‘Hot-Spot’ – A Genealogy: Notes on the Ecological History of Southeast Asia

Abstract

In the twenty-first century, Southeast Asia is facing increasing environmental challenges as a result of rapid urbanization, population expansion, industrialization, and lack of political will. Forest fires in Borneo and Sumatra, caused by slash-and-burn land clearance and exacerbated by the effects of the El Niño Southern Oscillation, are leading to loss of wild habitat in one of the most biodiverse regions of the world. Indonesia is today considered a ‘hot-spot’ for emerging disease, in part as a result of deforestation and land-use changes. This paper tracks the history of the term ‘hot-spot,’ originally used to describe localities with high biodiversity, but which has since come to signify a locality under threat from disease. How may the history of a word help to illuminate broader shifts in our understanding of ecology – specifically the ecology of Southeast Asia?