair-Best-Practices_2017_FINAL.pdf},
year = {2017},
date = {2017-12-01},
urldate = {2017-12-01},
abstract = {This document explores how two types of reuse might be implemented within rural communities in Maine: swap shops and community repair clinics. Drawing on academic literature, best-practice handbooks from non-profit organizations, governmental sources, and communication with practitioners, this paper is intended to synthesize the available knowledge on reuse and repair for rural Maine communities.},
keywords = {},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {techreport}
}
This document explores how two types of reuse might be implemented within rural communities in Maine: swap shops and community repair clinics. Drawing on academic literature, best-practice handbooks from non-profit organizations, governmental sources, and communication with practitioners, this paper is intended to synthesize the available knowledge on reuse and repair for rural Maine communities.