Contribution short abstract:

This paper explores visions of 'networked arcs' and 'good growth' among urban gardenening practitioners in Berlin. These visions help conceptualizing modalities of more-than-human commoning and how they come to matter.

Contribution long abstract:

Practitioners, activists or scholars attempting to secure less bad futures now frequently pursue regenerative approaches. They seek ways “to work toward world making that enhances the lives of others” (Deborah Bird Rose). This paper probes the role commons and commoning play within such figurations. Drawing on fieldwork among activists pursuing ‘regeneration’ in Berlin urban gardening projects, I argue that these efforts are driven by visions of what I call ‘networked arcs’ and of ‘good growth’.

As ‘networked arcs,’ urban gardening projects build on histories of zoos and botanical gardens, yet envision to enable biotic life to radiate out from gardens on their own terms (instead of inscribing and showcasing it within the parameters of, say, zoos). Pursuing ‘good growth,’ on the other hand, serves as a vital critique of a growth-obsessed present. Taken together, both these visions help conceptualizing modalities of more-than-human commoning and how they come to matter.