"I hope this recognition helps introduce more readers to the fascinating history of the [Korean] ondol, a domestic heating technology that is the source of not only warmth but also debates about efficiency, resource conservation and even national identity," says David Fedman, assistant professor of history, who won the Joel A. Tarr Envirotech Article Prize. David Fedman

David Fedman, assistant professor of history, has received the 2019 Joel A. Tarr Envirotech Article Prize from the Society for the History of Technology’s Envirotech special interest group. His article, “The Ondol Problem and the Politics of Forest Conservation in Colonial Korea,” was published in The Journal of Korean Studies. It explores the ondol, a stove/heated floor system common in traditional Korean dwellings and its complicated role in forest management, fuel consumption and domestic life in colonial Korea. “I’m honored and thrilled to have received this award. I hope this recognition helps introduce more readers to the fascinating history of the ondol, a domestic heating technology that is the source of not only warmth but also debates about efficiency, resource conservation and even national identity.” The Tarr Prize is bestowed approximately every 18 months for the best article published in either a journal or an article collection on the relationship between technology and the environment in history. The prize and a $350 cash award were conferred at the Society for the History of Technology’s October meeting in Milan, Italy.