A few years ago, the first full summer we lived in Sherbrooke, my husband and I built a wooden planter … More
Author: Erin Despard
Archaeologies of urban landscape
Hinge Park, as if the past was present (Nicole Crawford, 2019) This past summer I taught a special topics course … More
Landscapes of inattention
Two papers of mine recently appeared in academic journals. Both have been a long time coming to print, so maybe … More
Climate change and the many solitudes of Canada
Last summer, my family and I moved from Sherbrooke to Vancouver. Sherbrooke is a city of 150,000 people, located in the … More
What is landscape criticism and what can it do?
Last year I published an essay on the alternative news website, Rabble. After much thought and with more than a little … More
Collective gardening as research
Last summer, my husband and I built a small garden-on-wheels: it was a large rectangular planter mounted on the wheel … More
The work of gardening
For the first time in my life, I have my own garden. That is, my first garden larger than a … More
What does it mean to think critically about plants and landscape and why should we keep doing it?
I have been doing a kind of plant-focused landscape criticism for a number of years now. Plants are essential to human … More
On leaving Scotland
Life in Quebec is easier than life in Scotland, and therefore happier; it feels like home. I am not sorry we … More
Reading urban plants for soil conditions
I have been helping out with a public arts initiative during Glasgow International (festival of visual arts). Soil City is … More