Making matter great again? Ecofeminism, new materialism and the everyday

Thats how the light gets
Ring the bells that still can ring
Forget your perfect offering
There is a crack, a crack in everything
That’s how the light gets in

(Leonard Cohen: Anthem)

We invite you to join us for a critical and generative conversation between Dr Sherilyn MacGregor and Professor David Schlosberg.

In her recent article, ‘Making matter great again? Ecofeminism, new materialism and the everyday turn in environmental politics’ Sherilyn highlights the absence of ecofeminism in contemporary green political thought, shining light through the cracks in research that marries new materialism and everyday environmentalism. David’s work in ‘sustainable materialism’ illustrates motivations and theory-making in movements dedicated to changing material systems and flows – creating cracks in, and alternatives to, unsustainable food, energy, and fashion systems. Both scholars will introduce their arguments and reflections before discussing how each has influenced the other’s work over the past 15 years.

Building on this critical engagement, the conversation also aims to be generative: What possibilities are illuminated once the light has been shone through the cracks? In other words: How can this conversation inspire new collaborative research, theorising and writing that is inclusive, applied, and generative for ecofeminist and materialist research agendas in particular, as well as environmental justice and politics in general?

The conversation will be pre-recorded and streamed during the event, to be followed by a live Q&A session and discussion. Using Padlet and the chat function in Zoom we will provide virtual spaces to collect and discuss ideas for future collaborations.

The live event will be chaired by Dr Christine Winter, Post-Doctoral Fellow at the Sydney Environment Institute at the University of Sydney, and Magdalena Rodekirchen, PhD Candidate at the University of Manchester.

This event is hosted by the Sustainable Consumption Institute at the University of Manchester, The Sydney Environment Institute at the University of Sydney and Environmental Politics.

This event was presented online in partnership with the Sustainable Consumption Institute and Environmental Politics on Friday 21 May 2021.

Header image: Wonderlane via Unsplash.