A day of encounters, co-organized by the Groningen Research Institute for the Study of Culture and Counterpoint: Navigating Knowledge On 4 June 2019, Counterpoint: Navigating Knowledge and the Groningen Research Institute for the Study of Culture (ICOG) co-organized a forum in which artists, scholars, and activists discussed and exchanged new Read more
How Not to Be the Easter Police: On the Resurrection of the Earth By John J. Thatamanil Photo by Marion Grau A certain kind of theologian—I was once one among them—scrupulously draws a sharp dichotomy between the “pagan” elements of Christian Easter festivities and Easter’s true meaning. On one hand, Read more
A roundtable discussion at the conference of the International Society for the Study of Religion, Nature and Culture (ISSRNC), devoted to “Religion/Water/Climate: Changing Cultures and Landscapes,” University College Cork, Cork City, Ireland, 13-16 June 2019 In the midst of what is called the 6th extinction, and with pessimistic expectations when Read more
A day of encounters, co-organized by the Groningen Research Institute for the Study of Culture and Counterpoint: Navigating Knowledge 4 June 2019 in Groningen, The Netherlands Discussions about sustainability often focus on questions of health, technology, and economic value. Ecological diversity plays an important role in these discussions as well. Read more
Poetic Science: How Literature Conveys Knowledge of Nature By Kocku von Stuckrad For most non-specialists, much information about the natural world is drawn from newspapers, TV, and popular books. Even scientists are influenced by those sources. Another source of knowledge, however, and a thoroughly underestimated one, is literature—historical fiction, novels, Read more
The Flint Knapper Who Cried “Snake” By Sarah Pike During the Closing Circle of Rabbitstick Primitive Skills Gathering, a flint knapper (who shapes rocks by hand to make stone tools) asked the participants, “How do you react if someone in a crowd yells snake?” “Food!” said one. “Hide!” answered another, Read more
Perception and the Platypus By Jay Johnston I was desperate to see a platypus. Standing on riverbanks I would look out, simultaneously expectant and forlorn, scanning for signs of this notoriously shy monotreme. The platypus eluded me until I was taught how to see platypus. The onus, all along, was Read more
Major Themes and Insights for the Work of the New Center On 25 August 2018, Counterpoint: Navigating Knowledge was officially launched with a stimulating program of speakers and discussions in Berlin. The general theme being “Beyond Pluralism: Contrapuntal Responses to Culture Wars, New Nationalisms, and the Challenges of the Anthropocene” Read more
Making Senses: Poetic Knowledge of Nature in Science, Art, and Shamanic Ritual by Kocku von Stuckrad Download a PDF Version of this essay (6 MB) Abstract The five senses of seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting, and touching are regarded in European and North American tradition as the central channels through which human Read more
Beyond Epistemicide: Toward Multiple Forms of Knowledge by Joram Tarusarira Knowledge production, authentication, and dissemination require transcending a universal, fundamentalist[1] canon of thought that privileges one knowledge system at the expense of others. With modernity, a particular knowledge system came to occupy and dominate the academy and claim universality, neutrality, Read more