James M. Van Lanen

Writing

Academic publications, essays, and articles on hunter-gatherer studies, rewilding philosophy, and subsistence lifeways. PDFs are available for download where indicated.

Academic Publications

Commodification of Wildness

Academic Publication2025PDF

An examination of how wildness and wilderness have been commodified by both the outdoor recreation industry and the conservation movement, and what this means for any genuine attempt at rewilding.

A comparative analysis of hunter-gatherer mobility patterns in relation to climate, habitat type, and geographic distance, presented at the Conference on Hunting and Gathering Societies.

Subsistence Mobility

Hunter-Gatherer Research 3.2PDF

An exploration of subsistence mobility strategies among contemporary hunter-gatherer populations and what these patterns reveal about human ecological adaptation.

On the procurement of raw lithic materials for stone tool production — combining archaeological evidence with ethnographic observation and personal fieldwork experience.


Essays

A philosophical and anthropological argument for embracing ferality as a political and ecological strategy in the face of civilizational collapse.


Online Articles

Ski Hunters of Siberia

Alaska Fish & Wildlife NewsLink

An account of traditional ski-hunting practices among indigenous Siberian peoples and their parallels to Alaska Native subsistence traditions.

Winter Caribou Hunt

Alaska Fish & Wildlife NewsLink

A narrative of a winter caribou hunt in the Alaska backcountry, weaving together subsistence practice, ecology, and personal reflection.

Subsistence on the Kuskokwim

Alaska Fish & Wildlife NewsLink

Examining subsistence lifeways along the Kuskokwim River in western Alaska — fishing, hunting, and gathering traditions that persist in one of the most remote regions of North America.


Free Ebook

Free
Feral Prescriptions & Pathways — cover

Feral Prescriptions & Pathways

Field Notes, Linked with the Ethnographic Record

A practical guide to shedding domestication — from community self-reliance and wild food sovereignty to hunting, primitive skills, and the rejection of technological dependency. Drawn from nearly two decades of fieldwork and on-the-ground rewilding practice, this essay maps the pathways back to a feral existence.

Originally published in Black & Green Review #4. Now available as a free download.

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Recommended Reading

For a curated bibliography and recommended reading list, visit humanrewilding.earth.