On Monday 13 January, the Main Library of the University of Gdansk hosted a meeting entitled ‘The Growth, Decay, and Metamorphoses of Plant-Thinking’ with Professor Michael Marder, an eminent philosopher from the University of the Basque Country. The event was organised as part of the MORE THAN HUMAN / MORE-THAN-HUMAN series.
The starting point for the conversation was Michael Marder’s publication entitled ‘Thinking Plants. Philosophy of Vegetation’, published in Polish by the słowo/obraz terytoria publishing house in Gdańsk. Prof. Marder, who is well-known for his research on plant thinking and his numerous publications on the subject, shared with the audience his thoughts on the categories of growth, decomposition, vegetation from the perspective of his current research, projects and more recent books, which have already been written after the publication of ‘Thinking Plants’ in English.
“It is very gratifying that the Polish reader gains access to such a valuable and widely commented book on environmental humanities, and during the meeting with the author we had the opportunity to hear what he is working on today,” says Irena Chawrilska, PhD, coordinator of the More-than-Human Studies Lab CZRUG programme, co-organiser of the meeting. “The philosophy of vegetation teaches us the importance of re-writing the categories of growth and decay in relation to more-than-human solidarities in our communities. Thinking plants shows us how we can rethink our place in the world by taking a closer look at how many networks of connections we function in, how we are connected to the world around us, not much different from plants in this sense.”
The event began with words of welcome by Irena Chawrilska, PhD. This was followed by speeches by Dr Katarzyna Warska and Alicja Smaruj from the słowo/obraz terytoria publishing house. The translator of the book, Lukasz Kraj, also took part in the meeting.
The key point on the agenda was a conversation with Michael Marder, moderated by Lukasz Krajnik from the Centre for Foreign Languages UG. The panel discussion allowed attendees to explore the issues Michael Marder raises in his book ‘Thinking Plants. A Philosophy of Vegetation’ and their practical relevance to contemporary ecological challenges.
The meeting with Michael Marder is a continuation and extension of the MORE THAN HUMAN / MORE-THAN-HUMAN series, which focuses on literature, philosophy, art and social movements as languages for responding to climate change, for dynamically remodelling the hierarchy between human / non-human / more-than-human, relationships with nature, resource thinking, models of social functioning and responsibility for sustainability. The series will include debates and artistic activities from the fields of environmental activism, ecocriticism, animal and plant studies, posthumanism or ecological economics. So far, it has only taken place at the headquarters of the Gdańsk City of Literature, and thanks to the cooperation of GML and the słowo/obraz terytoria publishing house with the Centre for Sustainable Development of the UG and the Institute of Polish Philology, it is gaining its academic version.