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Accepted Paper:

Beyond extinction: Survivor trees and the problem of loss  
Trinidad Rico (Rutgers University)

Paper short abstract:

‘Survivor trees’ have acquired and are managed under a heritage status in the context of loss. Their survival observes distinct patterns of integrity and perpetuity, different from those institutionalized through dominant heritage discourses, suggesting more sustainable forms of resilience.

Paper long abstract:

In the classic cultural heritage picture, nature has been more often constructed as providing the scenography than the protagonist in discussions of heritage at risk. This is true, in particular, in the context of natural disasters when nature is often put at odds with culture. As a result of this artificial split, the problem of loss and destruction in heritage is constructed separately from the realm of the often more resilient and re-emerging natural context that provides continuity and a sense of place regardless of other material losses. This paper aims to problematize this relationship through the examination of 'survivor trees': trees that have acquired and are managed under a heritage status in the context of loss, but whose survival observes distinct patterns of integrity and perpetuity, different from those institutionalized through dominant heritage discourses. Examples of survivor tress from historical events and places across the globe transcend moments of destruction, rupturing the narratives and fabric of loss, and suggesting an interspecies relationship that better defines sustainable forms of resilience.

Panel P08
"The Oldest Human Heritage": Biodiversity and Cultural Heritage
  Session 1