Speakers from UBC EDGES Collaborative:
Leila Harris Institute f or Resources\, Environment and Sustainability (IRES) and Institute for Gender\, Race\, Sexuality and Social Justice (GRSJ) \, UBC
Rachel Stern Department of Geography\, UBC
Manvi Bhalla Institute for Resources\, Environ ment and Sustainability (IRES)\, UBC
Renata Rovelo Institut e for Resources\, Environment and Sustainability (IRES)\, UBC
Ke
ndra Fanconi\, Artist\, Director\, Creator
Talk title:
Exploring Creative and Narrative Metho
dologies for Climate and Environmental Justice
Tal
k Abstract:
In recent scholarship on environmental-social rel
ations\, story has been a focal point for understanding how climate and env
ironmental inequities are experienced in embodied and emotional ways (Harri
s\, 2021). Storytelling methods such as oral histories\, narrative and fict
ional expressions\, visual methods using photographs\, and creative mapping
also can become ways for communities and organizations to leverage counter
-narratives for social transformation and justice (Houston\, 2013\; Gonzale
z-Hidalgo et al.\, 2022\; de Vet\, 2013). This panel focuses on storytellin
g’s role in understanding and responding to climate and environmental injus
tices.
The panel asks: How can a focus on method and differen t types of storytelling about social relationships with the environment? Wh at types of oral\, visual\, written\, and performance-based methods are sch olars and communities using to tell stories about their relationships to en vironmental and social justice? How are understandings of climate risk form ed and negotiated through storytelling practices?
The partic ipants on this panel will draw from different experiences with oral methodo logies\, community organizing\, performance and theatre\, and place-based n arratives. They bring expertise from diverse environmental and social conte xts on topics such as Indigenous climate action\; water justice\; intersect ional environmental justice in the face of toxic exposure\; immersive artis tic practice\, theatre\, and housing and extreme heat. The goal of this pan el is two-fold: first\, to reflect on the potential and difficulties of usi ng storytelling as a method\, and second\, to inspire practical methodology sharing across different environmental and geographical contexts.
Leila Harris is a Profes sor at IRES In stitute on Resources Environment and Sustainability and Institute for Gender \, Race\, Sexuality and Social Justice. Faculty Associate at UBC Department of Ge ography\, Faculty Associate at Peter Wall Institute for Advanced Studies\, C o-Director of the Program on Water Governance\, The University of British Columbia.
Ra chel Stern is a geographer and researcher focused on the inter section of land rights\, transitional justice\, and political ecology. She is pursuing a Master of Arts in the Department of Geography at UBC\, co-sup ervised by Mohammed Rafi Arefin (Geography) and Leila Harris (IRES).
Manvi Bhalla (she/her) is an act ivist-scholar with over 15 years of community organizing experience. She is recognized as one of Canada’s ‘Top 25 Under 25’ environmentalists\, ‘Top 3 0 Under 30’ sustainability leaders and was honoured with the ‘Youth Eco-Her o of the Year’ award in 2022. She co-founded Shake Up The Establishment\, a national nonprofit dedicated to climate justice & political advocacy\, alo ngside missINFORMED\, a nonprofit focused on health promotion for women and gender-diverse people. Alongside her advocacy work\, Manvi is a published health researcher\, frequent public speaker and guest lecturer who works to centre anti-colonial approaches. During her MSc\, she investigated barrier s towards climate action within the public health sector. Presently\, she i s a PhD student at University of British Columbia with SSHRC Doctoral Fello wship funding.
Renata Rovelo is a MA student at the Institute for Resources\, Environment and Sustainabili ty\, under the supervision of Professor Leila Harris. As a member of the ED GES Research Collaborative\, her research explores the non-material dimensi ons of water for Indigenous peoples\, with a particular focus on the Squami sh People.
Kendra Fanconi is a director\, w riter and creator of original site‑specific theatre works. She co‑founded T he Only Animal\, a company uniquely dedicated to theatre that springs from a deep engagement with place and led the company as Artistic Director for 1 7 years. Kendra is known for her love of the impossible.
This is hybrid event hosted in Geog 229 and on zoom. < /em>
[buttons][button link_text="Zoom link" link_url="https://ubc.zoo m.us/j/67076163664?pwd=Acs6evwHRQBcHjNtCxMbsqdwG602WR.1"][/buttons]
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