Democracy and more-than-human politics: Participation and experiments in a time of ecological crisis

Image from a workshop. Photo: Andrea Pontoppidan

“Democratic Innovations in a Green Transition” (DIGT) invites to a workshop on democracy and more-than-human politics.

We live through multiple ecological crises with extinction of species, loss of entire ecosystems, depleted soils, drained wetlands, and monocultural farming and food-production.

The answer to this situation is typically framed as a need for gentle, caring, responsible, and responsive relationships with other forms of life inhabiting this planet.

In this workshop, we set out explore the remits and potential of participation and democratic innovations in a time of ecological crisis to foster viable future worlds for humans and more-than-humans.

The workshop includes contributions from Senior Research Fellow Hans Asenbaum, University of Canberra, and Professor and director of Sydney Environment Institute David Schlosberg, University of Sydney.

Ingrid Helene Brandt Jensen and Lars Tønder, both members of the “Democratic Innovations in a Green Transition” project, will also contribute with presentations on their ongoing research.

Tentative program: 

13.00 – 14.00
Lars Tønder “Vital politics” and Hans Asenbaum “Non-human democratic participation” 

14.00 – 14.15
Break 

14.15 – 15.15
David Schlosberg “Climate Turbulance” and Ingrid Helene Brandt “Participating in the living stories around us.” 

15.15 – 15.30
Break 

15.30 – 16.30
Writing workshop on rethinking and experimenting with participatory processes attuned to more-than-human politics 

16.30 – 17.00
Informal reception