Eamonn Ryan, while leader of the Green Party, introduced a new energy policy which effectively reversed the ban on LNG and fracked gas imports. The Greens, while still in government, are denying responsibility for this betrayal of the environmental movement in Ireland.

Listen to activists from the grassroots movement explain what is happening. We are joined by Eddie Mitchell, a Leitrim county councilor and activist with Love Leitrim; Dianne Little, an anti-fracking activist from Co. Fermanagh; and Eoghan Harris, of Future Generations Kerry.

DDR E.015 Green Party Legacy: A Movement Betrayed

Minerals Online Roundtable I: ‘Extraction, Infrastructures, and Networks’

Online: October 17, 2024

The first roundtable in our online series for 2024/25 invites a critical examination of the intersecting themes of extraction, infrastructure, and networks in literature across various genres and periods. We aim to explore how different narratives engage with, ignore, or sidestep various infrastructures—such as railways, steamship networks, and telegrams—that facilitate the extraction of natural resources (including land, water, minerals, coal, and oil) and support the movement of labour and goods integral to global extraction.

The discussion seeks to uncover how literary cultures or histories both challenge and reinforce the capitalist and imperialist foundations of these global networks that facilitate extraction, often at the expense of local communities and ecosystems. We aim to deepen our appreciation of the complex ways in which texts engage with extraction and its connections with infrastructures, particularly in the context of contemporary discussions such as decarbonisation, degrowth, and localisation.

Speakers:

Dr Dominic Davies, Senior Lecturer in English, Department of Media, Culture, and Creative Industries, City University of London

Dr Nicola Kirkby, City University of London

Associate Professor Aims McGuinness, History Department, Dolores Huerta Research Centre for the Americas, Latin American & Latino Studies, UC Santa Cruz

Dr Sarah Comyn, Project PI

Dr Ge Tang, Postdoctoral Fellow, UCD (Chair)

Minerals Online Roundtable I - Extraction, Infrastructures, and Networks

Minerals Online Roundtable II: ‘Extraction and Racial Capitalism
Nov 21, 3:00 pm–4:30 pm

The second roundtable in our online series for 2024/25 seeks to unravel the complex interplay between resource extraction, labour dynamics, and racial capitalism in both historical and literary contexts.

We aim to gather literary critics and historians researching the intersections of extractivism and race, across different geographical regions and historical periods. Our goal is to foster a discussion that stretches across the global and the local, the past and the present. Central to our dialogue is an exploration of the origins of the ‘global colour line’ in the long histories of resource extraction.

Speakers:

Dr Danielle Kinsey, Associate Professor, Department of History, Carleton University
Dr Rebecca Macklin, Leverhulme Early Career Fellow, School of Literatures, Languages, Music and Visual Cultures, University of Aberdeen
Dr Nick McGee, Assistant Professor, Department of History, Durham University

The workshop was chaired by Dr Ge Tang, who is a Postdoctoral Fellow on Minerals.

Minerals Online Roundtable II: Extraction and Racial Capitalism

We are delighted to present a really interesting conversation on a yet unexplored facet of extractivism. This month we talked with Saana Hokkanen who is a doctoral researcher in Global Development Studies at University of Helsinki. Saana’s main interest is in the concept of soil extractivism, which is “is a form of capital accumulation based on systemic erasure of soils multispecies life.” Saana gives us insight into how soil is more than “just dirt” and the ways in which modern, industrial agriculture have negatively impacted the array of beings that make up soil. Saana gives us a lot of food for thought in relation to how our modern food system is composed and the multiple levels on which the extractive logics play out.

Want to learn more about Saana’s work?
https://researchportal.helsinki.fi/en/persons/saana-maarit-hokkanen

Want to read Saana’s article on soil extractivism? https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jrurstud.2024.103298

Saana Hokkanen - If you are what you eat, shouldn’t we care more about how our food is grown?

The third roundtable in our online series for 2024/25 seeks to explore the diverse forms of representation that emerge from and engage with extractivist activities and their underpinning ideologies. We invite speakers from various disciplines to consider forms broadly, including but not limited to novels, poetry, travel writing, memoirs, petitions, photographs, and picture postcards.

The aim is to foster a dialogue that transcends conventional definitions of genres and forms, to think about how extractivism can generate unique forms of representation, and how these forms, in turn, critically engage with the practices and ideologies of extractivism. Additionally, we aim to create a space where speakers and attendees can share the obstacles they have encountered when working with forms that pose linguistic, cultural, or methodological challenges, and to discuss how these challenges shape their interpretations and analyses.

Speakers:

Dr Adelene Buckland, Department of English, King’s College London
Dr Julia Ditter, Department of Literature, Art, and Media Studies, University of Konstanz
Associate Professor Nathan K. Hensley, Department of English, Georgetown University
Associate Professor Charlotte Rogers, Environmental Humanities, University of Virginia

The workshop was chaired by Dr Ge Tang, who is a Postdoctoral Fellow on Minerals.


Minerals Online Roundtable III: Extraction and Forms of Representation

Minerals Online Roundtable IV: Extractivism and Material Histories
Online
Apr 28, 9:00 am–10:30 am

The fourth and final roundtable in our online series for 2024/25 seeks to explore extractivism through the lens of material histories, encouraging expansive thinking about material culture associated with extractive practices and ideas.

Participants are invited to consider a wide array of materials, from extractive tools to architectures, from domestic artefacts to artworks created in mining fields, and from environmental remnants to archival records, etc. This roundtable aims to reveal how material culture can illuminate broader issues related to extractivism, including but not limited to race, gender, and environmental impacts, while also enabling the recovery of lost voices and stories.

Speakers:

Dr Madhavi Jha, Assistant Professor, Birla Institute of Technology & Science, Pilani
Dr Oliver Tappe, Substitute Professor, University of Kontstanz
Dr Nicholas Y. H. Wong, Assistant Professor, University of Hong Kong

The workshop was chaired by Dr Ge Tang, who is a Postdoctoral Fellow on Minerals.

Minerals Online Roundtable IV: Extractivism and Material Histories

We are delighted to welcome Alexander Dunlap back to the EXALT podcast for a conversation about his latest work. Xander has been looking at rare earth element mining, lithium mining, and solar panel lifecycles in the United States. Right now, he is writing up the research on the disposal and decommissioning of solar panels, which is where our conversation kicks off. Xander found that even in highly regulated states it is more economically efficient to just landfill them rather than recycle them (even if they would be technically recyclable). Low carbon technologies are being used in a lot of insidious ways in industrial and capitalist societies. We need to really reflect on what renewability really means and we need to think hard as researchers before we blindly engage with public relations words (i.e. sustainability, renewability). 

Check out the Justice in Renewable Energy Supply Chains projects investigating the life cycle of solar panels on the ground, where you can find more information, articles and policy briefs:
https://www.bu.edu/igs/research/projects/justice-in-renewable-energy-supply-chains/ 

If you would like to check out Xander’s other episodes, here are the direct links:
How is this system killing us and what can we do? https://podcasts.apple.com/fi/podcast/xander-dunlap-how-is-this-system-killing-us-and-what-can-we-do/id1499621252?i=1000650809357 

Until You Become Ungovernable, Why Would Anyone Listen to You? https://podcasts.apple.com/fi/podcast/alexander-dunlap-until-you-become-ungovernable-why/id1499621252?i=1000587449856 

Is "green energy" really that green (and is it better called "fossil fuel plus")? https://podcasts.apple.com/fi/podcast/alexander-dunlap-is-green-energy-really-that-green/id1499621252?i=1000506999251  

Check out Xander’s upcoming talk (26 Aug. 2025, 14:00-16:00) at University of Copenhagen https://cape.ku.dk/eng/calendar/2025/exploring-the-life-of-solar-panels/  

Want to learn more about Xander’s work? Check out his research profiles here: 
https://www.bu.edu/igs/profile/alexander-dunlap/
https://researchportal.helsinki.fi/en/persons/alexander-dunlap
https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Alexander-Dunlap?ev=hdr_xprf

Alexander Dunlap - How do we recognize the political occupation facilitating extractivism?

For the first time ever Turning Earth was broadcast live from the DDR studio. This month I was joined by David from Slí Eile to discuss their upcoming Day of Resistance in the Sperrin Mountains, to support to people there who have been fighting off an international mining company.

We were joined as well by Conor McCabe, to bring a broader analysis to the discussion and help us understand the nature of the colonial and neocolonial exploitation of Ireland by foreign capital.

https://www.instagram.com/sli_eile/

https://www.facebook.com/p/Greencastle-Peoples-Office-100063579042613/

DDR E.020 Day of Resistance in The Sperrins with Sli Eile and Conor McCabe

In episode 3 of Extracts, hosts Sarah Comyn and Megan Kuster arein conversation with Siyabonga Mthembu. Based in Johannesburg, Siya is the lead member of one of South Africa’s best known musical ensembles, The Brother Moves On. The Brother Moves On is widely regarded for their music which, in their own words, offers "transitional music for a transitional generation", An incredibly popular band, The Brother Moves On attracts huge audiences in South Africa and around the world. Their live shows are known for the band’s experimental performance approach which mixes art, music, and stories to create the conditions for transformative audience experiences. In today’s episode, Siya talks with us about the music industry, how Johannesburg’s gold mining foundations and legacies continue to shape his work, his concept of ultra sanity, and the projects he is looking forward to experimenting with next.

About Extracts

EXTRACTS is a podcast series about how artists are working to reimagine the potential futures of mined, excavated, and extractivist landscapes hosted by Sarah Comyn and Megan Kuster.

The music is from the South African performance art ensemble ‘The Brother Moves On’. We gratefully acknowledge the UCD Humanities Institute and UCD’s College of Arts & Humanities Research Strands Seed Funding scheme for funding this project.

Here's the link to John Grzinich's album 'Geofractions,' mentioned in the intro: https://maaheli.bandcamp.com/album/geofractions

Extracts - Episode 3. Siyabonga Mthembu

This month we are delighted to be joined by Markus Kröger, professor of Global Development Studies at University of Helsinki. Markus has joined the show before as a founder of the EXALT Initiative and as a PI in the Trees for Development project. This time Markus is here to talk to us about his new book from University of Cambridge Press, Clearcut: Political Economies of Deforestation. This open access book will be published open access in October 2025. Markus gives us a sneak peek into the key topics of the book, primarily the mechanisms of regionally dominant political economies (RDPE) and the role they play in driving extractive sectors. To make this novel theorization, Markus looked at cattle capitalism in Brazil, narco-gold in the Amazon, and paper pulping in Finland. Markus shows how these three different RDPEs drive deforestation in their respective locations.  

Interested in reading Clearcut? (Open access out now!) https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/clearcut/8BBC0BFBF9AF30A01D4A1F6F6DA8E89C

Interested in learning more about Markus’ work? https://researchportal.helsinki.fi/en/persons/markus-kr%C3%B6ger  

Interest in the Trees For Development Project? https://www.helsinki.fi/en/researchgroups/trees-for-development

Markus Kröger - What path dependencies determine if a forest is Clearcut? (Clearcut book discussion)

Dublin-based podcast documenting grassroots activism in Ireland

Recordings of academic lectures and papers from workshops, conferences and seminars in the University College Dublin Humanities Institute. The Institute provides a creative architectural and conceptual space for interdisciplinary research in the humanities and allied disciplines.

The podcasts are recorded and managed by Real Smart Media. https://soundcloud.com/real-smart-media

Resource extraction impacts our daily lives and has helped push the climate to the brink, but there are people around the world living and fighting for alternative ways forward. Join hosts Christopher Chagnon and Sophia Hagolani-Albov and their guests on the last Friday of each month for a discussion of the impacts of extractivisms, alternative ways forward, and stories from people living the struggle every day. If you are someone who is interested in how our environment and societies have come to their current state, or learning about different ways we can move forward, this is the podcast for you.

New tracks tagged #extractivism