Does the natural world bear witness to history? What lessons can nature teach us about survival, adaptation, and connection? This week, we’re exploring those questions and so much more alongside Erin Sharkey. Erin Sharkey is the editor of A Darker Wilderness: Black Nature Writing From Soil To Stars, an acclaimed anthology that weaves together history, personal narrative, and imaginative storytelling in order to explore the profound relationship between nature and Black identity. Each essay is connected through the use of archival objects, anchoring each piece to a shared past and nodding to the complicated history of nature writing as a discipline.

Erin is a writer, arts and abolition organizer, cultural worker, and film producer based in Minneapolis. She is the cofounder, with Junauda Petrus, of an experimental arts collective called Free Black Dirt and is the producer of film projects including Sweetness of Wild and Small Business Revolution. Erin is also a founding coop member of the Fields at Rootsprings, a retreat center that focuses on healing, learning, and connection for individuals, community and Earth and that centers BIPOC and LGBTQ+ artists, activists, and healers.

In this episode, we delve into the inspiration behind A Darker Wilderness, the intersections of race and ecology, and how Erin’s creative practice brings healing and hope to the communities she serves.

Show Notes

• A Darker Wilderness: Black Nature Writing From Soil to Stars
• Erin Sharkey on Instagram
• Erin Sharkey Website
• The Fields at Rootsprings
• Rochester Arts Center

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