Capitalism is waging a war on the city by direct or indirect means: through military technology, aggressive urban development, or ‘natural’ disasters. What does it mean to challenge the destruction of urban ecologies? During the two-day workshop focused on this question, we encountered the limits of language when we talk about war and disaster: people… Continue reading War-Torn Urban Ecologies
Caring Urban Ecologies: Collective mapping of questions and resources
Our starting point was to ask questions about care in urban spaces, and to use these questions to inform each other about strategies, mindsets, and methodologies that we have either experienced or encountered in our work. Let’s start with our questions: Strategies and references: Greek Solidarity ClinicsSolidarity clinics provide free medical assistance, particularly in times… Continue reading Caring Urban Ecologies: Collective mapping of questions and resources
Undoing Urban Borders
Map Game Design Concept, Development, and Rules Design Concept: The concept of the game revolves around the theme of invisible/visible borders “within” the context of the city, where a variety of barriers, deeply hidden to those not affected by them, affect people’s lives on a daily basis. These boundaries can include class, race, accessibility, gender,… Continue reading Undoing Urban Borders
Hacking Liquid Tree City
Working on: Hacking Visibility Intro: Air pollution is known to be a problem that plagues many metropolitan areas around the world, but did you know that cities in Eastern Europe, especially in the Balkans, top the list of the most polluted places in the world? According to activists, air pollution in the urban centers of… Continue reading Hacking Liquid Tree City
Contesting ‘Green’ Coloniality
https://player.vimeo.com/video/1021667591 Ways of Saying Not at All Instead of No “ Smart, Green city? I would prefer not to.” Political platforms, position papers, and activist demands are often criticized for focusing on negation rather than affirmation. We often vote in ways that deny a candidate the chance to be president, rather than voting to affirm… Continue reading Contesting ‘Green’ Coloniality
(Un)Working Balkans
Working on the (un)working Balkans Intro: The Balkans are virtually absent in the dominant political discourse of Europe: out of sight, out of mind. At the same time, central economic and geopolitical interests of the EU are concentrated in this region, not least in the course of creating “green future markets.” Here, the logic of… Continue reading (Un)Working Balkans
Dismantling Eco-Fascism
Please turn on “Dark Mode” for the best reading experience! A counter-memory game We came together in this workshop to discuss the meaning and forms of eco-fascism, and what it might take to oppose and overcome it. We found that eco-fascism has many dimensions: From right-wing nationalist ecology, to the lifeboat ethic and overpopulation narratives… Continue reading Dismantling Eco-Fascism
Working-Class Environmentalism
The Toolkit for Sustainable Work When asked to imagine what sustainable work would look like, people envision different possibilities, as shown by this sample of participants in the Allied Grounds conference. The United Nations has come up with its own guidelines. Economic and human development, technological innovation, decent work and ecological production: here’s their astonishing… Continue reading Working-Class Environmentalism
Eco-Internationalism for All?
The Feminist Platformanifesto This Manifesto belongs to The Platform, a network of squatted oil rigs in the ocean. The Platform is a living body, inhabited by other bodies, which co-create their network of reliance. Weeds grow here, between solar panels and the hardware. The connections within the network are fragile and unstable.… Continue reading Eco-Internationalism for All?
Jobs vs. Nature
The future of productive and reproductive labor is directly intertwined with the ecological future of the planet and the immediate environment of workers. In the capitalist system, wage labor and ecology are played off against each other, for example, in the form of so-called environmental blackmail, which promises jobs in ecologically polluting industries. Or, more… Continue reading Jobs vs. Nature
Post-1989 Lessons
Exploring the Lessons Learned Intro: The conversation on eco-socialist alternatives to the capitalist economy could learn from the post-socialist countries of Eastern Europe. After all, by rebelling against authoritarianism and impoverishment, various social movements in many of these countries radically challenged the prevailing system when they hit the streets at the end of the 1980s… Continue reading Post-1989 Lessons
Disarming Resource Wars
“Resource wars,” “energy wars,” and “climate wars” on the peripheries of empires are all expressions of the fact that economic and ecological crises are becoming increasingly devastatingly intertwined, fueling each other. Needless to say, diplomacy must be preferred to a “hot” war at any time in the face of this. But this is not enough… Continue reading Disarming Resource Wars
Climate and Tech Politics
Technology is not a panacea, but a tool that must be chosen and used strategically. The Protocol for Planned Disconnect is an Open Source technology that can be used by groups or individuals. Its purpose is to provide a learning journey for everyone who wants to reflect on the deeper connection between technology and nature.… Continue reading Climate and Tech Politics