Leslie E. Sponsel

Leslie E. Sponsel earned the B.A. in Geology from Indiana University (1965), and the M.A. (1973) and Ph.D. (1981) in Biological Anthropology from Cornell University. Over the last four decades he taught at seven universities in four countries, two as a Fulbright Fellow (Venezuela and Thailand). In 1981 he was hired to develop and direct the Ecological Anthropology Program at the University of Hawai`i. His courses include Ecological Anthropology, Environmental Anthropology, Primate Behavioral Ecology, Spiritual Ecology, Sacred Places, Anthropology of Buddhism, Ethics in Anthropology, and Anthropology of War and Peace. Although retired since August 2010, usually he teaches one course each semester and devotes the remainder of his time to research and publications.

From 1974 to 1981 Sponsel conducted several trips to the Venezuelan Amazon to research biological and cultural aspects of human ecology with the Yanomami and other Indigenous societies. Almost yearly since 1986 Sponsel visits Thailand to research aspects of Buddhist ecology and environmentalism together with his wife, Dr. Poranee Natadecha-Sponsel. In recent years their research focuses on sacred caves in northern Thailand.

Sponsel's extensive peer-reviewed publications include numerous journal articles, book chapters, encyclopedia articles, two monographs, three edited books, and two co-edited books. He concentrates on publishing other books integrating his previous articles and chapters on several different subjects.

He is one of the pioneers in developing the interdisciplinary subjects of spiritual ecology, nonkilling anthropology, and ethnoprimatology.

His book Spiritual Ecology won the science category at the annual Green Book Festival in San Francisco in 2014 and has been translated into French. The companion website is: http://spiritualecology.info.

Constructive comments on his books and related matters are most welcome and appreciated at

sponsel@hawaii.edu.

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Endorsements for

YANOMAMI IN THE AMAZON:

TOWARD A MORE ETHICAL ANTHROPOLOGY BEYOND OTHERING

“For half a century, the Yanomami have been one of the most intensively examined "cases" in all of anthropology. Leslie Sponsel’s comprehensive study, the result of years of sustained interest, critically evaluates it all, but always puts emphasis where it belongs, on the well-being of the Yanomami people, and the ethical responsibilities of those who study them.” R. Brian Ferguson, Professor of Anthropology, Rutgers University; author of Yanomami Warfare: A Political History.

“This is an amazingly comprehensive and authoritative overview of the anthropological, ethical, and moral issues surrounding the Yanomami people, their recent history, their present human rights struggle, and their future. It is a thoroughly researched baseline for anyone interested in the Yanomami. For anthropology students it is a perfect introduction to some of the most important complexities and controversies within the field, offering them a strong case for advocacy anthropology in support of all indigenous people. I applaud Leslie Sponsel for so skillfully navigating these challenging waters.” John H. Bodley, Emeritus Professor of Anthropology, Washington State University, author of Victims of Progress.

“As one of anthropology’s foremost ethicists, Leslie Sponsel is eminently qualified to tell the dramatic story of the Yanomami people’s searing encounters with the outside world. His truthfulness and compassion shine a bright light on dark events during almost 50 years in the Amazon rainforest and beyond.” Linda Rabben, Associate Research Professor of Anthropology, University of Maryland; author of Brazil’s Indians and the Onslaught of Civilization: The Yanomami and the Kayapó.

“In my view, Leslie Sponsel is the American anthropologist most conversant with the breadth and depth of the Yanomami literature. As a result, his book provides a different understanding of the Yanomami from that presented by Napoleon Chagnon. We learn to appreciate the Yanomami in new ways with new insights and respect. We learn much about the Yanomami and, through them, ourselves. His book makes for thoughtful reading.” Rob Borofsky, Director, Center for a Public Anthropology; Professor, Hawaii Pacific University; Editor, Yanomami: The Fierce Controversy and What We Can Learn from It.

“Sponsel provides a superb impassioned and riveting account of the so-called Yanomami scandal in anthropology involving Napoleon Chagnon and his critics. It should be required reading for all aspiring anthropologists and an excellent source for anthropology students regarding the ethical dilemmas arising in anthropological fieldwork. The book also deserves a prominent place in the literature on the anthropology and sociology of science and any debate regarding objectivity and subjectivity in science.” Richard H. Robbins, Distinguished Teaching Professor at the State University of New York in Plattsburgh; author of Cultural Anthropology: A Problem-Based Approach.

“In this must-read book, Leslie Sponsel sets the record straight as he nimbly explores the intricacies of controversy, bias, violence, human rights, ethics, philosophy of science, advocacy anthropology, and the “Othering” of the famous Yanomami people. The shocking implications brought forward by Sponsel’s multifaceted and thorough analyses are timely and important as the Yanomami continue to face the darkness of genocide, ethnocide, and ecocide in the 21st century. This is a landmark volume.” Douglas P. Fry, Professor and Chair, Anthropology, University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB), author Beyond War, and editor War, Peace, and Human Nature: The Convergence of Evolutionary and Cultural Views.

“Resurrecting a seventeen-year-old story – the infamous Darkness in El Dorado scandal – that shattered the anthropological profession in the United States, Leslie Sponsel puts together a compendium updating the ethnographic record on the Yanomami. With a pinch of nostalgia for the old days of my sojourn among the Sanumá subgroup in north Brazil, I congratulate Sponsel for his herculean work of assembling an enormous amount of material, which keeps growing, about an indigenous cluster of societies whose image has unjustifiably been abused by both unscrupulous professionals, adventurers, and sensationalist media. I'm glad Sponsel, a sensitive ethnographer, has taken it upon himself to review the Yanomami affair and painstakingly set the record straight.” Alcida Rita Ramos, Professor Emerita, Universidade de Brasília, author of Sanumá Memories: An Ethnography in Times of Crisis.

“Les Sponsel's book is an unprecedented resource for those seeking to understand the conflicting images of the Yanomami that have dominated the media for decades. It provides a comprehensive and truly informative picture of the issues affecting this vulnerable Amazonian people. I highly recommend it both as an academic reference and as an eye-opening exposé for the general public.” Gale Goodwin Gómez, Professor of Anthropology, Rhode Island College.

“This thoughtful, historically situated, and well-defended collection of essays offers both an expansive and telescopic view on the Anthropology/Yanomami intersect. With accessible writing, well-defined terms, robust discussion of historical events and their consequences, and a rigorous review of the supporting literature Leslie Sponsel critically examines the consequential damages of making and shaping of a cultural personae. In challenging and deconstructing representations of the Yanomami as “the fierce people” a more holistic sense of people and place emerges. The reader comes to know the Yanomami as a sharing, caring, egalitarian society where reciprocity both nurtures and knits together the fabric of life; a people whose lives and ways of life have been devastated by profiteers (academic and otherwise); and, an indigenous nation whose vibrant culture and way of life continues to evolve. In this dynamic work Leslie Sponsel has produced the ultimate teaching text on ethics, praxis, and the human condition. For the student, scholar, and interested public there is no anthropology book more important to read.” Barbara Rose Johnston, Senior Fellow, Center for Political Ecology, Santa Cruz, California, editor of Life and Death Matters: Human Rights, Environment, and Social Justice.

"This is a very well-documented and balanced critical analysis of the ethical and political implications of ethnographic misrepresentations constructed on the Yanomami indigenous people of Brazil and Venezuela in the last decades. For those who venture to understand the controversies that have shaken the development and history of anthropology, this text is essential. For those who believe in an integrated anthropology combining basic and applied research, this book is inspirational." Hortensia Caballero-Arias, Venezuelan Institute of Scientific Research (IVIC).