Rachel Carson Center

Today, we’re highlighting the essay “Tell Me a Story, Tell Me the World” by urban environmental humanities scholar Jamie Wang, featured in the recently published tenth issue of 𝘚𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴!

In close dialogue with Zana Fraillon, urban environmental humanities scholar Jamie Wang, in the essay “Tell Me a Story, Tell Me the World,” extolls storytelling as a relational and ethical practice. In an age where we are saturated with content and consumed by climate injustices, the author explains, it is the thickness of a narrative that ensures both its thoroughness and its stickiness.

Read the essay online on 𝘚𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴: https://springs-rcc.org/tell-me-a-story-tell-me-the-world/
📸 Photo © CEphoto, Uwe Aranas. All rights reserved.

Today, we would like to highlight the short story “The Mangrove Doesn’t Forget” by the Malaysian writer Rachel Desiree Felix from the recently published tenth issue of 𝘚𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴!

The short story “The Mangrove Doesn’t Forget” explores an emotionally resonant relationship between human and environment. Writer Rachel Desiree Felix draws inspiration from personal and cultural memory to unveil histories of displacement, trauma, and the entanglement of landscape and narrative. Mysterious and atmospheric, the tale takes readers deep into a mangrove forest to a stilted wooden home swollen with river water, tree roots, and remembrance.

You can now read this article online on 𝘚𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴: https://springs-rcc.org/the-mangrove-doesnt-forget/

🎨Illustration by Alexandra Hochreiter. All rights reserved.

𝘚𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴 is now on Spotify!

We’re excited to share that all audio recordings from 𝘚𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴: 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘙𝘢𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘭 𝘊𝘢𝘳𝘴𝘰𝘯 𝘊𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘙𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘦𝘸 are now available to listen to on Spotify!

🎙️ To listen click here: https://open.spotify.com/show/033PmGfSQr10LDTwbNX6Ht or search for “Springs: Rachel Carson Center Review” on Spotify.

Happy listening!

On Friday, 10 July, Christof Mauch celebrated the culmination of his long and successful career with friends and colleagues at the Evangelische Akademie in Tutzing. Amidst soft summer breezes across the lake, a crowd of 300 well-wishers gathered to participate in festivities dedicated to Christof’s expansive reach as a scholar, a mentor, and a friend.

Read full news item: https://www.carsoncenter.uni-muenchen.de/news/news_events/2026-news/mauch_farewell/index.html

Today, we would like to highlight the essay “The Future of the Environmental Humanities Is Not in the Seminar Room” by historian Rob Gioielli from the recently published tenth issue of 𝘚𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴.

In this article, historian Rob Gioielli urges us to reconsider how—and to whom—environmental humanists articulate their findings. As we explain and understand the complex web of relationships between human and more-than-human worlds, he writes, we must prevent isolation from the general public and our colleagues in more technical and scientific disciplines. His essay, “The Future of the Environmental Humanities Is Not in the Seminar Room,” is a call for engagement and connection outside of the traditional teaching environment.

You can now read this article online on 𝘚𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴: https://springs-rcc.org/the-future-of-the-environmental-humanities/

Tomorrow, as part of this double film screening, two students from the Environmental Studies Certificate Program will present their films:

The screening will begin with 𝘈𝘢𝘫𝘰𝘰𝘳, directed by Kuldeep Kumar. This independent community film tells the story of a resilient young girl from rural Bihar, India, who balances household responsibilities with her education following the loss of her mother.

It will be followed by 𝘙𝘌_𝘕𝘈𝘛𝘜𝘙𝘈𝘓—𝘕𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘗𝘢𝘳𝘬 𝘉𝘢𝘺𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘞𝘢𝘭𝘥: 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘛𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘴𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘢 𝘍𝘰𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘵, Fabian Schunder's final project. The film explores the transformation of a managed cultural landscape into a natural forest ecosystem, highlighting the sociocultural dimensions of this process through interviews and local perspectives.

The event is open to all interested members of the public, and admission is free. We warmly invite you to join us for an evening of film and discussion!

𝐋𝐨𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧: Rachel Carson Center, fourth floor, Conference Room, Leopoldstr. 11a, 80802 Munich, Germany

We'd like to highlight the podcast 𝘋𝘦𝘳 𝘎𝘳𝘶̈𝘯𝘦 𝘏𝘰̈𝘳𝘴𝘢𝘢𝘭, produced by the Environmental Affairs Office of the LMU Munich Student Council, especially their recently released episode, "The Rachel Carson Center—Research Focused on Humans and Their Environment!"

In this episode, Dr. Susanne B. Unger introduces the Rachel Carson Center, offering insights into its research on the relationships between humans and their environment, the importance of international collaboration, and the opportunities to study at the RCC. Whether you're curious about environmental humanities research or considering future study options, this episode is well worth a listen.

🎧 Find 𝘋𝘦𝘳 𝘎𝘳𝘶̈𝘯𝘦 𝘏𝘰̈𝘳𝘴𝘢𝘢𝘭 on Spotify or listen here:
https://open.spotify.com/show/46zJne0McHLrWnr7XM0nzh?si=xgMB1x_vS8-NynSm_pFpoQ&nd=1&dlsi=f5c30a9c0ec1496a

Today’s highlight from the recently-published tenth issue of 𝘚𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴 is “Mapped Futures, Vanishing Places: On Inheritance at the Water’s Edge” by literary scholar Kumiko Kiuchi!

In this article, Kumiko Kiuchi portrays the simple act of walking as an opportunity to inherit shared memory. Her writing takes off from Tokyo’s artificial waterfront into a creative space stretching from past generations into imagined futures, reminding us to remain “attentive to what cannot be fully possessed or understood.”

You can now read this article online on 𝘚𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴: https://springs-rcc.org/mapped-futures-vanishing-places/

📸 © 2026 Kumiko Kiuchi. All rights reserved.

Join us tomorrow at our International Colloquium with

Pei-yin Lin (University of Hong Kong), who will present on “Archipelagic Imaginary and Cetacean Narratives in Contemporary Taiwan”

and John Agbonifo (Osun State University), who will present on “Relational Ecology, the Benin Bronzes, and Ecological Justice”

All are welcome, and attendance is free.

Find out more: https://www.carsoncenter.uni-muenchen.de/events_conf_seminars/calendar/colloquium-series12/index.html

Today, we would like to highlight the interview “One Woman’s Waste Is Another Woman’s Treasure: A Conversation with Kim Curtis” by Regina M. Bichler and Kim Curtis from the recently-published tenth issue of 𝘚𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴.

Sometimes the link between environmental issues and creative action is a matter of personal expression. In “One Woman’s Waste Is Another Woman’s Treasure,” Regina M. Bichler, a waste and sustainability researcher, interviews the artist Kim Curtis on using environmental struggles and successes as artistic inspiration. Their conversation spans Curtis’s multimedia artworks, political strategies for minimizing environmental harms, and the roles that individuals must play in crafting ecological futures.

You can now read this interview here: https://springs-rcc.org/one-womans-waste-is-another-womans-treasure/

🖌© Kim Curtis. All rights reserved.