[CM-A Thinks Allowed] Ontologies and narratives: "Relationality: An Emergent Politics of Life Beyond the Human (Beyond the Modern)" by Arturo Escobar, Michal Osterweil, Kriti Sharma
Discussion between Catalina John-Melendez, Bleona Velic, and Bina Gao, moderated by Laura Garofalo.
Relationality (2024) challenges the dominant assumption of dualism - an entrenched belief in separateness - to address crises spanning climate, energy, food, inequality, and meaning. The authors argue for a paradigm shift toward relationality: an ethic grounded in recognizing the fundamental interdependence of all beings and systems. The book intertwines two key threads: first, highlighting the destructive patterns of non-relational living; second, exploring how relationality manifests in transformative practices across science, politics, ecology, and design. Ultimately, it calls for a co-creative reweaving of our world through “relational weaves” that heal ecosystems, societies, and bodies by restoring connections with human and nonhuman others.