Conceiving of Climate Change: Ecological Engagement and the Arts

About the Event:

Just like scientists, artists of every stripe, including filmmakers, novelists, poets, musicians, photographers, and others, have become deeply concerned about climate change. Often, their works combine the insights of science fiction and the reality of environmental disaster, showing us what the future may hold for humankind and the planet. Some call this visionary new genre “Cli-Fi.” In his presentation, Dr. Olson introduced and discussed several examples of Cli-Fi works from different art forms, as well as considered how they might engage our imaginations around climate change and help us grapple with pressing ecological concerns.

About the Speaker:

Jamie Olson is a professor of English at Saint Martin’s University, a small Benedictine institution in Lacey, Washington. His essays and translations from Russian have recently appeared in America Magazine, Translation Review, and the collection American Writers in Exile (edited by Birkenstein & Hauhart). Jamie received his B.A. in English from the College of St. Scholastica in Minnesota and his Ph.D. from the University of Michigan, where he specialized in modern poetry. In 2017, he received an NEA Translation Fellowship to support his work translating Timur Kibirov. He is currently teaching as a Fulbright U.S. Scholar in Tbilisi, Georgia.