390) Rosetta S. Elkin: Troubling mass tree-planting and afforestation

“What we might want to do is learn where the word desertification comes from and when it should be used and when it is ill-used, at least to move forward into a more hopeful, more informed, more generous future that I think we all want.”

Why should we challenge mass tree-planting projects as being politically neutral—as something that ought to garner universal support? What is the significance of reorienting our goals towards growing trees rather than planting trees? And what could it mean to love drylands as they are, troubling perspectives that problematize their existence?

In this episode, we welcome Rosetta S. Elkin, the Principle of Practice Landscape, academic director of Pratt Institute’s School of Architecture Master’s in Landscape Architecture (MLA) program, and an Associate of The Arnold Arboretum at Harvard University. 

Rosetta’s work considers living environments with a particular focus on plant life and climate change. Rosetta teaches planting design, fieldwork, and seminars that advance a theory of plant life between ecology and horticulture. She is the author of books, articles, book chapters, and monographs including Plant Life: The Entangled Politics of Afforestation.

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// The musical offering featured in this episode Lose My Mind by RVBY MY DEAR. //