Doing multispecies research in educational contexts

Stories produce bodies that produce stories in an endless intra-active metabolic continuum. Stories do not only represent material worlds but also shape and make and remake worlds. Starting from these premises, and drawing from “composting storytelling,” this workshop opens up how feminist storytelling can be used as a critical method to approach multispecies worlds. We will pay attention to the polyphony of voices and temporalities and the potentials of intra-active transformations emergent within multispecies research settings. We will also ponder what kind of knowledge and what kinds of research positions are available for the human protagonist in more than human methodologies.

The event will start with a hybrid lecture (30 minutes) introducing theories and methodologies related to multispecies relational thinking, drawing on examples from durational multispecies ethnographic work in educational contexts. This will be followed by a multispecies storytelling workshop (in-person attendees only), with hands-on activities engaging participants and their current work. The session will conclude with a wrap-up discussion.

Please note: the workshop component is for in-person attendees only, and will not be available online.

Suggested pre-reading:

Hohti, R., & Tammi, T. (2024). Composting storytelling: An approach for critical (multispecies) ethnography. Qualitative Inquiry, 30(7), 595-606.

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