Frederiek Bennema introduces foraging as a strategy for learning and research within higher art education, and as a practice and an attitude focused on ecological thinking, care and dialogue. This article aims to offer insights into foraging and how it helps students navigate the landscape of art education. It further discusses how foraging relates to artistic research and how it can help position artistic research in relation to more established forms of research.
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In the troubled times in which we currently live, the tourism industry has called into question a need for more responsible social practices and more mindful utilisation of natural environments. The Japanese practice of shinrin-yoku, or forest bathing, has not only become a new wellness trend, but also a great potential for deeply immersive tourist experiences. While there is a wealth of studies examining the positive effects of forest bathing focussing principally on its medical benefits, this qualitative study extends these debates through documenting lived experiences of forest bathers. In so doing forest bathing suggests its latent potential to offer a profoundly mindful experience, and aims to situate this practice more prominently within the tourism discourse.
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This special edition on coexisting with reptiles (guest edited by Dr Simon Pooley) highlights our deep cultural connection with biodiversity, including the scaly, slithering kind. Moving away from Eurocentric narratives of coexistence, the articles in this issue acknowledge the tolerance of local people across the world who live in close proximity to dangerous wildlife. Here, their relationships with crocodiles, Komodo dragons and king cobras are often governed by mutual respect, fear and resignation, and neo-liberal conservation interventions could do more harm than good.
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