Reimagining Urban Nature

Taking my cue from Astrida Neimanis, I would like to acknowledge that this book is a co-constructed text that rests in part on my relationships with others – through engagement with the ideas of other academics – both in print and in person – and through engagement with places, other animals, and ecologies. My thinking was undoubtedly also influenced by the phenomenon of COVID-19 spreading across the world. In addition, the many relations and flows in my apartment contributed to my engagement with plants and waters in the texts I read – 2020 proved to be a year of leaking taps and water cylinders, and heavy rains at the start of the year that allowed plants with shallow root systems to sprout all along my balcony between the tiles in the least apparently habitable places. My cat Percy was a constant companion through lockdowns, online teaching, and writing this book. I also acknowledge the Kombumerri people, traditional custodians of the country on which I live and work. This country has had a significant impact on my thinking and being. Respect for the traditional owners starts with respect for the land, and I keep this in mind in the way I live and travel through this place.

Sources:

https://library.oapen.org/bitstream/handle/20.500.12657/63408/1/external_content.pdf