Paper Short Abstract:

I highlight the interconnections between an academic and a non academic framework to new ecologies understanding. Communication and production of anthropological knowledge with students, teachers, parents, politicians, and friends to address the floods in the extended area of Thessaly are explored.

Paper Abstract:

This paper focuses on the ways anthropological knowledge can help people to understand and anticipate difficult situations by bringing together the social and historical context, lived experiences, needs and expectations of the people. I highlight the interconnections in between an academic and a non academic framework. More specifically, I discuss a prerequisite student assignment during my course in University of Thessally (2021) and the sharing of anthropological knowledge / orientation to facilitate public engagement and involving non-anthropologists in a local research to a local disaster. My purpose is to highlight how different collectivities can get involved and how anthropological knowledge is produced through this dynamic process framing new ecologies of understanding. Different agents, a university department, two secondary schools, a municipality, two teachers' associations, a parents' association, a women's cooperative, local parliament members, a transnational overseas conference, a visiting researcher, a cultural centre and many local people from several villages in Pelion mountain. Students, teachers, parents, politicians, and friends collaborated and worked to understand each other to address disasters such as the floods in Thessaly.