Short abstract:

This paper discusses the concept of “thermal colonization” by examining the construction of French extractive settlements in the Algerian Sahara during the war of independence (1954-1962). It shows how the definition and implementation of a thermal normativity was key in this colonial endeavor.

Long abstract:

This paper explores the concept of “thermal colonization” proposed by Nicole Starosielski (2021) as “the use of a sense of temperature to justify colonial expansion and inhabitation.” It does so by analyzing a case study: the construction of French extractive settlements in the Algerian Sahara during the war of independence (1954-1962). I argue that the French agenda was not only about extracting the major reserves of fossil fuels discovered there, but also consisted of defining and setting a thermal normativity in the desert.

The paper analyzes how this “thermal colonization” was implemented through four steps. First, the construction by experts of the Sahara milieu as “extreme,” mainly due to its aridity and high thermal amplitude. Then, the discrediting of the habitat and practices of indigenous communities, deemed admirable but overall “backward” and non-modern. Thirdly, the setting of a comfort norm based on the physiological and psychological reactions of human bodies and minds to the desert climate, so as to guarantee their working efficiency. And lastly, the building of air-conditioned settlements in the desert, from single dwellings to entire cities, to house oil industry workers and the soldiers protecting them.

This episode played a pivotal role in advancing knowledge about comfort, air-conditioning technologies, and acclimatization to non-temperate climates, which persisted after the French withdrew from Algeria in the 1960s. It also shows that, beyond temperature, what was at play was a whole “environmental colonization,” involving a broad set of parameters defining the acclimatization of individuals to the desert.