Discover Nous Sommes Vivants "fresque des imaginaires (here), our take on Disney's Strange World Anime (here), and our regenerative business model canvas (here)
In his book "Politics of Nature", the French philosopher Bruno Latour proposes to put an end to the old dichotomy between nature and society and build in its place a community incorporating humans and non humans. He went even further qhen writing about the need for a Parliament of Things, consisting of not just humans but nonhuman organisms, systems and objects as well. Because how can humanity make decisions in the interest of not just other humans, but the planet and all life upon it, if those elements don’t have any representation in our decision-making?
For the anthropologist Philippe Descola, the Covid-19 pandemic made it urgent to re-examine Western societies relations with nature and develop new social models. We know that zoonoses – diseases that can be transmitted from animals to humans – are nothing new, and in fact an age-old phenomenon. But due to the drastic changes in our habitat, wild species that formerly stayed well away from humans now live much closer to dense concentrations of human populations and domestic animals. It is easier for virus reservoirs to become a source of contamination for humans.
They both advocate for pluralism when most people only see two sides to reality. Metaphysical dualism is in fact the term applied to the metaphysical theory which claims that there are two ultimate and irreducible kinds of reality and the most usual classification is either physical or nonphysical. According to this so-called dualistic Cartesian ontology, the human essence resides in the thought (res cogitans) allowing us to apprehend mathematically all existing things (res extensa) in the world, including the world itself. The Cartesian method is analytic, and consists in decomposing the components of everything and put them in an order of knowledge – from the simplest to the most complex. Descartes based all his conception of nature upon the division between res cogitans and res extensa , i.e., between the thinking thing and the material thing – with the res cogitans being ontologically superior to the res extensa. Since the rise of modern science in the 17th century the world is separated into two sides, a natural one and a social one (at least in our representations of nature in western countries).
For Claus Dierksmeier, from the University of Tubingen, we are still far from reaching equality between Humans and non humans Animals. As proof, the public discussion about the adequate treatment of animals is very polarized. On one extreme, some defend the industrial use of animals for human food consumption, based on an alleged radical inequality between humans and animals, and supposing that animals can be held in private possession and treated in whichever way their owners see fit. On the other extreme, people contend that to admit of any ethical prerogatives of humans over animals is sheer speciesism, an illegitimate rationalization of vested human interests. Adherents of the former position typically follow an anthropocentric worldview, in which only human valuations bestow moral or legal status onto animals. The latter typically embrace a biocentric position, according to which all life-forms are of equal value. (source)
Our perception of nature needs to shift if we want to respond to the needs of contemporary ecologies and survive as a species. Nicole Huybens who has analyzed the major currents of environmental ethics has identified not 3 but 4 "visions of the human-nature relationship" (source) :
- humans as individuals exploiting nature for anthropocentrists
- life and all species threatened and therefore protected by humans for biocentrists
- the biotic community for ecocentrists of which humans are part
- and all living beings as individuals interacting in a given place for multicentrists
Without the non humans, humans would not last a minute. Humans need other species to produce food. In the future, the human diet may become a little less dependent on consuming plants and animals. Production of synthetic food using genetically modified bacteria or cultured cell lines is growing in importance. Still, living organisms will remain a core component of these foods. It takes countless different organisms – big, small and microscopic – to create healthy soil and breathable air. To break down and recycle waste. To purify water and prevent erosion. To break down toxic chemicals into harmless forms, and convert other chemicals into sources of nourishment that other organisms need to grow and thrive (source).
Human health depends on the health of the planet: the good state of natural systems – air, water, biodiversity, climate – is essential for our survival (one health). The ecological crisis is a crisis of links to the living that requires (re)questioning the “Great Divide” (the “Nature-Culture” separation) and reconnecting ourselves with other living beings. How do we situate ourselves in the world, in a context of which we are a part, but at the center of which we are not necessarily located, and where we discover the multiplicity of networks of interdependence that link humans and non-humans?
The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds and the University of Essex conducted a study to measure the connectivity of children to nature in the twenty-first century. Using a carefully constructed questionnaire, they drew a sobering conclusion: currently only 21% of eight to twelve-year-olds in England have a level of connection to nature that was considered to be a realistic and achievable target for all children (RSPB 2013). At the same time, the mental and physical well-being of UK children is dropping: one in ten children aged between five and sixteen has a mental health problem. Changing Perceptions of Nature Ian Convery
Some designers and theorists are trying to ‘un-center’ humans from the design process and explore ways it could systematically involve these kinds of non-human actors. So, rather than just referring to sustainability targets, ‘the climate’ becomes an active participant with its own needs. Of course, you can’t interview ‘the climate’ so there are different kinds of exercises to develop understand its needs and develop empathy including speculative realism, ontography and good old critical use (Design Lobster #4).
Human-centred design is very good at delivering improvements to a product or service by paying close attention to the human needs being served and their circumstances. This close attention however has a blind spot. Other-than-humans – animals, ecologies, air. By prioritising human needs, human-centred design can inadvertently create unsustainable systems that satisfy short-term consumer wants at great cost to the non-human other. How might we design for non-humans?
For the institute for Postnatural Studies, we need to invest into Non-Human Design. How can we design for a non-human entity? What kind of necessities do we respond to when designing for or with a forest, a river, or a lake? Let's break new ground to explore desirable futures of coexistence. Some of the fondamental questions designers asked at the Bois Buchet Workshop.
Sign of the changing times Have we met? an exhibition in the Netherlands promotes new ways of understanding the Earth as a shared space for plants, microbes, humans, and other animals. The view that earth exists solely for human exploitation is radically rethought in order to confront the environmental crises the planet is facing today. Have we met? presents a range of possible collaborative tools developed by practitioners across art and design, agriculture, and data- and marine sciences. An urban block in Rotterdam, a regenerative farm in the country’s rural east, and an abandoned North Sea oil rig. These three ecologically diverse sites in the Netherlands help explore the possibilities of interspecies relationships over time.
It is widely recognized that shifting perceptions of nature and the attributing of value to specific natural landscapes or animals such are processes that are shaped and influenced by various forms of cultural expression. In museums, the changing human relations with nature through centuries are displayed and interpreted in interactive, narrative and accessible formats. Overtime wildlife film-making has changed our perceptions of nature, so does the Netflix documentaries such as "kiss the ground" or Avatar and Disney's Strange life (read my review of Strange World. "The imagination at the service of ecological lifestyles").
For John Thompson, the social imaginary is "the creative and symbolic dimension of the social world, the dimension through which human beings create their ways of living together and their ways of representing their collective life". Opening up imaginaries to other ways of making society, amongst humans and with non humans, this is what the "Fresque des Imaginaires" (Imaginaries collage) from Nous Sommes Vivants aims to achieve. The "Fresque des Imaginaires" displays the 4 "visions of the human-nature relationship" from Nicole Huybens above and participants are invited to craft new imaginaries for sustainability, new ways of eating, moving, dressing, living, through design fiction. Positive, responsible and desirable ecological imaginaries. Shaped in small groups inspired by other ways of living in this world. What we wear, eat, do has always revealed our values and aspirations, particularly in times of turbulence and upheaval. It’s a time for a major change. La fresque des imaginaires pour repenser la relation de l’humain à la nature qui structure nos représentations du réél
At the beginning of the "fresque des imaginaires" workshop the 4 "visions of the human-nature relationship" inspire participants new ways of making society, amongst humans and with non humans. Based on these imaginaries, participants are invited to reflect on what is really important to them, to open up to new ways to connect with humans and non-humans. Finally, the participants imagine how they would like to live on earth in 2030 making collages of their dream homes (if this topic is chosen, the fresque des imaginaires is thematic and participants choose the topic) "John Dewey defines imagination as the possibility of looking at things as if they could be other." This is the whole meaning of the bonding exercise, inviting the participants to break free of their constraints, to imagine how their life could turn out to be in the future, to dream or reconnect to their little child dream. Sharing individual visions with the group is a true realization that there are many different ways of living on earth, so many new ways to live on earth to explore.
What if we changed this non-inclusive decision-making ? What if we invited non humans at our table to celebrate new years all together ?
4 Glimpses into the Future: 4 different ways to celebrate new years eve 2023 with non humans.
Discover their project https://www.dezeen.com/2015/02/10/paul-gong-human-hyena-synthetic-biology-rotten-food/
Royal College of Art student Paul Gong has imagined how synthetic biology could be used to modify the human body so it can consume and digest rotten food. The idea involves the creation of new bacteria that could live in the human digestive system. This combined human-hyena bacteria would allow the body to eat rotten food without being sick. (source)
"The availability of traditional foods is changing rapidly," said Stenslie. "Biodiversity loss, freshwater scarcity, soil degradation and a wetter and stormier climate are increasingly threatening global food security. Our current menu is going extinct."
Indeed the option to eat only organic, regeneratively farmed meat, vegetables, fruits and nuts might is already a luxury for some, and in the future it could be an impossibility for most people. (source)
An idea to add to Zane Cerpina and Stahl Stenslie's cook book. They have collected experimental food designs. Published by MIT Press, Cerpina and Stenslie's anthology confronts the idea that the Anthropocene era — the time during which humans have had a substantial impact on the Earth's environment — entails a radical reassessment of what we eat, and how. The Anthropocene Cookbook's chapters traverse topics such as alternative approaches to food security, new potentially edible ingredients and the culinary possibilities offered by the human body. The Anthropocene Cookbook's https://anthropocenecookbook.com
A Biocentric Glimpse into the Future: life and all species threatened and therefore needing humans protection
Video of The De-extinction Deli https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=159394481633563
The Center for Genomic Gastronomy is an artist-driven think tank that examines the biotechnologies for and biodiversity of human food systems. Working with a worldwide network of scientists, the Center devised the “De-Extinction Deli” project to transport questions about reviving, rearing and possibly eating extinct species into the museum context.
The De-extinction Deli is a fantastical market stand designed to highlight the emerging technologies, risks, and outcomes of the growing movement to bring back, and possibly eat, extinct species. Visitors can learn about the de-extinction debate from the Deli’s representatives and through the Deli’s interactive environment. The market stand includes butcher paper infographic take-aways, representations of extinct animal habitats, a grow-your-own cell kit, and an ongoing public poll in which visitors answer a series of questions regarding de-extinction. Visitors leave with badges indicating their choices, and their votes are tallied on a blackboard for public viewing. (source)
First counts have shown that over 60% of the participants are for the revival of extinct animals. Only about 16% would like to eat the animals, too.
De-extinction’ is the nascent discipline that aims to one day literally revive now-extinct species from the dead. Although we have yet to see any successful attempts to truly resurrect an extinct species, several technologies are now in place that might one day provide a plausible solution. Thus, the area is receiving increased attention from both scientists and the general public.
The price of a mammoth burger depends on the types of technology that’s used to resuscitate or resurrect the species. This is very different to an in-vitro meat style scenario where we craft a patty or proteins and lipids to recreate a meat-like experience. The intention for the mammoth would be to bring back the species as a whole and have herds of animals roaming around. Read more
An Ecocentric Glimpse into the Future: a biotic community humans are part of
Outdoor table with integrated herb garden https://sbiaggi.com/ View of Future Feast showing (left) a channel of fossils symbolizing extinction, next to a row of plants that attract birds, butterflies, and bees; (right) a channel of black lava pits that symbolize the depletion of natural resources, fronted by a row of plants that free the earth of toxins