The Richard Dean Winchell Annual History Lecture 

Where do pandemics come from?

Using Black Death narratives to rethink the origin of pandemics

Discover how pandemics truly begin—and why they thrive—by tracing their path from medieval plagues to modern outbreaks. In this talk, Dr. Green will reveal how infectious diseases jump species barriers, travel global networks, and persist for centuries. Drawing on cutting-edge genetics and fresh insights into the Black Death, she’ll show how history can guide us in confronting pandemics today—and preventing them tomorrow. 

Dr. Monica H. Green is an award-winning historian specializing in the history of medicine and global health, with a particular focus on the medieval period. Her pioneering work bridges the humanities and sciences, integrating historical research with cutting-edge genetics to explore the origins and spread of pandemics, including the Black Death. A Fellow of the Medieval Academy of America, Dr. Green has published extensively on the history of disease, women’s health, and medical knowledge transmission across cultures. As an independent scholar, she continues to shape global conversations on historical epidemiology and the interdisciplinary study of health. 

• Co-sponsored by Medieval/Renaissance Studies and Medical Humanities
• Additional funding for this event was provided by Humanities Nebraska and the Nebraska Cultural Endowment.