“TRANSLOCAL” NARRATION OF ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES THROUGH GRAPHIC NOVELS: TWO ITALIAN CASE STUDIES
Journal Title: Central European Journal of Geography and Sustainable Development - Year 2021, Vol 3, Issue 1
Abstract
The prevalence of mainstream media as source of information on environmental issues and their tendency to draw global attention around a few major, dramatic environmental disasters (melting of glaciers in the Arctic, desertification and drought in the African continent, deforestation of the Amazon, oil pollution in the oceans, etc.), is creating in less conative readers/audience a lack of awareness of the damages suffered in the local territorial systems to which they belong and low willingness to collective action. Therefore, crossing and comparing the highest possible number of sources of information, preferring those that can generate a proactive response to events and themes concerning environmental sustainability and highlight deep local/global interconnections, is essential to attain an independent, critical, and responsible narration. After shortly illustrating some theoretical and methodological considerations developed in the areas of popular geopolitics, anti-geopolitics and ecocriticism, this paper reviews two Italian graphic novels providing a bottom-up representation of local environmental issues: the first one deals with the eutrophication of the Orbetello Lagoon (Tuscan Maremma); the second one concerns the collapse of the tailings dams of the Prestavèl fluorite mines located in Val di Stava (Trentino Alto Adige), a disaster that caused the death of 268 people. We will try to point out how the authors, who are totally “embedded” in their works, provide a “translocal” narration, condemning effectively and immediately the environmental damages in the territorial context analysed and, at the same time, highlighting the interconnections between such site-specific events and global sustainability, inviting readers to adopt an holistic view of the nature-culture relationship, beyond the anthropocentric and instrumentalist production model which considers biosphere a mere tool to satisfy the contingent needs of contemporary society.
Authors and Affiliations
Antonella Rinella, Federica Epifani
Keywords
Related Articles
- EP ID EP697508
- DOI 10.47246/CEJGSD.2021.3.1.1
- Views 163
- Downloads 0
VISUALIZATION OF THE GEOPHYSICAL SETTINGS IN THE PHILIPPINE SEA MARGINS BY MEANS OF GMT AND ISC DATA
The presented research aimed to perform geophysical modelling (gravity and geoid) and to evaluate the spatio-temporal variation of the marine geological data (distribution and depth of earthquakes) using combination of...
Status and use of water supply and sewerage systems in the Northern Development Region of the Republic of Moldova
Water is an important resource for evolution and development of the economy of the North Development Region of the Republic of Moldova. From its availability and facilities to supply depend over 909 thousands inhabitan...
MONGOLIAN DOMESTIC TOURISTS’ MOTIVATION AND REVISIT INTENTION: MEDIATING EFFECT OF PERCEIVED BENEFIT AND PERCEIVED VALUE
An understanding of domestic tourists’ motivation and its relationship between perceived value and revisit intention is important for prediction of future travel demand. This study aims to examine domestic tourists’ mo...
CRITICAL APPRAISAL OF AN EXAMPLE OF BEST PRACTICE IN URBAN SUSTAINABILITY
Urban centers are key to achieving the global goals of sustainability. Urban sustainability entails having thriving cities that fulfill their needs without impacting the long-term sustainability of the ecosystem. Achie...
DOES FLOODING UNDERMINE THE MANAGEMENT CAPACITIES OF THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC? A STUDY OF LAGOS STATE, NIGERIA
Given the dynamics of climate events (hazards) and their linkages to human health, it is imperative to continuallly check the impacts of these events on the public health system. While efforts have been made to understa...