Juben Rabbani, a Watson Ph.D. fellow from the Department of Anthropology, created a unique art project as a “visual supplement” to his master’s thesis on the impact of the EV transition on the Salton Sea region of California. Now, he has teamed up with Art at Watson to turn it into a multimedia exhibition, which will be on display until the end of summer 2026.
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Institute at Brown for Environment and Society
Juben Rabbani
Graduate Affiliate, Anthropology
Research Interests
Energy transition and electric vehicles, Extractivism, EV infrastructure development, Global North and South relations, State and corporate violence, Political ecology
Pronouns
Any
Biography
My research examines the current energy transition toward renewable energy to decarbonize specifically through the development and adoption of electric vehicles as a "benefit for all." Given the need for critical earth minerals to develop electric vehicles, global sacrifice zones necessitate the transition for some while burdening others. I seek to understand the connection of the EV as a "benefit for all" and the need for sacrifice zones to secure these "collective benefits" in order to sketch out a program for a just vehicular transition.
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