ESem (1 Nov.--10 Dec. 2021), "Lessons for Ecomusicology from the Upper Snake River Tribes Foundation"

[Aaron Allen]

Dear Ecomusicology List Members,

On behalf of the Ecomusicology Review, I am pleased to announce a slow-conferencing addition to the upcoming conference season with an exciting ESeminar that will unfold between 1 November and 10 December 2021. The paper is entitled "Lessons for Ecomusicology from the Upper Snake River Tribes Foundation" and is by Kimberly Jenkins Marshall (University of Oklahoma) and Emma DeAngeli (Duke University). The abstract follows:

Ecomusicologists can be called upon to help contextualize ecological science, such as in the case of an after-school program being designed by the Upper Snake River Tribes Foundation (USRT) to teach Native Youth in Idaho, Eastern Oregon, and Nevada about climate vulnerability. In this essay, we examine projects such as the USRT curriculum, applying the writing of prominent Indigenous Ecological Philosopher, Dr. Kyle Powys Whyte (Potawatomi). We argue that even though Whyte’s writings don’t provide suggestions directly relevant to improving the cultural relevance of the USRT eco-science curriculum, they do push us to reject the underlying assumptions that a long history of colonial dispossession and climate science can be separated. And because ecomusicology is implicated in “cultural relevance” programming, we argue that his writing also contains critiques of current ecomusicological agendas. We urge that these critiques be widely heeded within the field and in our collaborations with ecological non-profits and activist organizations.

The ESem will begin with the paper posted to the Ecomusicology Google Group on 1 November 2021; we will provide a few "silent" weeks with no community replies so everyone has time to contemplate the circa 7000-word essay. A commissioned response will be posted within two weeks (15 November), and the authors will respond in turn after another week (22 November). Thereafter, we will have approximately three weeks for open discussion (22 November - 10 December).  The entirety -- paper, responses, and ensuing discussion -- will be archived on the ER website. (I will be the moderator.)

The decline in conferencing due to the pandemic has resulted in a proliferation of online conferencing; the ESem is a different approach that unfolds more leisurely, allowing for consideration of the issues and careful crafting of responses. The Marshall and DeAngeli paper is a timely piece that has broad relevance, and we hope that it and the ensuing discussion will be an engaging experience.

Best, 

Aaron Allen (Editor, Ecomusicology Review)