Weather, Science, and the Environment in Colonial Malaya

Fiona Williamson is professor of environmental history in the College of Integrative Studies at Singapore Management University. She is a fellow of the Royal Historical Society and copresident of the International Commission for the History of Meteorology.

This book offers a fresh perspective on colonialism in the tropics by uncovering the history of weather science in British Malaya. The story of Malayan meteorology is analyzed in connection with global developments. Yet Williamson remains focused on what made Malaya unique. Far from a narrative of scientific advancement facilitating colonial control, Imperial Weather highlights the uneven and inconsistent nature of scientific knowledge about climate.