Because of the work of researchers like Malcom Ferdinand, we are increasingly beginning to think of ecological issues as inseparable from anti-racist and anti-patriarchal demands for equality. This conversation coincided with the English language publication of Ferdinand's book Decolonial Ecology. Building around the idea of a politics of encounter, the conversation explores what a non-colonial way of being in relation with one another might look like, extending this vision to include non-humans and the earth itself. In the face of the growing storm of climate catastrophe, Ferdinand invites us to build a world-ship where humans and non-humans can live together on a bridge of justice and shape a common world.

Malcom Ferdinand is a researcher in political ecology and environmental humanities at the Centre national de la recherche scientifique (IRISSO/University Paris Dauphine). He has published on topics such as climate justice and the struggle against the toxic legacies of slavery and colonialism.

Romy Opperman is a Mellon Postdoctoral Fellow in Philosophy at the New School for Social Research, New York. Her research bridges Africana, continental, decolonial, environmental and feminist philosophy to foreground issues of racism and colonialism for environmental ethics and justice.

Romy Opperman (RO): How do you understand “decolonial ecology”? I ask this in the context of your book, but also because the terms “decolonial” and “decolonizing” often get used quite freely within academia.

Malcom Ferdinand (MF): I titled my book Decolonial Ecology, and, as you point out, there are often confusions between the terms “decolonizing ecology” and “decolonial ecology”. To me, decolonial ecology argues that ecological issues are not separate from socio-political ones. So, I argue that the ecological imperative to preserve the ecosystem – for instance, to limit pollution and reduce biodiversity loss – should be fought together with what is often called the “decolonial demand”; that is, the anti-racist demand for equality and to be treated fairly. The goal of decolonial ecology is to think them together. I am not the first one to bring these two ideas together, but the reason why I make this connection – and especially in the context of France where I live and work, and where the book was first published – is because ecological issues have typically been thought of as separate from the anti-racist movement, from Afro-feminist demands, and even, to some extent, from the struggle against gender discrimination.