Schedule 9th International Degrowth Conference

In this session we’ll present excerpts from our film “Kunna”. The purpose is to host a creative discussion and explore the links between degrowth and feminism. Why are matriarchal cultures more connected to the reproductive capacities of nature?

In the first part of the session, we revisit how the female figure went from being the source of all life, to being seen as the source of sin. While the first agricultural societies were matriarchal and worshipped the female and fertile, the mosaic religions saw fertility as something to be controlled. We have inherited these views, particularly through the scientific revolution when dualist thought becomes mainstream for the first time. The purpose of science becomes, as Sir Francis Bacon writes, to “torture nature’s secrets out of her». The mechanistic worldview is born, in which nature could be made into a slave for human ends.

In the second part we introduce Kunna, a positively implied word meaning vulva in southern Sámi. It is also used to describe shapes in the landscape resembling the female reproductive parts. These places are regarded as holy. We will use this as a foundation to enter into an open dialogue, sharing of thoughts around the connections between valuing or worshipping the female and mother nature. We draw inspiration from Bohmian dialogue, which aims at building a shared understanding through listening and a sharing of thoughts.

Info

Day: 2023-08-31
Start time: 16:30
Duration: 01:30
Room: ZV-KC-Cres
Type: Non-academic Session
Theme: Feminist, decolonial, anti-racist and anti-ableist ecologies

Links:

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