How can we address global inequalities in this era of climate change? What disciplines, methods can we use – and how can we do this research ethically, collaboratively? UBC Forestry PhD student Saori Ogura is working with Indigenous peoples in Zimbabwe and the Himalayas to support their knowledges about traditional nutritious crops as a counter to monocultural cash crops like cardamom. Saori tells PhDiva Xine about her research journey from Japan to Berkeley to UNESCO involving agricultural sciences, political science, ethno-ecology, and art. And most importantly, living with communities and learning from them, not just extracting knowledge as capital. Networks of ecologies mean considering the ethics of these transnational relationships. What does diversity mean across these different contexts? How is art integral to Saori’s project and what are the vital differences between drawing and photographing plants?

Ep image combines 2 drawings by Saori

Saori won the 2018 Nikon Miki Jun Inspiration Award for Photography. You can view more of her work here: http://saoriogura.info/

https://www.grad.ubc.ca/campus-community/meet-our-students/ogura-saori

https://expeditioneducation.org/

https://ced.berkeley.edu/events-media/news/ced-alumna-saori-ogura-receives-prestigious-nikon-salon-photography-award