Paper short abstract:

The research-exhibition project focusing on the cultural and natural system of the Canadian costal rain forest, its interdependencies, connections, discontinuities and contemporary efforts to preserve both. The presentation will concentrate on the resistance against the "colonisation of nature".

Paper long abstract:

The research-exhibition project which will be exhibited in the Humboldt Forum in Berlin in 2021, focuses on the natural system of the Canadian coastal rain forest and the cultural system of the First Nations: the complexities and diverse interdependencies of the two systems, their connections and discontinuities, and contemporary efforts to preserve both. The exhibition will raise following questions: What kind of relation do humans have with their environments and the surrounding ecosystems? What kind of knowledge does exist in this region to challenge climate change, actively?

The exhibition brings together different perspectives by (First Nation) artists, scientists and activists on the conception of nature. Focusing on the role of different engagements around the tree. The trees, which are strongly interconnected with their environment, are having a key role in the local ecosystem and the cultural production for (non-)human actors. Ultimately, and not least trough the resistance of the First Nations, the system of resource exploitation was called into question and the global significance of the ancient forest for climate and biodiversity widely recognised.

The research for the project includes anthropological, biological, geological, artistic and activistic approaches. As well as Indigenous Science and Traditional Ecological Knowledge as an opportunity to confront the Western concept of the Anthropocene. During my presentation I will start with an short overview on the general project and then focusing on my curatorial research and including filmic approach for the exhibition, which investigates, on the resistance against the "colonisation of nature" and the "conversation of nature".