Caring Co-Existence

Our Western way of living – led by insatiable consumerism, the ideology of constant growth and expansion, rising inequality, the exploitation of natural resources and our pollution of planet earth – seems to be on the verge of bankruptcy. It is widely recognized that we have to think of and implement new ways of relating to the more-than-human world and of living together.

• But how and where to begin in a system that has a tight grip on every one of us and is constantly discouraging alternative ideas?
• How can we find possibilities for change and a more symbiotic becoming that are inherent in the uncertainty and darkness of the future instead of drowning in apocalyptic visions?
• How to imagine and foster multi-species cohabitation in the face of “capitalist ruins” (A. Tsing) and a “damaged planet” (D. Haraway)?

In transdisciplinary and collaborative projects, the students might examine starting points, first concepts, practices or even partial solutions to these pressing questions of our times. They are invited to investigate the present and future of a “Caring Co-Existence” – ecological modes of existence that are worth striving for. Their projects might provoke shifts in perception and affective attunement, investigate alternative forms of communication with the living and non-living world, address socio-ecological violence and injustice, encourage a more ethical entanglement of technology and ‘nature’ or experiment with thriving modes of co-habitation. They might draft bold visions or realise relatively small interventions and interactions, which nevertheless can lead to complex patterns and systems of change (A. M. Brown).