Sentientism

94: Let's create more effective, compasionate narratives - Writer Alex Lockwood - Sentientist Conversation


Listen Later

Alex (@alexlockwood & alexlockwood.co.uk) is a fiction & non-fiction writer. He is Senior Lecturer in the Centre for Research in Media & Cultural Studies at Uni of Sunderland. He has a PhD in Creative Writing from Newcastle University & has published stories, essays & journalism in a wide range of magazines, journals & newspapers. He has a particular fascination with how we write about our engagements and relations with the nonhuman world. Alex’s debut non-fiction work, The Pig in Thin Air, was published with Lantern Books in March 2016. Alex was one of the founding team of Animal Rebellion, a director of The Save Movement & a member of the Vegan Society‘s Research Advisory Committee. His “Planting Value” report for  @The Vegan Society  lays out plans for a transition towards a vegan UK plantingvalueinfood.org.

In Sentientist Conversations we talk about the two most important questions: “what’s real?” & “what matters?”

Sentientism is "evidence, reason & compassion for all sentient beings." The video of our conversation is here on YouTube.

We discuss:

00:00 Welcome

01:11 Alex’s Intro

  • A writer-academic-activist
  • The challenge of focus!
  • Private & public writing (e.g. COP26), being part of a network
  • 05:10 What’s Real?

    • Last week’s shamanic journeying ayahuasca retreat: “Asking deep questions about what it means to be a human being on this planet”
    • Animist ontologies & methodologies
    • Advocating for the non-human
    • “Who is a person?… can we co-create this planet [in a way] that recognises the birthright of all beings”
    • Growing up in working class, inner-city, South London council estates
    • Catholic upbringing, but with some atheist family
    • “School of hard knocks… spiritual & religious questions weren’t very real”
    • Confirmed as Catholic, school run by monks & church every weekend… “Realising it was a symbolic story… it wasn’t taught as a fundamentalist truth”
    • “Didn’t sit right with me that my very very kind & generous atheist grandfather (& his cats!) wasn’t going to go to heaven.”
    • Experiences of connecting with our planet, the broader universal spirit… that have always been quite real to me
    • ...
    • ...and much more. Full show notes at Sentientism.info and on YouTube.

      Sentientism is “Evidence, reason & compassion for all sentient beings.” More at Sentientism.info. Join our "I'm a Sentientist" wall via this simple form.

      Everyone, Sentientist or not, is welcome in our groups. The biggest so far is here on FaceBook. Come join us there!

      Thanks Graham.

      ...more
      View all episodesView all episodes
      Download on the App Store

      SentientismBy Jamie Woodhouse

      • 5
      • 5
      • 5
      • 5
      • 5

      5

      24 ratings


      More shows like Sentientism

      View all
      Democracy Now! Audio by Democracy Now!

      Democracy Now! Audio

      5,655 Listeners

      Philosophy Bites by Edmonds and Warburton

      Philosophy Bites

      1,528 Listeners

      TheThinkingAtheist by The Thinking Atheist

      TheThinkingAtheist

      2,832 Listeners

      Philosophize This! by Stephen West

      Philosophize This!

      15,040 Listeners

      Making Sense with Sam Harris by Sam Harris

      Making Sense with Sam Harris

      26,348 Listeners

      Knowing Animals by Josh Milburn

      Knowing Animals

      33 Listeners

      The Plant Based News Podcast by Plant Based News

      The Plant Based News Podcast

      346 Listeners

      Emergence Magazine Podcast by Emergence Magazine

      Emergence Magazine Podcast

      476 Listeners

      Sean Carroll's Mindscape: Science, Society, Philosophy, Culture, Arts, and Ideas by Sean Carroll | Wondery

      Sean Carroll's Mindscape: Science, Society, Philosophy, Culture, Arts, and Ideas

      4,127 Listeners

      Conspirituality by Derek Beres, Matthew Remski, Julian Walker

      Conspirituality

      1,968 Listeners

      Decoding the Gurus by Christopher Kavanagh and Matthew Browne

      Decoding the Gurus

      933 Listeners

      Clearer Thinking with Spencer Greenberg by Spencer Greenberg

      Clearer Thinking with Spencer Greenberg

      127 Listeners

      The Ezra Klein Show by New York Times Opinion

      The Ezra Klein Show

      15,311 Listeners

      The Weekly Show with Jon Stewart by Comedy Central

      The Weekly Show with Jon Stewart

      10,292 Listeners

      Is This Democracy by Lilliana Mason and Thomas Zimmer

      Is This Democracy

      385 Listeners