Paper short abstract:

This paper reflects critically on the multispecies ethnography developed as part of my doctorate research on/with rivers in European and Latin American contexts, exploring some of the ethical-political implications of engaging with rivers not only as research subjects but also as research partners.

Paper long abstract:

This paper presents a critical reflection on the process of my doctorate research with rivers. Drawing on theoretical contributions from different disciplines, including political ecology, multispecies justice and ethnography, ecofeminist, posthumanist and Indigenous studies, I reflect on the possibility of understanding and engaging with rivers not only as research subjects but also as research partners. Critically exploring concepts of subjecthood, agency, and voice beyond the human, I analyse the ways in which three different rivers (the Mondego in Portugal, the Piatúa in Ecuador, and the Maas in the Netherlands) have inspired me to pursue a doctorate program studying rivers as living subjects, and social movements mobilising to protect them; have helped frame my research questions and my research methods; and have led me to navigate complex ethical questions regarding my positionality and the political implications of conducting more-than-human research. The paper is guided by one central question: “What might it mean to understand and engage with rivers not only as research subjects but also as research partners, meaning, to view and relate to rivers not only as subjects to be known but also as partners in the process of knowing?”. I argue that answering this question is not only (a valuable) philosophical exercise but that it has important ethical-political implications as well, which can guide us in the transformation of prevailing modes of relationship with rivers and the multispecies communities that they are embedded in.