The Future Forest: Between Crisis and Speculation
With Audrey Lane Cockett, Josh Killeen, Eric Moschopedis, and Nicolas Nolet
January 11
Heather Edwards Theatre | 2-3:30 PM
What possible futures can we imagine for our planet's forests? How can the labor of forest-care be translated into political action?
Join us for a panel discussion exploring the speculative futures of the lands we inhabit, from rewilding initiatives to sustainable management practices. Panelists will discuss policies that support long-term ecological health and the critical role of forests in combating the climate catastrophe.
The panel will also include short film screenings by the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society (CPAWS) and Nicolas Nolet.
FREE with registration.
This panel is organized in conjunction with Mia + Eric: In a Strange Place, on view in the Morris & Ann Dancyger Observatory Gallery until February 9, 2025.
About the Panellists
Audrey Lane Cockett (they/them) is a poet, filmmaker, ecologist, and educator settled in Moh’kinstsis/Calgary AB. Audrey Lane brings care, curiosity, professionalism, presence, and a diverse skillset into all projects they are involved in. Their projects ignite conversations, offer visibility for queer, disabled, and neurodiverse folks, and empower climate art advocacy and imaginative place-making. Their award-winning poetry and films have been showcased on stages, screens, and publications, both locally and internationally. They have completed residencies at the Banff Spoken Word Program, the Banff Adventure Filmmaking Workshop, and the Canadian Wilderness Artist Residency in the Yukon. They are invested in the healing and transformative power of film, story, poetry, music, science, love, and collaboration between communities and across disciplines.
Josh Killeen (he/him) is a professional biologist with a background in environmental consultancy, academia, and wildlife biology. He holds degrees in biology and evolutionary biology from University College London (UK), The University of Groningen (Netherlands), and Université Montpellier 2 (France). He moved from the UK to Alberta in 2014 and soon fell in love with the province, its people, and its wild spaces. Josh believes that effective conservation, protection, and access to our natural spaces must be a priority for our society. Outside of work, Josh loves to cook, garden and spend time hiking, scrambling, and climbing in the mountains.
Eric Moschopedis (he/him) is one half of Mia + Eric, a neurodivergent, interdisciplinary artist team from Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Eric has a background in theatre and performance and Mia has a background in craft, printmaking and the visual arts. Together we create long-term research and community engagement processes that lead to socially engaged exhibitions, performances, temporary public art, participatory works, interventions, and publications. Thematically our practice deals with multi-species ethnography, interspecies relationships, biodiversity and place-based knowledge production in cities, small towns, and rural spaces. Since 2008 we have created and presented our projects, artist talks, lectures, and workshops at both formal and DIY galleries, festivals, residencies, conferences, and post-secondary institutions regionally, nationally, and internationally.
Nicolas Nolet (he/him) is a filmmaker from Calgary, Alberta, whose work explores the intersection of environmental and social issues through a visual and narrative lens. Born and raised in the province of Quebec, Nicolas moved in 2014 to explore the Rocky mountains of Alberta. The past ten years in Alberta's landscapes inspired his artistic journey, driving him to pursue film as a medium to express the urgent need to protect the natural world.His most recent work, ASSEMBLY: Growing together to protect an ecosystem, delves into the issue of clear-cut logging in one of Alberta's most ecologically significant regions. The film captures the tension between economic development and environmental conservation, featuring interviews with Indigenous activists, environmental scientists, and mountain lovers.
