[RADICLE] The Radi-cle is the first part of a seedling to emerge from a seed during the process of germination. Radi-cal, coming from the word ‘root,’ may be perceived as a means to reconnect with what grounds us, paying attention to what connects us to where we have been.
We recently concluded the first session of Radicle Possibilities, a new program focused on using narratives for change-making, led by our Arts + Culture Manager, Andrea Mauro. This 4-week program invited participants to massage their muscles of imagination, using tools developed in the fields of futures studies and speculative design to vividly imagine the ecological renaissance of our wildest dreams, and the steps it took to get there.
Our minds are a collective refuge for stories which frame our beliefs, discourses, actions and decisions. In the words of researcher Monika Bielskyte, “the fictions we tell bleed back into reality.”
Through playful body-centered exercises participants:
– Develop regionally relevant visions of how the future could look, across various dimensions, senses, and scales.
– Explore what happened during our imagined transition.
– Create personal storylines of our “character’s” journey to and in this future world.
– Create artpieces (drawings, poetry, crafts, etc) that embody our unique journeys
The first 4-week session concluded in our Birth of an Ecological Renaissance Potluck + Preview, alongside The Band of Singers (led by Maesa Pullman) and The Last OrcheStraw (led by Derrick Dymalski). Participants in elaborate costumes shared poems, songs, paintings, and gestures that could mark our path toward a future worth loving.
A complement to our recent Think (from the Heart) Tank with Max Henning, Radicle Possibilities is an ongoing opportunity for members to inform our work at the BirdHouse, and to speak openly about the world they long to see flourish.
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