The Pluriverse of Eco-social Justice
11-16 July 2022
Organized by the Ecology and Society Workshop (ECOSOC) of the Center for Social Studies, University of Coimbra:
CES | Alta (plus other locations in Coimbra, PT)
Application until 1 MAY 2022
Overview
The Ecology and Society Workshop at the Centre for Social Studies, University of Coimbra (ECOSOC, CES), with the support of the COST Action “Decolonizing Development” (DECOLDEV), and the H2020-ITN projects “Just transition to the Circular Economy” (JUST2CE); and “Listening to Citizen Voices for a Greener Europe” (PHOENIX), invite applications for the “Pluriverse of Eco-social Justice” Summer School, to be held July 11 to 16 in Coimbra, Portugal.
The Summer School aims to provide co-learning and co-production of knowledge at the intersections of social and ecological issues through a diversity of political-ecological lenses. It builds on the collective experience developed by ECOSOC over the last 10 years with engaged and insurgent research-action on environmental justice and labor environmentalism, the commons, ecofeminism, eco-Marxism, degrowth, alternatives to development, postcolonial/decolonial critique, and emancipatory pedagogies.
The School is created through the ongoing collaborations within ECOSOC, and between its members and other projects and networks, including DECOLDEV, JUST2CE and PHOENIX, as well as social movement and community organizations in Portugal and transnationally. It thus brings together CES researchers with other local and international activists and scholars, to provide nurturing conceptual and practical tools for enacting alternative ecosocial horizons.
The backgrounds of ECOSOC and the associated projects provide the central thematic axis of transformations for more just and ecological worlds, in the context of the climate crisis and the so-called Anthropocene. The mainstream Anthropocene and Climate Change narratives identify a new (geologic) epoch in which the “human species” is the dominant geological force. These narratives have been criticized by scholars and activists who point out that the major changes in the biophysical forces of the planet are due to a particular political-economic system (Capitalism) coupled with its racialized, patriarchal, and colonial logics, in which a particular segment of humanity has caused this crisis. Thus it has been argued that it would be more precise to talk about Racial Capitalocene, Plantationocene, Anthro-Obscene, White Manthropocene, and to emphasize systemic change.
These critical conversations point out the power of narratives, fragmenting the universalist and heteropatriarchal Anthropocene; while suggesting alternative imaginaries such as Just Transitions, New Eco-Social Pacts, Diverse economies, Post-Development, Chultucene, Pluriverse, and Abolitionism.
Application Instructions: Send to ecosoc@ces.uc.pt by May 1, 2022, the following documents, in one single PDF:
- Curriculum Vitae (CV)
- 250 words Description of yourself, your relevant interests and experiences
- 750 words (max.) Motivation Letter, stating why you wish to participate in this Summer School, what you hope to gain and what you hope to contribute
Key Dates
- May 1: Application deadline
- May 15: Notification of acceptance
- June 15: Registration deadline
Contact: For any questions, please contact ecosoc@ces.uc.pt
More information, visit: https://ces.uc.pt/summerwinterschools/?lang=2&id=37071
POLLEN 