AN ABSTRACT OF THE THESIS OF Jason A. Schindler for the degree of Master of Arts in Environmental Arts and Humanities presented on December 3, 2018. Title: Embodying Gaia: Bruno Latour’s Gaia and the Earthboundedness of Contemplative Pedagogy (a snail’s view) Abstract approved: ______________________________________________________ Barbara Muraca Bruno Latour’s Facing Gaia provokes us to embrace our Earthboundedness to approach the problematic political ecologies of the Anthropocene. Latour’s call for the Earthbound is to re-trace networks of society, institutions, and meaning and to challenge, as enemy, those that would continue to behave as if we lived on more than one Earth or would fall prey to the hubris in thinking our solutions were merely technological. Modernist separations of Science and Religion are shown rooted in perceptions and narratives of separateness over the reality of their hybridity and imbrication. Realizing this imbrication, science and religion need not be at odds. Modes of contemplative practices of mindfulness, meditation, and aikido mirror these calls for Latour’s Earthbounded reformation and reorientate the apparent dualities of human origins. Contemplative pedagogies also trace similar modalities of transdisciplinarity in academia and focus on corroborative practice over dogmatic narrative. This is traced through the work by way of a snail’s view, in homage to marginalia, the marginalized, and the chthonic beings of the overlooked world; this view situates an Earthboundedness, sensitivity to kin and encounter, and a praxis for moving forth-with, accomplishing reconciliation and reciprocity. In this way, we may better perceive the vicissitudes of and connect with the Anthropocene, face Gaia, and make kin of enemies, political and ecological. ©Copyright by Jason A. Schindler December 3, 2018 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED Embodying Gaia: Bruno Latour’s Gaia and the Earthboundedness of Contemplative Pedagogy (a snail’s view) by Jason A. Schindler A THESIS submitted to Oregon State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts Presented December 3, 2018 Commencement June 2019 Master of Arts thesis of Jason A. Schindler presented on December 3, 2018 APPROVED: Major Professor, representing Environmental Arts and Humanities Director of the Environmental Arts and Humanities Dean of the Graduate School I understand that my thesis will become part of the permanent collection of Oregon State University libraries. My signature below authorizes release of my thesis to any reader upon request. Jason A. Schindler, Author ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I wish to first recognize our Champinefu1 landcestors—those that were local stewards of the land before Oregon State University and Corvallis. Locally referred to as the Mary’s River band of the Kalapuya, we are guests of these previous caretakers and of the land we currently reside. The Kalapuya were forcibly removed after the Treaty of 1855 and resettled in what are now the reservations of the Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde and Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians. I am grateful for the peoples, scholars, elders and storytellers that make visible their presence and the injustices to these peoples and to the local environmental and geohistory. It is my hope that our work here continues to build that visibility and bring further restorative justices. My sincerest gratitude and appreciation goes first to my committee and their guidance to me through this thesis project. My major professor, Barbara Muraca, has challenged me with patience and kindness in many uncountable ways: in guiding me through my philosophy and program, inspiring me with Whitehead and world views, being willing to dig into working with Gaia, and her guidance and insight is present here, even if my inscription of it falls short. Stuart Sarbacker has been an inspiration to me towards the kind of active and integrated philosophy and pedagogy, a greening of yoga and dharma, and I cherish to see it unfold in academia. Vicki Tolar Burton has helped inspired me to the particular use of the intrusion of snails here, connected me to the rhetorics of Aikido, and her work towards fostering students’ writing and having indefatigable patience with my writing blocks is most appreciated. Ehren Pflugfelder has inspired a delving into rhetorics of body and nature, a keen Latourian reader and inspiration of kindness in teaching. And Joshua Reeves for being a patient and responsive reader and media savvy Graduate School Representative as part of my committee. 1 Variant spellings are available (Chepenefu, Chepenafa), though this is the one most recently adopted by Oregon State University and recent building name changes. See also “Kalapuya,” Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kalapuya, and Barnd, “A Lot to Ask of a Name,” https://oregonhumanities.org/rll/magazine/turn/a-lot-to-ask-of-a-name/. I could not be here without the beneficence of the Environmental Arts and Humanities program and the Spring Creek Project, both through assistantship and by design of a program I felt compelled and invested in as necessary to the present world. Jacob Hamblin, Charles Goodrich, Kathleen Dean Moore, Carly Lettero, Shelley Stonebrook and many unseen hands have been greatly helpful in spearheading this project and program, breathing passion and life into them, and guiding the many students I have forged as friends and colleagues here at OSU. I also want to thank those friends and other members of the EAH cohorts. They have all been a source of solace and supportive community facing the world as it slides towards an apparent shambles at times. My other poetics, Spring Creek, and Trillium Project participants, Eric Dickey, Frank Hall, Chris Grey, Rosemary Lombard (and tortoise Diode) and many others have also been a source of courage and inspiration (and dancing). A copious amount of thanks goes to the OSU Writing Center and my many mentors and colleagues there, and the additional employment in teaching and practicing the pedagogy of the student support of writing and its intersectional awarenesses. Dennis Bennett has been greatly helpful in inspiring confidence and reading and improving my thesis drafts; Chris Ervin for giving responsibility, a studio to work with, and a copious supply of pepper; Chris Nelson for thesis workshops, insights to research, and a Graduate Writing Center; Michelle Marie for inspiration, quotables, and encouragement; Adam Haley for copious higher academic insights and memeable quips; the URWS D&D group for fun and fantasy; and Adrian Monty for snail art and sass. Thanks to all the other Writing Center, Online, and Undergraduate Research and Writing Studio folks, colleagues and friends unmentioned. Thanks goes to all the faculty, scholars, teachers, professors, instructors, and staff I have had the pleasure to learn from and support my experience here. Special thanks to those allied with the EAH program: Evan Gottlieb and Ray Malewitz for an introduction to ecotheories, ecolit, Latour, and environmental humanities in general; Alan Thompson and Michael Nelson for a deeper understanding of environmental ethics. Many thanks to my science professors for having wonderful classes to help teach: Kari van Zee in helping embody the writing process for biochemistry and biophysics students; Jerri Bartholomew and Andy Myers for approaching science and art interdisciplinarily; and chemistry professors Christine Pastorek, Emile Firpo, and John Loeser for their writing intensive laboratory support and in inspiring a creative approach to chemistry. Thanks to my instructors and colleagues in the Graduate School and the Graduate Certificate in College and University Teaching program; it has been indispensable and satisfying in understanding the finer points of higher education, andragogical design, and course development. The OSU Contemplative Studies Initiative for initiating and further bringing forth contemplative studies research, attention, mindful and meditative spaces at this institution. Many thanks to all my Aikido teachers and sensei, particularly Joe Canon sensei and Steve Thoms sensei, for their instruction, indomitable centers, and corrective training. Their insistence and compassion for practice has shown me the deep power of this Art and brought forth much of the inspiration for this work to go forth in the world. Great gratitude and thanks of course goes to my family and friends that saw me through graduate school: the money lent, the patience of my absence and disconnection from social engagements, postponing of careers and self-livelihood, and the polite inquiries of what a humanities degree and philosophical focus might mean for the future. My thanks for my wonderful, loving, and supportive family: my parents Jay and Jane, my aunt Jean and uncles Ken and Paul, my other mother Merri, my other brother Sky, and all the extended and chosen family patiently waiting to hear about what the heck this thing is about. Many thanks to all my other friends and comrades I don’t have the cognizance, spoons, or space left to mention directly: especially dance friends, spider house friends, and gaming friends. You’ve all been helpful and appreciated. Special thanks goes to my partner Candice for being emotionally and cognitively supportive through all the recent changes in life, universes, and everything. She has put up with the strange work and hours of my grad student life,2 and I appreciate the work she does to support my endeavors. For all my other relations, many thanks and continued