The conference creators responded quickly and thoughtfully to Alejandro’s tweet, inviting him to transform from conference attendee to conference presenter to have his voice heard beyond twitter’s limited word count.
His talk rang true to issues pointed out by people of colour in recent years in the zero waste, vegan, and minimalist movements.
In the case of rewilding specifically, people of colour, especially in countries like Canada, The United Kingdom and The United States, don’t necessarily have a connection to the land in the same way colonists or those native to the lands do. Most often, people of colour are forced to gravitate towards urban and suburban areas – where green spaces are undoubtedly lacking, and nature is ofen beyond reach and budget – because that’s where jobs are. Furthermore, with people of colour being made so abundantly (and inaccurately) aware of their ‘foreignness’ in the current political climate (despite the fact all whites have a measurable track record of being the worst kind of ‘foreign’ there is), makes it hard to feel a sense of belonging to any land.
If it is possible for us to fall back in Love with nature, it might also be possible for us to fall back in Love with one another as well – and rewilding, etched in its enchantments, could be one of many paths we can share to a truly more unified and greener future.
PHOTOS: Annie Spratt via Unsplash
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