JonathanSkinner ConferenceonEcopoetics:AdvisoryBoardRoundtableRemarks Evenwereitnotaconferenceonecopoetics,thisgatheringwouldthrillme;that youareallhereforaconferenceonecopoeticskindofblowsmymind.Idliketothank theorganizers,AngelaHume,GillianOsborne,andMargaretRonda,formakingthis possible.Idalsoliketonotethatthefollowingremarks,forwhattheyreworth, benefitedfromaconversationheldinPointReyeswithAngelaHume,BobHass, BrendaHillman,andEvelynReilly,andfromaconversationwithBrianTeareheld yesterdayonthewaybackfromDavisandIthankthem.Andtheyalsostemfrom collaborationsandongoingconversationswithsomanyofyou. Bynow,thetermecopoeticsbothenjoysandsuffersfromacertaincurrency.As muchasweallmightagreethatecopoeticsoffersacrucialdirectionincontemporary poetry,specificexamplesofecopoeticsrangeacrosspracticallytheentirespectrumof contemporarywriting.Whatisitsdirection?Naturepoetry?Innovativenaturepoetry? Dystopiannaturepoetry?Antinaturepoetry?Activistpoetry?

Orisecopoetics somethingdifferent?Notakindofpoetry,butapoetrynonsite,athinkingpoetryin relation,apoeticsofinterdisciplinaryencounter?Howmanyhereknowwhatan ecotoneis?Thismetaphorfromfieldecology,denotinganedgehabitatbetween variantsystems,thathashelpedstructuremythinking,editing,andwritingin ecopoetics,hasbeenringinginmyearslately,as:thereisnoecotoneecopoeticsis nottonal,itsonedge. Definitionsofecopoeticscanrangefromthemakingandstudyofpastoraland wildernesspoetrytotheintersectionofpoetryandanimalstudies,orfromthepoetics ofurbanenvironmentstopoets'responsestodisastersandmattersofenvironmental

Skinner justice.Itmightmeanthestudyanddeploymentofformalstrategiesmodeling ecologicalprocesseslikecomplexity,nonlinearity,feedbackloops,andrecycling,or evenaslowpoetrythatjoinsinapushforsustainable,regionaleconomies.Itmight meansituationistinterventionsinactualenvironments,includingpoliticalones.Or howthebody,differentlyabled,becomesasiteforcreativelyengagingtheecopolitical aspersonal.Orhowtranslationpracticescandiversifythemonocropofahegemonic languagelikeEnglish.Iliketothinkofecopoeticsaslocatingsitesratherthankinds ofwriting.Wemightcompareecopoeticswiththesitespecificitythathasevolvedin artcriticism,toaddresspracticesthattaketheworkofartbeyondthegallery. Ecopoeticsshiftsthefocusfromthemesandstylestoinstitutionalcritiqueofgreen discourseitselfandtoanarrayofpracticesconvergingontheoikos,theplanetearth thatistheonlyhomeourspeciescurrentlyknows.Ifbyecopoetrywemeananew, greenergenre,thetermshouldarousesuspicion.Greenerthanthouclaimsare, ultimately,asuntenableastheyareuninteresting.Asmuchasecopoeticshas respondedtoecologicaldisruptionsinthephysicalenvironment,italsocameformany writers,amidsttherubbleofthepoetrywars,asaresponsetoschismswithinthe ecologyofpoeticsitself.Nevertheless,therehasbeenashynessaboutarticulatingthe theoryimplicitinthework,andgroundworkinecopoeticshasbeenslowtoemerge. Certainly,ecopoeticsembracesthefullrangeofformalexperimentationonthe pageandthestagepioneeredbymodernistpoetsandtheirsuccessorssoundpoetry, homophonictranslation,concreteandtypographicwork,projectiveverseor compositionbyfield,paratacticandasyntacticarrangements,thenewsentence, demotionofreference,theturnsagainstnormativegrammarandtoneassociatedwith

Skinner LanguagepoetryandFlarf,etc.Yetemphasisontheirreduciblepresenceofthebody canmakeecopoeticsasiteforworkthatisradicallydifferentfromthatofthe modernistpoem.Focusedoncrossing,ecopoeticsexploresthedifficultiesand opportunitiesattheboundary. Oneimportantaspectofecopoeticentailswhathappensoffthepage,intermsof wheretheworkissitedandperformed,aswellaswhatmethodsofcomposition,or decomposition,precedeandfollowthepoemthemodesofresearch,documentation, orcollaborationthattheworktakesupandgenerates.Whatonemightcallthe expandedfieldofecopoetics.Anotherimportantaspectisencounteredinthefact that,forme,atleast,anyecopoeticsisalwaysalreadyanethnopoetics.Ecopoeticsas ethnopoeticstracestheboundariesofalogocentrismthatwillgounquestionedwhen wefailtolinkthefoundationofWesternrationalism(thecogito)totherepressionof subaltern,indigenouswritingsystems.Thesearemodesofliteracythatentaildifferent sensesofwhatcountsasasubject,butwithasmuchmediacyandagencyasany writing,onlytheirlanguagesarenowonthevergeofextinction.Itcouldbearguedthat theextinctionofspeciesistied,veryclosely,totheextinctionofsuchlanguages. Ethnopoeticshascomealongwayfromtheassociationwithfantasiesoftheecological Indianwithwhichitwas(Ithinksometimesmistakenly)linked.Ithasmoretodowith attentiontomodesofperformance,orality,andwriting,especiallythoseofone'sown ethnicgroup,thatunderminetheenlightenmentoutlookthatstilldominatessomuch contemporarywriting. Isthereaworldview,acomprehensivecritiqueembeddedinecopoetics? Giventhedegreetowhichexploitationoftheearthslifesystemscanbelinkedto

Skinner capital,it'stemptingtosaywestillhaven'timprovedontheMarxistanalysis,andeven tobelievethatenvironmentalismhasmainlyprovidedadistractionfromthecore operationsofcapital.IagreewiththetheoristBrunoLatourthatthebicameral constitutionofnaturalthingsversushumansubjectsmustfallbeforewecanbeginto articulateatrulypoliticalecology.Ecocriticalmindsneedtomarkuptheunmarked termnature,justasfeministshavemarkedupmanthismarkingisthemostdirect wayinwhichecopoeticscanregistertheongoingdepredationsofcapital.However,I alsoagreewithLatourthatundoingthebicameralconstitutionmeansalotmorethan simplydeconstructingthenaturesidethattoneutralizeNatureandSciencemeans notturningawayfromnaturesandsciences,butpayingcloserattentiontothetangled objectsofourriskyattachments.Fieldworkandinterdisciplinaryengagementare crucial.Slowingdown,takingtime,givingtotheunproductiveworkofdialogue,toget andgiveaclue.IhopethateveryonefromtheBayAreaattheconference,forinstance, takesamomentthisweekendtointroduceoneofus,yourvisitors,tosomethingabout theecologyofthisplace.Ihopethateveryoneheretakesamoment,atsomepointin theweekend,toattempttoexplaintheConferenceonEcopoeticstosomeonewhohas nothingtodowithpoetry,norevenwiththehumanities,withacademiaorliterature. BydisciplinaryImeantosignalboundariesofspecialty,identity,groupaffiliation notnecessarilyanacademicconcern.Fieldworkandinterdisciplinaryengagementare crucial. Whenacolleaguenotes,theSabbaticalCommitteesaysIhaveprovided insufficientmethodologyformycreativework.WhatisitaboutIloafeandinvitemy souletheydon'tunderstand?myresponseis,aha:theinterdisciplinaryrub.

Skinner Opportunitiesabound!Ecopoeticsformeismuchmoreaboutthiskindof awkwardness,friction,andtranslationcondition,thisentanglementnegotiatinga placeforpoetrywithengineers,scientists,politicians,andotherthanhumansthanit isaboutpoiseandbeautyordisplayingourcorrectconsciousnessandappropriately freakedout,righteousorvulnerablefeelingstooneanother(thoughthesedisplaystoo areecopoetics).Ihavesaidthat,morethanever,ecopoeticscallsforattentionto ecotoneasedge,tothefringe,whereweareleastcompetent.Andyet,latecapitalist societyfostersastateofexceptionwhereit'sseeminglypossibletolivewithminimal attentiontothefringeofourentanglements. Iworryaboutlettingcrisisdefineecopoetics;ithasdefinedtheenvironmental movementfornearlyhalfacentury,tolittleavail,andultimatelyhaslimitedthekindof responseneededoverthelongtermaneverydaypracticeofresponsibilitytothe earth.Iamokaywithcallingitapracticeofemergency,ifbythatwemeantoinclude theemergenceofnewformsoflife.Atthesametime,whileitmaybetemptingto assertthatallpoetryisinherentlyecopoetic,orthattheworkofecopoeticsismore productivelydispersedacrossspecificmodesofengagement,itremainspolitically importanttonametheeco.Untiltheenvironmentalperspectiveregularlyassumesits unquestioned(ifvariedandcomplex)placeatthestakeholderstable,ecopoeticsneeds anameandaplace. Therearemanywaysofengagingtheecotone.Ifonlyasanaidtomemory,to helpmerecallandaccessabroadvarietyofwork,thathascometomyattention throughecopoetics,IhaveelsewheresketchedwhatIcalltheecopoeticscompass rosewhosevectorsincludeworkwithsound,conceptualpoetries,documentary

Skinner poetries,situationistpractices,boundarywork,mestizopoetics,andpracticesofwhat I'vetermedtheThirdLandscape.Thismeansthatasaverbthepoliticsofecopoetics entaillistening,conceptualizing,documenting,situating,bordering,mingling(in dissonanceaswellasconsonance),essaying,andreinhabiting.Thesepoliticsarenot encapsulatedinasinglegesture(deconstructingnatureoradvocatingfornature) andoftendependonhowsuchgesturesgetsituated.Inonecontext,itmightbemore politicaltospeaklikeadeconstructionist,tosignalreflexiveawarenessoftheblind spotsconstitutingone'sowndiscourse;inanother,itmightmakebettersensetotraffic inthelanguageofrepresentationforclearadvocacyonbehalfofathreatenedspecies, habitat,orpopulation.Ecopoeticsisthissiteofconverging,intersectingpracticeandis mostpoliticallyandaestheticallyuseful,Iwouldsay,whenitkeepsasmanyofthese frictionalnodesasactiveaspossible. Berkeley,CA 22February2013