Overview

This event brings the Layers events to a close. Beginning with a Message from President Michael D Higgins, it features presentations by Matthias G.C. Schouten 'Experiencing Landscape' and by Sinead Mercier on 'Just Transition'. In 'Threads and Connections' , Patrick Breshihan will draw the threads of the discussion together by way of concluding this event, and the Layers series. Layers 3 will conclude with the launch of 'Earth Writings' - a collaboration between artists and geographers edited by Karen Till, and which echoes the concerns and issues explored in the Layers series.

Message from President Michael D. Higgins to Creative Rathangan Meitheal.

Experiencing Landscape - Matthijs G.C. Schouten

In his presentation, Matthijs draws upon ecology and nature philosophy to distinguish between Wild landscapes (wilderness) Traditional rural landscapes ( “Arcadia”) and Modern landscapes; linking these landscape types to the sense of orientation, re-orientation and disorientation.Matthias G.C. Schouten has worked as lecturer at the University of Nijmegen and as ecological project leader for the Wildlife Service (Dublin). He was the leader of the international campaign for the conservation of Irish bogs. He is senior ecological officer at the National Forest Service of the Netherlands; a visiting professor of nature and landscape conservation at University College Cork and University College Galway, and he holds the chair of restoration ecology at Wageningen University (the Netherlands).

He has published widely in the fields of ecology and nature philosophy. His latest book Spiegel van de natuur; het natuurbeeld in cultuurhistorisch perspectief (Nature’s mirror; the image of nature in a cultural-historical perspective) has formed the basis for the exhibition World Nature Art in the Nieuwe Kerk in Amsterdam.

He was awarded the International Award for Conservation Merit by the World wide Fund for Nature In 1990, and in 1992 the National University of Ireland granted him a honorary doctorate.

Building a Just Transition to a Zero-Carbon Economy – Sinead Mercier

What is a 'Just Transition' and where are we heading to? This talk will give an overview of the origins of the principle of just transition in climate action and outline examples of best practice in Germany, Australia and Scotland.

Sinéad Mercier - is a consultant on climate change law and policy with a special focus on Just Transition and Human Rights approaches. She has previously worked for the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission, the National Economic and Social Council, the Green Party of Ireland and Philip Lee law firm. Her new book is 'Men Who Eat Ringforts' written with Michael Holly and Eddie Lenihan and published with Askeaton Public Arts.

Threads and Connections – Patrick Bresnihan

In this final session of Layers, Patrick Bresnihan will draw some of the threads together by way of bringing the series to a close.

Patrick Bresnihan is a lecturer in the Department of Geography at Maynooth University. He works across the interdisciplinary fields of urban political ecology, science and technology studies, and environmental humanities. He has published widely in international journals and various media outlets. His current research focuses on different but related concerns around water, energy and infrastructure in Ireland, including just transition, bogs and ecological restoration, and environmental justice and climate politics in rural Ireland.

The Launch of Earth Writings - Karen Till.

Earth Writings: Bogs, Forests, Fields, Gardens, edited by Karen E. Till, is a short, richly illustrated arts book of essays, artwork, and exhibition vignettes that invites readers to explore how we might repair collapsing environments through artists' creative practice through ‘unexpected collaborations and combinations in hot compost piles’ (Haraway, 2016) in bogs, forests, fields and gardens. The book features the embedded work of four artists working in southwest Ireland – MONICA DE BATH, CATHY FITZGERALD, PAULINE O’CONNELL and SEOIDÍN O’SULLIVAN – who, to borrow Donna Haraway’s (2016) words, ‘stay with the trouble’ and make ‘kin in lines of inventive connections’ over many years with Irish communities, environments and species. Reflections about their social-ecologically engaged work include essays with the artists and scholars PATRICK BRESNIHAN, NESSA CRONIN, GERRY KEARNS and KAREN E. TILL, and an introduction by LUCINA RUSSELL (Kildare County Council Arts Service). For more details see: Earthwritings.ie

After a short introduction to the project by Karen Till, curator and editor of Earth Writings, some of the contributing artists and scholars will be available to answer questions. A limited number of hard-copy books are available for 8€ through the Dublin Art Book Fair.

https://shop.templebargallery.com/collections/artist-books.