Nottingham Contemporary

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Free. Booking required.

After Growth is a symposium, a gathering of bodies and minds, but it is also an invitation to construct another future. At its core is the belief that prosperity does not depend on economic growth, and that – in the face of ongoing climate catastrophe – there is an urgent need to find new ways of living within planetary boundaries.

The concept of ‘degrowth’ emerges from the confluence of activism, ecology and economics, though it also sits within a larger cultural field of creative and artistic practice. Rather than producing blueprints of utopian visions, many of the contributors to this symposium work towards the creation of spaces where post-capitalist forms of life can be incubated.

Taking place both online and in-person, After Growth assembles a diverse array of visions, organisations and initiatives. Together, they will speculate on the possibility of life after growth, placing these at the heart of a city with increasingly green ambitions.

The programme features contributions by Rebecca Beinart, Kathrin Böhm, Angela YT Chan, TJ Demos, Fernando García-Dory, Ama Josephine B. Johnstone, Giorgos Kallis, Landworkers' Alliance, Thandi Loewenson, Bahar Noorizadeh, Tonny Nowshin, Asad Raza, Frances Whitehead, Wild.ng, Pınar Yoldas, and Disnovation among others.

Programmed by Theo Reeves-Evison and Canan Batur. Funded by the University of Nottingham, Nottingham Trent University, Birmingham City University, and the Leverhulme Trust. This symposium is part of our upcoming research strand Emergency & Emergence, which will be made public in March.

The Programme

Sat 19 March, 2 - 5.30pm, online

2:00 - 2:10pm: Opening Remarks by Canan Batur (Curator of Live Programmes) and Theo Reeves-Evison (co-organiser)

2:10 - 3:00pm: Degrowth and Climate Justice with Giorgos Kallis and Tonny Nowshin, followed by a Q&A

3:10 - 4:00pm: Beyond Ecological Pasts and Radical Futurisms with Fernando Garcia Dory and Pinar Yoldas, followed by a Q&A

4:10 - 5:30pm: Civic Practices and Architectural Eco-Fiction with Thandi Loewenson, Frances Whitehead, followed by a Q&A

Sun 20 March, 11am - 6pm, The Space at Nottingham Contemporary

11:00 - 11:15am: Opening Remarks by Canan Batur (Curator of Live Programmes) and Theo Reeves-Evison (co-organiser)

11:15am - 12:30pm: Land and Solidarity with Ez North (Landworkers’ Alliance) and Kathrin Böhm, moderated by Rebecca Beinart.

12:30 - 1:30pm: Lunch Break

1:30 - 2:45pm: Speculative Fiction, Speculative Economics with Bahar Noorizadeh and Ama Josephine B. Johnstone, moderated by Manuel Ángel Macía.

3:00 - 4:30pm: Repair and Remediation with Wild.NG and Asad Raza, moderated by Theo Reeves-Evison

4:45 - 6:00pm: Keynote: Visualising the Ends of Growth by TJ Demos, moderated by Angela YT Chan.

Please note: These sessions will be recorded and made available online after the event.

Click here for more details of the programme