Paper short abstract:

What is wellbeing for those who live with the constant threat of industrial pollution? Drawing from anthropological research in an industrialised Chinese village, I trace the rise of subjects for whom industry is as much part of wellbeing as it is an obstacle to it, against universalist definitions.

Paper long abstract:

What is wellbeing for those who live under the constant threat of industrial pollution? How do extreme conditions push locals to redefine what counts as 'being well'? How do such redefinitions affect the lived experience of pollution itself? Drawing from anthropological research carried out as part of an interdisciplinary project on environment and health in an industrialised Chinese village, this paper examines how villagers come to understand and respond to pollution-related health risks. The village of Baocun is affected by pollution from a very large fertiliser plant. This causes a range of health problems among the local population. Much as they critique the local industry and mining for the potential adverse effects on their health, locals also argue that they have gotten 'used to it'. The paper shows how wellbeing and 'a good life' are being redefined in light of the current social, political and economic configurations. These include local power structures, economic dependency, an increasingly divided community, and experiences with seeking redress. This has produced new kinds of subjectivities for whom industry is as much part of wellbeing as it is an obstacle to it, prodding us to reconsider universalist definitions.