Often science fiction depicts the climate future as unlivable, or as barely survivable only through an intensification of 鈥渃apitalist realism鈥� 鈥� everything is for sale, only the rich have access to technologies sufficient for minimal comfort, and Earth ecologies are in continual free-fall or already destroyed in service of profit. In this conversation, we discuss science fictional imaginings of livable collective futures. We put two recent texts (Ruthanna Emrys鈥檚 A Half-Built Garden and M.E. O鈥橞rien and Eman Abdelhabi鈥檚 Everything for Everyone) in conversation with an older non-dystopian imaginary (鈥淧.M鈥濃�檚 bolo鈥檅olo).
Alexis Shotwell is theory and science fiction fan, functional potter, and she bike rides in all weather. Alexis has been part of the Department of Sociology and Anthropology at 杏吧原创 since 2012 and cross-appointed to Philosophy and the Pauline Jewett Institute of Women鈥檚 and Gender Studies. Kilian J枚rg is a philosopher and artist based in Vienna and Berlin whose research focuses on ecological epistemology and the intersection of art and philosophy.
Actions
- Read widely and fully.
- Engage in collaborative projects (like book clubs or reading groups) that bring together diverse perspectives.
- Consider participating in imaginative exercises like writing prompts or drawing/art prompts.
- Engage in activities that work to imagine alternative futures (Buy Nothing Groups, Clothing/Item Swaps, Repair Cafes).
Resource List
Books:
- A Half-Built Garden, Ruthanna Emrys
- Everything For Everyone: An Oral History of the New York Commune, 2052-2072, M. E. O鈥橞rien and Eman Abdelhadi
- 叠辞濒辞鈥橞辞濒辞, Hans Widmer
- Against Purity: Living Ethically in Compromised Times,聽Alexis Shotwell
- Knowing Otherwise: Race, Gender, and Implicit Understanding,聽Alexis Shotwell
- Ecological Reasonings, Killian Jorg
- Toxicity Temple: An Artistic and Philosophical Adventure into the Toxicity of Now, Killian Jorg
- Not Too Late, Rebecca Solnit and Thelma Young Lutunatabua; Specifically: 鈥淟ooking back from the future: 2023 from 2073鈥� by Denali sai nalamalapu
- Parable of the Sower, Octavia E. Butler
- Tentacle, Rita Indiana
- The Water Knife, Paolo Bacigalupi
- The Ministry for the Future, Kim Stanely Robinson
- Letters from the Future: How New Brunswickers Confronted Climate Change and Redefined Progress, Edited by Daniel Tubb, Abram Lutes, Susan O鈥橠onnell
- Emergent Strategy: Shaping Climate Changing Worlds, adrienne maree brown
Journal Articles:
- J枚rg, K. Messy utopianism and the question of war: What does 鈥渟taying with the trouble鈥� mean in relation to war?聽WLS聽16, 18鈥�28 (2024).
- Shotwell, A. Building Complicity with Another World.聽Parallax聽29, 364鈥�385 (2023).
Articles:
Video:
Websites:
- , Killian鈥檚 Website. A resource for his books and performance art.