Extractivism Talks #12:
Accumulation frontiers and the capitalist pressure to extract: what social ecology can learn from the fossil gas/green hydrogen metabolism in Canada and Germany
Guest Lecture from Prof. Dr. Éric Pineault (UQAM)
Extractivism Talks #12
The Extractivism Talks series acts as our platform for timely discussions on international affairs and current events. It explores the connections between global uneven development and extractivist regimes in the Global South. The series encourages interdisciplinary conversations with unique insights into international conditions and opportunities for change in the Global South, with a particular focus on the Middle East and Latin America.
In this Extractivism Talks #12, we are honored to host Prof. Dr. Éric Pineault (University of Quebec at Montreal) as a guest lecturer at the University of Kassel. His talk will explore how contemporary capitalism expands its extractive frontiers, focusing on the evolving relationship between fossil gas and green hydrogen by drawing on cases from Canada and Germany. By analyzing the material and metabolic dimensions of these energy systems, the talk asks whether they represent a genuine ecological shift or a reconfiguration of existing accumulation regimes.
Extractivism Talks #12 will be held on April 29th at the University of Kassel from 18h to 20h – Campus Center 1112 (Seminarraum 3) Moritzstraße 18
No registration is needed to attend in person.
It will also be livestreamed via Zoom. To participate online, register here: https://uni-kassel.zoom-x.de/webinar/register/WN_MBtvQ0JmRM2PDbacCdcRDw
Guest Lecturer:
Prof. Dr. Éric Pineault (University of Quebec at Montreal)
Éric Pineault is a professor in the Department of Sociology at the University of Quebec at Montreal, chair of the research committee at the Institute of Environmental Sciences, an affiliated researcher at the Research Chair on Ecological Transition, and scientific director of the Research Center on Resilient Cities.
He developed an analytical framework to study the evolution of Canada’s resource sector, focusing on how the oil sands industry influences the course of Canadian capitalism. In this context, he adopted approaches from social metabolism and ecological economics, which have become central to his research. His current work on the “social ecology of capital” aims to incorporate these perspectives into the political economy of advanced capitalism. Additionally, he investigates Québec’s energy transition from a degrowth perspective.
Extractivism Talks #12
“Accumulation frontiers and the capitalist pressure to extract: what social ecology can learn from the fossil gas/green hydrogen metabolism in Canada and Germany”
April 29th, 2026
18h – 20h
University of Kassel, Campus Center 1112 (Seminarraum 3), Moritstraße 18
Zoom: https://uni-kassel.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_MBtvQ0JmRM2PDbacCdcRDw#/registration