Vic Thasiah, Ph.D.
Professor of Environmental Studies and Religion
vthasiah@callutheran.edu
Humanities 217
Areas of expertise: Environmental philosophy and conservation
Office Hours: By appointment
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Vic Thasiah teaches in the environmental studies, religious studies, and honors programs. He's also the founder and board president of , a national advocacy organization that empowers runners to protect public lands and expand access to nature; and enjoys being an active member of the . Vic is currently working on a book project titled Veins of Jade: A Circulatory Vision for Conservation.
New Courses
Conservation of the Route of Parks of Patagonia (Travel Seminar, Chile, TBD)
Education
Certified California Naturalist
Ph.D., University of Oxford
B.A., UC Santa Cruz
Expertise
Selected Course Topics
Environmental Justice (Honors)
Intro to Environmental Studies
Religion and Political Thought
Violence, Religion, and Politics
Religion, Identity, and Vocation
Zen Buddhism in the West
Publications
Current Work
Veins of Jade: A Circulatory Vision for Conservation
Selected Book Chapters
"Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh's Ecological Imagination," in Views of Nature and Dualism: Rethinking Philosophical, Theological, and Religious Assumptions in the Anthropocene (Palgrave Macmillan, 2024).
"Race and Climate: Decolonizing Liberal Arts Education," in So That All May Flourish, eds. Marcia J. Bunge, Jason A. Mahn, and Martha E. Stortz (Fortress Press, 2023).
"Religion, Forestry, and Democracy in Rwanda after Genocide," in Eco-Reformation: Grace and Hope for a Planet in Peril, eds. Lisa E. Dahill and Jim Martin-Schramm (Wipf & Stock, 2016).
"The Right to Freedom of Association: Organizing in Rwanda after Genocide," in On Secular Governance: Lutheran Perspectives on Contemporary Legal Issues, eds. Marie A. Failinger and Ronald W. Duty (William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2016).
"Reconfiguring Rwandan Church-State Relations," in Lutheran Identity and Political Theology, eds. Carl Henric-Grenholm and Goran Gunner (Wipf & Stock, 2014).
Selected Journal Articles
"Equitable Access to Nature and Transformational Politics,"
"Collapsing Space and Time: Thich Nhat Hanh's Ecological Humanism," .
"Critically Engaging Public Officials in Rwanda,"
Selected Presentations
"Thich Nhat Hanh, a Mountain Forest, and Equitable Access to Nature," American Academy of Religion, San Antonio, Texas, November 18, 2023.
"Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh on Environmental Justice," American Academy of Religion, Denver, Colorado, November 20, 2022.
"Toward an Asian-American Philosophy of Nature: Thich Nhat Hanh on Wildness and Wellness," American Academy of Religion (Western Region), March 20, 2021.
"Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh on Decolonizing Your Mind," American Academy of Religion, Denver, Colorado, November 19, 2018.
"Incubating Democracy in Development in Rwanda," Religion and Power: New Directions in Social Ethics Conference, Princeton University, March 12, 2015. Invited presentation.
"'Things Are Not Okay in Rwanda If You Shut Up': Community Organizing Practices and Human Rights Advocacy after Genocide," Society of Christian Ethics, Chicago, January 11, 2015.
"Countering Complicity: Rwandan Political Theology after Genocide," American Academy of Religion, San Diego, California, November 23, 2014.
"The Right to Freedom of Association: Organizing in Rwanda after Genocide," Lutheran Perspectives on Contemporary Legal Issues, Valparaiso University Law School, Chicago, March 27, 2014.
"Toward a Rwandan Political Theology," Remembering the Past, Living the Future: Lutheran Tradition in Transition Conference, University of Uppsala, Sweden, October 9, 2013.
"On Religious Anarchism," Third International Conference on Religion and Spirituality in Society, March 9, 2013.
"Second Realities: Karl Barth's Ethics and Socially-Engaged Art," Society of Christian Ethics (Pacific Meeting), February 10, 2012.
"On Comprehensive Immigration Reform," Society of Christian Ethics Annual Meeting, January 8, 2010.
"Faith and Immigration Reform," Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service Briefing, Washington, D.C., October 14, 2009.
Selected Public Writing
," Runners for Public Lands Blog, April 2, 2025.
," Runners for Public Lands Blog, October 9, 2024.
," The Trailhead, August 20, 2024.
," Runners for Public Lands Blog, July 22, 2024.
"," iRunFar, May 22, 2024.
"," Outside Magazine, April 22, 2024.
"," Runners for Public Lands Blog, February 22, 2024.
"," Freetrail, November 2, 2023.
"," Trail Runner Magazine, October 26, 2023.
"," Freetrail, July 20, 2023.
": The Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary," Santa Barbara Independent, March 22, 2023.
," Medium, January 15, 2023.
": Congress Should Pass the Public Lands Act," Ventura County Reporter, December 21, 2022.
"," Social Sport, June 14, 2021.
Grant Funding
$1,250 CLU Sabbatical Grant, 2024
$5,000 CLU Faculty Research and Creative Work Grant, 2023
$1,250 Hewlett Faculty Research Grant, 2023
$40,000 Sabbatical Research Grant, Louisville Institute, 2017-2018
$5,000 CLU Faculty Research and Creative Work Grant, 2014
$5,000 Wabash Summer Research Grant, 2013
$1,250 Hewlett Faculty Research Grant, 2013