Hello conscient listener
I realise that most people do not have time or the inclination to read my conscient podcast ‘show notes’. I get it, as I don’t usually have time to read the musings of other podcasters either and yet they are a useful part of my ‘learning journey’ as I get to ‘think out loud’ without reserve. It also serves as a journal for me to look back at how my thinking is evolving over time.
On April 8, 2021 I published e22 westerkamp, followed by e23 appadurai, e24 weaving and 25 shaw today, April 21. See https://www.conscient.ca/podcast/ .
Here are some of my learnings:
- Hildegard Westerkamp reinforced listening, both physically and metaphorically, is at the heart of our collective future.
- My conversation with Anjali Appadurai brought awakening to new perspectives about the roots of the ecological crisis, our search for a northern star, our disconnection with nature, what a just transition might look like
- jil p. weaving reminded me of the power of community-engaged art, the long road to reconciliation wiht indigenous peoples, arts and healing and the importance of the local.
- Michael Shaw taught me about compassion and how to approach ecological anxiety and grief
I’m continuing my series of conversations in the coming weeks at a fast pace. The energy is there so I’ll go on until it does not feel right. I already am having creative ideas for the first episode season 3 around the theme of ‘creative refuge’.
I’ll be publishing the first French language episode of this season soon.
Finally, you might also have noticed that I changed my podcast slogan to art + conscience + ecological crisis = #conscientpodcast. I tried to put in personalized sentence form such as ‘my learning journey about the ecological crisis through arts and culture’ but it did not work so I went for the four key words that are the touchstone of this project : art, conscience, ecological, crisis plus a new hashtag to help track the podcast.
All for now
Claude
The post, show notes april 21, 2021, appeared first on conscient podcast / balado conscient.
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From Claude Schryer
The conscient podcast / balado conscient is a series of conversations about art, conscience and the ecological crisis. This podcast is bilingual (in either English or French). The language of the guest determines the language of the podcast. Episode notes are translated but not individual interviews.
I started the conscient project in 2020 as a personal learning journey and knowledge sharing exercise. It has been rewarding, and sometimes surprising.
The term ‘conscient’ is defined as ‘being aware of one’s surroundings, thoughts and motivations’. My touchstone for the podcast is episode 1, e01 terrified, based on an essay I wrote in May 2019, where I share my anxiety about the climate crisis and my belief that arts and culture can play a critical role in raising public awareness about environmental issues. The conscient podcast / balado conscient follows up on my http://simplesoundscapes.ca (2016–2019) project: 175, 3-minute audio and video field recordings that explore mindful listening.
Season 1 (May to October 2020) explored how the arts contribute to environmental awareness and action. I produced 3 episodes in French and 15 in English. The episodes cover a wide range of content, including activism, impact measurement, gaming, arts funding, cross-sectoral collaborations, social justice, artistic practices, etc. Episodes 8 to 17 were recorded while I was at the Creative Climate Leadership USA course in Arizona in March 2020 (led by Julie’s Bicycle). Episode 18 is a compilation of highlights from these conversations.
Season 2 (March 2021 – ) explores the concept of reality and is about accepting reality, working through ecological grief and charting a path forward. The first episode of season 2 (e19 reality) mixes quotations from 28 authors with field recordings from simplesoundscapes and from my 1998 soundscape composition, Au dernier vivant les biens. One of my findings from this episode is that ‘I now see, and more importantly, I now feel in my bones, ‘the state of things as they actually exist’, without social filters or unsustainable stories blocking the way’. e19 reality touches upon 7 topics: our perception of reality, the possibility of human extinction, ecological anxiety and ecological grief, hope, arts, storytelling and the wisdom of indigenous cultures. The rest of season 2 features interviews with thought leaders about their responses and reactions to e19 reality.
my professional services
I’ve been retired from the Canada Council for the Arts since September 15, 2020 where I served as a senior strategic advisor in arts granting (2016-2020) and manager of the Inter-Arts Office (1999-2015). My focus in (quasi) retirement is environmental issues within my area of expertise in arts and culture, in particular in acoustic ecology. I’m open to become involved in projects that align with my values and that move forward environmental concerns. Feel free to email me for a conversation : claude@conscient.ca or on my cell (613) 255 6468.
acknowledgement of eco-responsibility
I acknowledge that the production of the conscient podcast / balado conscient produces carbon. I try to minimize this carbon footprint by being as efficient as possible, including using GreenGeeks as my web server and acquiring carbon offsets for my equipment and travel activities from BullFrog Power and Less.
a word about privilege and bias
While recording episode 19 ‘reality’, I heard elements of ‘privilege’ in my voice that I had not noticed before. It sounded a bit like ‘ecological mansplaining’. I realize that, in spite of good intentions, I need to work my way through issues of privilege (of all kinds) and unconscious bias the way I did through ecological anxiety and grief during the fall of 2020. My re-education is ongoing.
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