Experience and Education in the Anthropocene: Conversations with the Non-Human

Abstract

In the Anthropocene we are inescapably embedded in the planetary, such that we cannot experience the scales of our impact nor keep analytical or critical distance to it. This new position requires a new pedagogy for geography education in the Anthropocene, able to relate to the fragmentary experiences on a wounded planet. In this short communication we argue for developing a compassionate distance through ecological dialogue with the non-human. We explore four story-based examples that dialogically cross the boundaries between us and this other world, and present concrete hands-on activities that may support teachers to explore relation, positionality and meaning with students in the Anthropocene classroom.