'An exhilarating, urgent work . . . [Dark Laboratory] threads together ecological and human crises in an original, glittering web' Afua Hirsch
From award-winning writer and theorist Tao Leigh Goffe, an urgent investigation into the intertwined history of colonialism and the climate crisis - and the lessons we can learn to fight for a better world.
Our planet is on the precipice of ecological breakdown and climate despair is at an all-time high. But there are many communities who have survived beyond the environmental destruction wrought on them by colonialism - and they hold the solutions for climate repair.
Using the Caribbean as a case study, Tao Leigh Goffe traces the history of the islands back to the arrival of Christopher Columbus, when the Caribbean became the subject of Western exploitation. Charting the ecological forces that have shaped the islands - from guano to coral reefs, sugarcane to mongooses - and learning from Black, Indigenous and Asian island histories, Goffe makes the argument that the extractivist capitalism that is the origin of the climate crisis is borne from colonial thinking - and that to fight one effectively is to fight both.
Treating the Caribbean as both a warning and a guide, Dark Laboratory is a lyrical, vibrant and urgent investigation into the greatest threat facing humanity.
A TIMES LITERARY SUPPLEMENT BOOK OF THE YEAR 2025
'Noble and necessary' New York Times
'A work of searching curiosity and intelligence' Ekow Eshun
'Necessary, compelling and utterly unique' Monique Roffey
'Relentlessly engaging . . . shows us new ways to live' The Atlantic
| ISBN: | 9780241998526 |
| Publication date: | 5th March 2026 |
| Author: | Tao Leigh Goffe |
| Publisher: | Penguin Books an imprint of Penguin Books Ltd |
| Format: | Paperback |
| Pagination: | 384 pages |
| Genres: |
History of the Americas Ethnic groups and multicultural studies Social and cultural history Colonialism and imperialism Slavery and abolition of slavery Climate change Social impact of environmental issues Memoirs |
'An exhilarating, urgent work . . . [Dark Laboratory] threads together ecological and human crises in an original, glittering web' Afua Hirsch
From award-winning writer and theorist Tao Leigh Goffe, an urgent investigation into the intertwined history of colonialism and the climate crisis - and the lessons we can learn to fight for a better world.
Our planet is on the precipice of ecological breakdown and climate despair is at an all-time high. But there are many communities who have survived beyond the environmental destruction wrought on them by colonialism - and they hold the solutions for climate repair.
Using the Caribbean as a case study, Tao Leigh Goffe traces the history of the islands back to the arrival of Christopher Columbus, when the Caribbean became the subject of Western exploitation. Charting the ecological forces that have shaped the islands - from guano to coral reefs, sugarcane to mongooses - and learning from Black, Indigenous and Asian island histories, Goffe makes the argument that the extractivist capitalism that is the origin of the climate crisis is borne from colonial thinking - and that to fight one effectively is to fight both.
Treating the Caribbean as both a warning and a guide, Dark Laboratory is a lyrical, vibrant and urgent investigation into the greatest threat facing humanity.
A TIMES LITERARY SUPPLEMENT BOOK OF THE YEAR 2025
'Noble and necessary' New York Times
'A work of searching curiosity and intelligence' Ekow Eshun
'Necessary, compelling and utterly unique' Monique Roffey
'Relentlessly engaging . . . shows us new ways to live' The Atlantic
Dark Laboratory features in the following genres: History of the Americas, Ethnic groups and multicultural studies, Social and cultural history, Colonialism and imperialism, Slavery and abolition of slavery, Climate change, Social impact of environmental issues, Memoirs
Dark Laboratory is available in Paperback, Hardback
Dark Laboratory was written by Tao Leigh Goffe and published by Penguin Books an imprint of Penguin Books Ltd
Dark Laboratory has 384 pages
£10.79