Nature in Crisis: ‘Lessons for Survival’ by Emily Raboteau
About this episode
The episode discusses Emily Raboteau's exploration of survival amidst climate change and urban challenges through her project 'Lessons for Survival'.
Over the past twelve years, the walls and shop shutters of Upper Manhattan have been gradually filled by giant paintings of climate-threatened birds, inspired by the species depicted by the artist John James Audubon, who lived in the area. Emily Raboteau’s ‘Lessons for Survival’ (2024) takes these murals, along with Raboteau’s own photographs of local birds, as a way into exploring the challenges faced by a mother of two Black sons in New York City living through Hurricane Sandy, the first Trump presidency, Covid and mounting climate breakdown. In this episode, Meehan and Peter talk through the different aspects of Raboteau’s project of survival, from experiences of gentrification and medical racism to the models it offers for dealing with existential threat and ‘justifiable rage’, and Raboteau’s stylistic achievement of bringing together the urban and natural environment. Non-subscribers will only hear an extract from this episode. To listen in full, and to all our other Close Readings series, sign up: Directly in Apple Podcasts: https://lrb.me/applecrnature In other podcast apps: https://lrb.me/closereadingsnature Further reading in the…
People in this episode
Hosts: Meehan, Peter
Guest: Emily Raboteau
Topics covered
- climate change
- urban environment
- survival
- gentrification
- medical racism
- existential threat
Keywords
- climate-threatened birds
- Hurricane Sandy
- gentrification
- medical racism
- existential threat
- urban nature
- survival strategies
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: London Review of Books
Books & works: Lessons for Survival, Hurricane Sandy, John James Audubon, Covid, Great Auks, Sea Slugs, Wombats, Microbes, When the ice melts
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