Conservation initiatives are often highly political, and conflict is common problem in conservation (Redpath et al. 2012). These conflicts can be difficult to address. Following a Conference on Conservation Conflict in Aberdeen in 2011, the Aberdeen Centre for Environmental Sustainability (ACES) leads a project to explore the different ways in which conservation conflicts are understood by artists and scientists.
A residency programme involved six creative practitioners and nine natural and social scientists, working together to consider the role of art and science in transforming environmental conflicts. We will move beyond advocacy arguments and polemics to consider how alternative viewpoints can be brought together to help break down barriers and help make solutions possible and create space for understanding and solutions.
The artists:
- Richard Craig, flautist
- Helen Denerley, sculptor
- Jo Falla, author
- Matt Hulse, film maker
- Alan McKendrick ,playwright
- Sera James Irvine, artist
The scientists:
- Bill Adams, Cambridge
- Maggie Gill, Roslin Institute, University of Edinburgh
- Justin Irvine, James Hutton Institute
- Aly McCluskie, RSPB
- Steve Redpath, University of Aberdeen
- Paul Rogers, University of Bradford
- Bill Slee, James Hutton Institute
- Rebecca Wade, Abertay University
- Pete Moore, Inverness
The results of the residency were presented in the gallery at Seventeen, Belmont Street, Aberdeen, in November 2013. The Gallery hosted a concert of work produced during the residencies on 9 November [see review], and a sample.
Publications
- Redpath, S.M., Young, J., Evely, A., Adams, W.M., Sutherland, W.J., Whitehouse, A., Amar, A., Lambert, R.A., Linnell, J.D.C., Watt, A., and Gutiérrez, R.J. (2012) ‘Understanding and managing conservation conflicts’, Trends in Ecology and Evolution 28: 100-109
Funding
- A Creative Futures project, funded by Creative Scotland.