Hosted at Duke Kunshan University, this three-day event will bring together scholars to examine pressing issues surrounding environmental justice, biocultural rights, and post-growth futures. Through keynote talks, panel discussions, and workshops, participants will explore the complexities of eco-emancipation and the evolving relationships between humans and the natural world.
We welcome all those interested in these critical discussions to join us in exploring new perspectives and solutions. By challenging dominant frameworks and fostering interdisciplinary dialogue, this conference aims to inspire bold ideas and concrete actions toward a more just and ecologically responsible future.
Conference Schedule
April 10, 2025
| Time | Theme | Speaker/Activity | Duration |
| 15:00-16:30 | Purposes beyond ourselves: the past, present and future of nonanthropocentric environmental political theory | Robyn Eckersley University of Melbourne | 90min (incl. Q&A) |
| 16:30-17:30 | Reception Dinner | 60min | |
| 17:30-19:00 | Student Panel | Student Presentations | 90min |
April 11, 2025
| Time | Speaker | Duration |
| Morning Session:
9:00-11:30 |
Sharon Krause (Zoom)
Brown University – [TBD] |
30min + 30min Q&A |
| Marion Hourdequin (Zoom)
Colorado College – Eco-Emancipation from the Ground Up: Rekindling Responsible Relations |
20min + 20min Q&A | |
| Robyn Eckersley
University of Melbourne – Purposes beyond ourselves: the past, present and future of nonanthropocentric environmental political theory |
20min + 20min Q&A | |
| Afternoon Session:
15:00-17:30 |
Alf Hornborg (Zoom)
Lund University – Thinking with the world: The challenge of adapting human agency to the remainder of the biosphere |
20min + 20min Q&A |
| Lisa Ellis (Zoom)
University of Otago – Beyond Extractivism in Theory and Practice |
20min + 20min Q&A | |
| Renee Richer
Duke Kunshan University – White Man’s Footprints |
20min + 20min Q&A |
April 12, 2025
| Time | Speaker | Duration |
| Morning Session:
9:00-11:45 |
T. J. Demos (Zoom)
UC Santa Cruz – Gaza’s Genocide/Ecocide, Technolibertarian Warfare, and the Seeds of Survival |
20min + 20min Q&A |
| Isabel Altamirano-Jimenez
University of Alberta – Towards an Indigenous Understanding of Life Making Relationships |
20min + 20min Q&A | |
| Miguel Rojas-Sotelo
Duke University – At the Center of the World: Tombs, Weed, Coca, War, and Peace. |
20min + 20min Q&A | |
| Robin Rodd
Duke Kunshan University – Biocultural rights as emancipatory vector |
20min + 20min Q&A | |
| Afternoon Session:
15:00-17:30 |
Rowan Alcock
Tsinghua University – Postfiguring and Prefiguring Post-Growth China? Reclaiming the Commons Through Radical Care. |
20min + 20min Q&A |
| Eben Kirksey
University of Oxford – Big Sugar Made Big COVID: How Metabolic Rifts Made Us Vulnerable to a Virus |
20min + 20min Q&A | |
| Quinlan Bowman
Duke Kunshan University – [TBD] |
20min + 20min Q&A |
Speaker List
