Chanelle Dupuis on Waterways and Environmental Change: ‘Slow Smelling’ Along the Nanay River

In this episode, Chanelle Dupuis talks with Dan Bender of the Gastronomica Editorial Collective about contaminated waterways and sensory perceptions of environmental change. Focusing on the changing smell of water and the role of the nose in sensing environmental degradation in the Peruvian Amazon, Chanelle sheds light on how bilious odors and processes of “slow smelling” affect riverine residents and Indigenous communities in and around the Nanay River. Drawing from her article in Gastronomica’s newest issue (22.4), Chanelle connects the odors of pollution to ways of living that have come under threat, elaborating on the implications for community identity, local livelihoods, health and the sourcing of local foods, and spiritual connections to the waterways.