This one is not likely going to catch on.
In the labyrinthine corridors of academic fantasy, where reality often takes a back seat to the whimsical, Geo Takach and Kyera Cook have delivered a masterstroke of hyperbole with their new creation: “environmental conciliation.” This term, aimed to bridge the chasm between environmental protection and Indigenous reconciliation through the power of arts-based communication, presumes to address crises that, upon closer inspection, might be less of a cataclysm and more of a construct of the modern academic echo chamber.
The treatise reads like a satire, earnestly proposing that painting, sculpting, and performing can somehow mitigate what they describe as dire environmental and societal injustices. One must pause to admire the audacity of suggesting that centuries of complex socio-political issues and so-called ecological degradation can be remedied with a palette and some brushes. It’s a charming notion—if only the foundation of these crises weren’t as overblown as the remedies proposed.
Takach and Cook’s narrative plows ahead with all the finesse of a bull in a china shop, weaving “decolonizing critiques” and “holistic environmental ideologies” into a tapestry that seems to depict a world on the brink of collapse—a portrayal that dramatically overestimates the severity of environmental shifts while undervaluing the resilience of both nature and human societies.
The invocation of “environmental conciliation” as a solution is a particularly delightful flourish. It’s as if they’ve proposed that the cure for a mild headache is a full brain transplant. The term itself is a new badge for the academic elite to wear, a token of virtue signaling that pays homage to the altar of crisis creation. The problems they aim to solve with their arts-infused approach—supposed rampant environmental destruction and the erosion of Indigenous cultures—are described with an urgency that seems misaligned with reality, inflated for the sake of securing grant money or perhaps, seminar invitations.
As we wade deeper into the quagmire of their argument, we find that the practical applications of their arts-based approach are as nebulous as they are nonsensical. The suggestion that social justice and environmental recovery might spring forth from the same well that fuels community theater projects is a comedic goldmine. One could almost envision the next UN climate summit held in an art gallery, where diplomats resolve carbon emission disputes through interpretive dance and collaborative collage-making.
In sum, Takach and Cook’s article does not just stretch the imagination; it vaults it into a realm where reality is optional, and every academic whim is entertained with the gravity of a Papal decree. It’s a bold exercise in the art of making mountains out of molehills and then proposing to level them with a paintbrush. Truly, if the world were as fraught with peril as they suggest, one might indeed hope for more pragmatic solutions. But since the imminent collapse of civilization is not as imminent as they’d have us believe, perhaps we can afford to chuckle at the notion of “environmental conciliation”—right after we finish our watercolor sunset.
Read this “research article” at your own risk of brain cell loss.
