Speaking & Media
James is available for podcast interviews, speaking engagements, and event appearances. With nearly two decades of fieldwork with indigenous hunter-gatherers on three continents, he brings a rare combination of academic rigor and real-world experience to every conversation.
Available for remote interviews via Zoom. For in-person events, based in Alaska with travel availability across the western USA.
Topics I Speak On
Human Rewilding in the 21st Century
Why both the political Left and Right fail to address our ecological crisis, and what anthropology reveals about a path forward.
What Hunter-Gatherers Know That We've Forgotten
Lessons from nearly two decades of fieldwork with indigenous hunter-gatherers on three continents.
Killing Off the Hadza
How academic anthropology and conservation politics are destroying one of the last free hunter-gatherer peoples on Earth.
The Skills We Lost
From flintknapping to hide-tanning to primitive navigation — why reclaiming ancestral skills is an act of political resistance.
Anarchy After Graeber
Why "The Dawn of Everything" fails as sociopolitical theory, and what a real anarchist anthropology looks like.
The Green Energy Lie
Why the environmentalist case against industrial "green" technology is stronger than most people realize.
Living Off-Grid in the Far North
Subsistence hunting, foraging, and the material realities of choosing a life outside the system.
Media Kit
50-Word Bio
James Van Lanen is an anthropologist, author, and bushcraft instructor who has spent nearly two decades with indigenous hunter-gatherers on three continents.
150-Word Bio
James M. Van Lanen has spent nearly two decades as a professional anthropologist studying and working with indigenous hunter-gatherers on three continents. He is an active subsistence hunter, fisher, and forager, and teaches traditional bushcraft and wilderness skills across the western USA. His books include Human Rewilding in the 21st Century and Turning a Moose Hide into Buckskin, both from Birch Top Hill Press. His writing has appeared in Hunter-Gatherer Research, Human Ecology, Alaska Fish & Wildlife News, and other publications.
Headshot
High-resolution photo for use on podcasts, websites, and event promotions.
Technical Requirements
Available for remote interviews via Zoom. For in-person events, based in Alaska with travel availability.
Book James
Book NowEmail james@jamesvanlanen.com with your show name, audience size, and preferred topic.
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