Edge Effects

A close up of the derailed train cars from above. Many of the cars are charred black from fire damage, and smoke rises.

Is the Disaster in East Palestine, Ohio, a New Normal?

Shocking events like the 2023 Norfolk Southern train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, often get framed as just that–shocking. Alex George and Kimberley Thomas reframe the incident around normal accident theory to emphasize the structural problems at the heart of the train industry …

Black and white illustration of a variety of plants drawn on yellow paper.

Botany’s Colonial Present and Alternative Futures: A Conversation with Banu Subramaniam

Laleh Ahmad speaks with Banu Subramaniam about her recent book Botany of Empire: Plant Worlds and the Scientific Legacies of Colonialism. Their conversation explores how colonialism shaped botany and considers how we might imagine alternative futures …

Image of the art exhibit showing a stand to the left with plants, tubes, and monitors, and a diagram on the wall behind it. The room is dark.

Technological Mediations for Interspecies Communication

Alizée Armet asks what happens when we stop trying to interpret plants and fungi as if they were speaking our language. Through a series of living art installations, she explores how humans, plants, fungi, and technology can form new kinds of relationships that challenge human ideas of communication …

Translation, Agroforestry, and the Language of Plants

At first glance, language and restorative agriculture may seem unrelated. But by combining expertise in translation studies and agroforestry, Lia A. Miranda de Lima and Lucas Sigefredo uncover ways of thinking about the language of plants …

Thinking with Maíz: A Conversation with Vick Quezada and Jeffrey Ross-Ibarra

Artist Vick Quezada and evolutionary biologist Jeffrey Ross-Ibarra both center maíz in their work despite their very different approaches. Together with M. Hamilton Wilson, these scholars explore the co-evolution of humans and maiz (corn), through the lens of cultural history, art and performance, science, and language …

A close up of the front of a large ship anchored to shore. The ship is covered in rust, dents, and scratches. Another ship sits to the left and right.

The Colonial Costs of Shipbreaking

The shipbreaking industry in Bangladesh is often hailed as an economic success story. Md. Borhan Uddin and Kimberley Thomas explain why this industry is, in fact, an extension of colonial logics …

A man holds a microphone in his hand, performing. He wears a shirt that reads "Burning Spear On The Beach," and the background is smoky and green.

Reggae’s Agrarian Resistance

The plantation histories and logics carried through roots reggae music inspired Carmen Andall‑Woodroofe to pursue a Ph.D. In this essay, she centers that music to examine plantation futures—and the ways reggae resists them …

Mexican farmworkers harvesting cauliflower

El Contrato Químico

Micaela Edelson revela los costos para la salud—a menudo ocultos—que conlleva la exposición a pesticidas para los trabajadores agrícolas migrantes en Estados Unidos …

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