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Themes

In addition to being organized under categories such as “people,” “places,” “events,” and “things,” articles in the Colorado Encyclopedia are organized into six broader intellectual themes. Articles in each of these themes explore a segment of the Colorado experience and are edited by a scholar with expertise in the core subject matter. Click the theme title for a more detailed description.
 

ORIGINS explores the arrival, settlement, and culture of indigenous peoples and is edited by Kevin Black, former Assistant State Archaeologist at History Colorado.

DIVERSITY explores the cultural mosaic of Colorado, featuring articles on cross-cultural interaction, conflict, and adaptation.

COMMUNITY documents the many aspects of rural and urban communities in Colorado. Rebecca Hunt, professor of history at University of Colorado-Denver, serves as editor.

ECOLOGY includes articles on land and water use, emergence of environmentalism, and issues of sustainability. Jared Orsi, environmental historian and professor of history at Colorado State University, serves as editor.

POLITICAL ECONOMY covers Colorado politics and economics since the nineteenth century and is edited by Thomas Andrews, associate professor of history at University of Colorado-Boulder and author of Killing for Coal, the award-winning history of the Ludlow Massacre.

PLACE features articles on the Centennial State’s role in the establishment of the Interior West and the growth of the New West. It is edited by former State Historian Patricia Limerick and Jason Hanson. Limerick and Hanson co-wrote A Ditch in Time (2012), an acclaimed history of water development in the West.