In the Yukon, where seasonal rhythms, animal migrations, and weather patterns shape life at every scale, understanding ecological systems calls for methods that engage the whole body. How do we come to know a place—not just through data or description, but also through sensation, movement, and attentive presence? How can deeply rooted land-based experiences be encapsulated and communicated?
This interdisciplinary course explores sensorial approaches to fieldwork and ecological understanding, drawing from ethnography, Northern histories, contemporary art, performance, and Indigenous land-based practices. Rather than centering the written word alone, we will experiment with ways of knowing that arise through listening, touching, tasting, moving, and dwelling.
Together, we will investigate how sound, image, texture, and gesture can reveal the complexity of land relations and ecological phenomena. Students will create multisensory projects using audio, video, movement, food, and field journals to engage with both human and other-than-human worlds. Field excursions and invited guests will offer experiential insights into land-based practices, fostering an embodied approach to research and storytelling.
Available by permission of the professor. Contact Chair, School of Liberal Arts.
Registration in this course is subject to instructor approval. Maria Michails requests additional information from prospective students. Please use this email link mmichails-posidis@yukonu.ca and answer the questions you will see in the body of the email. Thank you. Community members may take this class. Search "Open Studies" to get set up (do the email as well, please).