Art and Climate Change panel talk: Art & Science

Ecologist Gail S. Fraser and artist Cole Swanson will be leading the discussion for our third Art and Climate Change public panel. Through an examination of Toronto's double-crested cormorant colony against wider scientific, social, political, and cultural narratives, Fraser and Swanson will discuss how bringing art and science together can help navigate sites of human-animal conflict. An overview of their collaboration will demonstrate how working across disciplines encourages growth within their respective fields while stoking meaningful relationships along the way.

Cole Swanson is an artist and educator based in Toronto/Tkaronto. Through a materially focused art practice, he explores the complex relationships that create emergent ecologies. In his research and artistic practice, Swanson explores multiple ways of knowing; he works alongside craftspeople, conservationists, scientists, community partners, and non-humans to shape his creative process. Swanson is a professor in the Faculty of Media, Creative Art, and Design at Humber Polytechnic and is undertaking PhD research in Environmental Studies at York University. A 2023 Vanier scholar, his multispecies research project examines Toronto’s massive and maligned double-crested cormorant colony.

Gail Fraser is a professor in the Faculty of Environmental and Urban Change at York University, where she teaches ecology and conservation science. Fraser has worked on waterbirds for over three decades and currently has a monitoring program on double-crested cormorants in Toronto. Driven by an interest in seabird conservation, she also works on policy-oriented research on the environmental management of offshore oil and gas extraction.

The Art and Climate Program is made possible through the generous support of incite Foundation for the Arts. 

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