Brent Z. Kaup
@brentzkaup.bsky.social
Political ecologist studying finance, bugs, and infectious disease. Coauthor of the Pathogens of Finance (UC Press).
The opinions expressed here are solely my own.
The opinions expressed here are solely my own.
Pinned
Brent Z. Kaup
@brentzkaup.bsky.social
· Jun 3
The Pathogens of Finance by Brent Kaup, Kelly Austin - Paper
Scholarship is a powerful tool for changing how people think, plan, and govern. By giving voice to bright minds and bold ideas, we seek to foster understanding and drive progressive change.
www.ucpress.edu
The Pathogens of Finance has now officially been released! Order it out here... www.ucpress.edu/books/the-pa...
Kelly Austin and I were interviewed last week on KPFA "Against the Grain" about our book The Pathogens of Finance. A big thanks to Sasha Lilley for the opportunity. The interview can be streamed at kpfa.org/episode/agai... . @ucpress.bsky.social
Capitalism and Insect-Borne Diseases | KPFA
Over the last half century, diseases carried by insects — such as malaria and dengue, Zika and Lyme disease — have greatly increased. Sociologists Brent Kaup and Kelly Austin argue that the surge in v...
kpfa.org
September 29, 2025 at 6:25 PM
Kelly Austin and I were interviewed last week on KPFA "Against the Grain" about our book The Pathogens of Finance. A big thanks to Sasha Lilley for the opportunity. The interview can be streamed at kpfa.org/episode/agai... . @ucpress.bsky.social
Reposted by Brent Z. Kaup
Before screwworms were eradicated in the U.S., every cut, every scratch, every navel of a newborn calf threatened to turn fatal. Now the parasites are heading back toward us. @sarahzhang reports:
www.theatlantic.com/science/arch...
www.theatlantic.com/science/arch...
The ‘Man-Eater’ Screwworm Is Coming
After a decades-long campaign to beat the parasites down to Panama, they’re speeding back up north.
www.theatlantic.com
June 6, 2025 at 2:31 PM
Before screwworms were eradicated in the U.S., every cut, every scratch, every navel of a newborn calf threatened to turn fatal. Now the parasites are heading back toward us. @sarahzhang reports:
www.theatlantic.com/science/arch...
www.theatlantic.com/science/arch...
Reposted by Brent Z. Kaup
The rise of financialized capitalism has intensified the spread of diseases. Our book of the week shows how real estate, extractive agriculture, and austerity co-produce environments where pathogens thrive.
By @brentzkaup.bsky.social & Kelly F. Austin on @ucpress.bsky.social
buff.ly/OmamGCT
By @brentzkaup.bsky.social & Kelly F. Austin on @ucpress.bsky.social
buff.ly/OmamGCT
June 3, 2025 at 12:00 PM
The rise of financialized capitalism has intensified the spread of diseases. Our book of the week shows how real estate, extractive agriculture, and austerity co-produce environments where pathogens thrive.
By @brentzkaup.bsky.social & Kelly F. Austin on @ucpress.bsky.social
buff.ly/OmamGCT
By @brentzkaup.bsky.social & Kelly F. Austin on @ucpress.bsky.social
buff.ly/OmamGCT
The Pathogens of Finance has now officially been released! Order it out here... www.ucpress.edu/books/the-pa...
The Pathogens of Finance by Brent Kaup, Kelly Austin - Paper
Scholarship is a powerful tool for changing how people think, plan, and govern. By giving voice to bright minds and bold ideas, we seek to foster understanding and drive progressive change.
www.ucpress.edu
June 3, 2025 at 2:00 PM
The Pathogens of Finance has now officially been released! Order it out here... www.ucpress.edu/books/the-pa...
Reposted by Brent Z. Kaup
‘Ebola is believed to have a zoonotic origin (probably fruit bats). But colonial extraction and chronic dispossession in recently independent nations were also among the causes.’
@ednabonhomme.bsky.social on Uganda’s successful outbreak management, from the blog: www.lrb.co.uk/blog/2025/ma...
@ednabonhomme.bsky.social on Uganda’s successful outbreak management, from the blog: www.lrb.co.uk/blog/2025/ma...
Edna Bonhomme | How to Beat Ebola
Uganda declared the outbreak over on 26 April. In total there had been fourteen reported cases, of whom four died and...
www.lrb.co.uk
June 1, 2025 at 11:45 AM
‘Ebola is believed to have a zoonotic origin (probably fruit bats). But colonial extraction and chronic dispossession in recently independent nations were also among the causes.’
@ednabonhomme.bsky.social on Uganda’s successful outbreak management, from the blog: www.lrb.co.uk/blog/2025/ma...
@ednabonhomme.bsky.social on Uganda’s successful outbreak management, from the blog: www.lrb.co.uk/blog/2025/ma...
Reposted by Brent Z. Kaup
For 40 years, Americans have lived shorter lives than people in other rich countries.
For 10 years, that's been rapidly getting worse.
New research: in 2022-2023, there were 1.5 million "missing Americans," who died--but wouldn't have, if America didn't have such uniquely high death rates.
For 10 years, that's been rapidly getting worse.
New research: in 2022-2023, there were 1.5 million "missing Americans," who died--but wouldn't have, if America didn't have such uniquely high death rates.
Excess US Deaths Before, During, and After the COVID-19 Pandemic
This cohort study examines trends in excess deaths in the US before, during, and after the COVID-19 pandemic.
jamanetwork.com
May 29, 2025 at 7:58 PM
For 40 years, Americans have lived shorter lives than people in other rich countries.
For 10 years, that's been rapidly getting worse.
New research: in 2022-2023, there were 1.5 million "missing Americans," who died--but wouldn't have, if America didn't have such uniquely high death rates.
For 10 years, that's been rapidly getting worse.
New research: in 2022-2023, there were 1.5 million "missing Americans," who died--but wouldn't have, if America didn't have such uniquely high death rates.
The Pathogens of Finance exists on paper! Very excited to receive my author copies. If you are interested in the ways in which finance shapes landscapes in ways that impact vector borne disease, my book co-authored with Kelly Austin can be pre-ordered today at www.ucpress.edu/books/the-pa....
April 25, 2025 at 1:08 PM
The Pathogens of Finance exists on paper! Very excited to receive my author copies. If you are interested in the ways in which finance shapes landscapes in ways that impact vector borne disease, my book co-authored with Kelly Austin can be pre-ordered today at www.ucpress.edu/books/the-pa....
Reposted by Brent Z. Kaup
Abby ties together so many interesting things in this one, but one drive-by point: the epidemiological transition idea - or maybe, just the same worldview behind it - is latent in why so many Americans are aghast that they have to now live with a virulent, ineradicable infectious disease (Covid)
Why are scientists sounding the alarm about avian influenza? Abby Cartus examines the epidemiological science of bird flu, and how conventional health wisdom and other pathologies—like RFK Jr., Trump, and anti-vaccine delusions—constrain potential action.
proteanmag.com/2025/04/06/b...
proteanmag.com/2025/04/06/b...
Bird Flu and Other Assorted Pestilences • Protean Magazine
What’s behind the current state of alarm around avian influenza? Abby Cartus examines the epidemiological science and how action is constrained by the political context—namely, RFK Jr., the Trump admi...
proteanmag.com
April 7, 2025 at 3:10 PM
Abby ties together so many interesting things in this one, but one drive-by point: the epidemiological transition idea - or maybe, just the same worldview behind it - is latent in why so many Americans are aghast that they have to now live with a virulent, ineradicable infectious disease (Covid)
Reposted by Brent Z. Kaup
"There can never be an apolitical approach to public health. ... Public health is not just about medicine; it is about democracy itself." www.nature.com/articles/d41...
Public-health experts should be more political, not less
Health has always been political, long before Donald Trump and Robert F. Kennedy Jr took power. Denying this is what’s been killing us.
www.nature.com
March 12, 2025 at 1:43 PM
"There can never be an apolitical approach to public health. ... Public health is not just about medicine; it is about democracy itself." www.nature.com/articles/d41...
Reposted by Brent Z. Kaup
💥 My 2024 Mile Marker: The inside scoop on how America lost control of the Bird Flu, opening the door for another pandemic.
"We're in a terrible situation" said @angierasmussen.bsky.social
🧵Here's how we got here & how to get out @kffhealthnews.bsky.social kffhealthnews.org/news/article...
"We're in a terrible situation" said @angierasmussen.bsky.social
🧵Here's how we got here & how to get out @kffhealthnews.bsky.social kffhealthnews.org/news/article...
How America Lost Control of the Bird Flu, Setting the Stage for Another Pandemic - KFF Health News
Exclusive reporting reveals how the United States lost track of a virus that could cause the next pandemic. Problems like the sluggish pace of federal action, a deference to industry, and neglect for ...
kffhealthnews.org
December 20, 2024 at 4:12 PM
💥 My 2024 Mile Marker: The inside scoop on how America lost control of the Bird Flu, opening the door for another pandemic.
"We're in a terrible situation" said @angierasmussen.bsky.social
🧵Here's how we got here & how to get out @kffhealthnews.bsky.social kffhealthnews.org/news/article...
"We're in a terrible situation" said @angierasmussen.bsky.social
🧵Here's how we got here & how to get out @kffhealthnews.bsky.social kffhealthnews.org/news/article...
My book, co-authored with Kelly Austin, is now available for pre-order! Check out The Pathogens of Finance @ucpress.bsky.social (use UCPSAVE30 for a discount). www.ucpress.edu/books/the-pa...
The Pathogens of Finance by Brent Kaup, Kelly Austin - Paper
Scholarship is a powerful tool for changing how people think, plan, and govern. By giving voice to bright minds and bold ideas, we seek to foster understanding and drive progressive change.
www.ucpress.edu
December 2, 2024 at 7:41 PM
My book, co-authored with Kelly Austin, is now available for pre-order! Check out The Pathogens of Finance @ucpress.bsky.social (use UCPSAVE30 for a discount). www.ucpress.edu/books/the-pa...
Reposted by Brent Z. Kaup
November 13, 2024 at 1:22 AM
Reposted by Brent Z. Kaup
Thinking about publishing a radical book? The @antipodeonline.bsky.social Book Series -- now published by
@ucpress.bsky.social -- is looking for proposals #geo #geosky #geography ucpress.edu/series/antip...
@ucpress.bsky.social -- is looking for proposals #geo #geosky #geography ucpress.edu/series/antip...
Antipode
Scholarship is a powerful tool for changing how people think, plan, and govern. By giving voice to bright minds and bold ideas, we seek to foster understanding and drive progressive change.
ucpress.edu
September 13, 2024 at 8:29 PM
Thinking about publishing a radical book? The @antipodeonline.bsky.social Book Series -- now published by
@ucpress.bsky.social -- is looking for proposals #geo #geosky #geography ucpress.edu/series/antip...
@ucpress.bsky.social -- is looking for proposals #geo #geosky #geography ucpress.edu/series/antip...