40. LIVE: Is a river alive? On enlivenment, animism and nature's rights // ROBERT MACFARLANE & PELLA THIEL

What does it mean to say that a river is alive? And if a river is alive, could it have legal rights that protect it from abuse and exploitation? What kinds of practices could affirm our interconnectedness with the rest of the living world? Do our Western ideals of enlightenment need to be complemented by ideas of enlivenment?In this live podcast, writer Robert Macfarlane presents his book “Is a River Alive?” and is joined by ecologist Pella Thiel and podcast host Ingrid M. Rieser. This special episode is a collaboration between the Forest of Thought, the KTH Environmental Humanities Laboratory and the On the Rights of Nature podcast.Robert Macfarlane is internationally renowned for his writing on nature, people and place. His books include Underland, Landmarks, The Old Ways, The Wild Places and Mountains of the Mind . His work has been translated into more than thirty languages, won prizes around the world, and been widely adapted for film, music, theatre, radio and dance. He has also written operas, plays and films and collaborated closely with artists including Olafur Eliasson and Stanley Donwood. He is a Professor of Literature and the Environmental Humanities at the Faculty of English in Cambridge and is a Fellow of Emmanuel College, Cambridge.Pella Thiel is a maverick ecologist, farmer, author and educator. She has co-founded Swedish hubs of international networks, including the Transition Sweden, End Ecocide Sweden and Save the Rainforest Sweden. Her current mission is to support the establishment of an Embassy of the Baltic Sea. She and Henrik Hallgren have written the book “Naturlagen: Om naturens rättigheter och människans möjligheter” (2022, Volante).A big thank you to Robert Macfarlane’s Swedish publisher Ocean Books for making this event possible.LINKS:Video version of this talkRobert Macfarlane’s booksPella Thiel’s websiteOn the Rights of Nature Podcast with Pella ThielKTH Environmental Humanities LaboratoryOcean Books currently releasing “Is a River Alive?” in SwedishSHARE AND SUBSCRIBE🎙️ The FoT Substack is now live! Become a free or paid subscriber and receive newsletters direct to your inbox.🎧 All episodes and more at ⁠forestofthought.substack.com⁠.💜 Support us on ⁠Patreon⁠ or Substack.⁠🎵 Our theme music is by Christian Holtsteen. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit forestofthought.substack.com/subscribe