Wednesday 7th May, 5 – 6:30 pm CEST
Borrowing its title from a phrase by Bayo Akomolafe, our second conversation moves to territories in ‘breakdown’, giving space to projects, communities and practices that proceed and arise in times that feel like the end of the/their world. This panel invites both conservation practitioners, artists and activists who, through different methodologies, approaches, and languages, actively work from the ruins of “stability” to continue nourishing radically different imaginaries and cosmologies of how we relate to the earth and with both the human and more-than-human world.
Speakers:
Ameyali Ramos
Ameyali Ramos is deeply engaged in rethinking and reimagining conservation at different scales, working directly with communities from the ground up, with NGO’s and with funders and donors. Her work focuses on transforming conservation practices beyond conventional frameworks, centering Indigenous and local knowledge systems, and nurturing different ways of doing and being with the world around us. For over 20 years, Ameyali has worked with Indigenous Peoples and local communities on environmental governance, sustainable livelihoods, fire management, and human rights. Her experience spans engagements with international policy processes, including the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the UN Convention on Biological Diversity, and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. She holds a PhD and MSc from the University of Oxford and currently serves as the Deputy Chair of the IUCN Commission on Environmental, Economic, and Social Policy (IUCN-CEESP).
Molemo Moiloa
Molemo Moiloa lives and works in Johannesburg, and has worked in various capacities at the intersection of creative practice and community organizing. She currently works on notions of ungovernability, social infrastructures of cultural organizing, and relationships to nature. She is one half of the artist collaborative MADEYOULOOK, who explore everyday popular imaginaries and their modalities for knowledge production. Molemo also co-leads the Open Restitution Africa project, an Africa-focused research platform for restitution of African heritage under the auspices of Andani.Africa. She also co-leads the ungovernable, an experiment in communitary practice and ungovernability. Molemo is a Soros Arts Fellow 2023/24, was a Chevening Clore Fellow 2016/17, and winner of a Vita Basadi Award for 2017. MADEYOULOOK were selected artists of the South African Pavilion for the Venice Biennale 2024, were DAAD Artists-in-Berlin fellows for visual arts 2022 and Lumbung artists at documenta fifteen, 2022.
Dr. Jocelyn Imani
Dr. Jocelyn Imani is a storyteller, educator, and community builder with over a decade of experience as a public historian; she joined the Trust for Public Land as national director of the Black History and Culture program in 2022. In her work, she is focused on reimagining how Black history and culture sites are activated and aims to make shared spaces more relevant and accessible to all populations. Prior to joining TPL, Dr. Imani spent time as an interpretive ranger with the National Park Service, served as historian at Ulysses S. Grant National Historic Site, and worked in the Office of Curatorial Affairs at the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture. She has taught U.S. history at Fisk and Howard Universities, as well as Washington Adventist University, Coppin State University, and others. Dr. Imani holds a PhD in African diaspora and public history from Howard University and a BA in history from Fisk University. She is a member of the Nashville Metropolitan Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc and the Junior League of Nashville. She also serves on the Board of Directors for Progress, Inc.Inc, an organization that promotes health, happiness, and safety for people with disabilities and senior adults needing care.
