Ecopoetry: Writing Poems for a Sustainable and Diverse World with Jane Robinson

Course Summary

Over four weeks, ecosystems and far ranging effects of their disruption will be discussed. How has poetry engaged with these matters? You’ll compose new poems through a variety of prompts and inspirations, with a particular emphasis on Dublin’s local environment: the wild plants and animals, the climate and your own movements through your ecos or home place.

Course Outline

Each Wednesday you’ll spend the first hour studying and discussing ecology and poetry, the second hour drafting and/or sharing new writing.

The course will include: discussion of the term ecopoetry; connections between poetry, natural history, ecology and environment; reading of selected contemporary poems; introduction to biodiversity, field guides, first-hand observations; poems of appreciation, despair and revolt; approaching the page with energy despite grief and worry; the use of metaphor; local and global ecosystems; the Gaia concept; and the importance of imagining to achieve. Tactile, visual, formal and literary prompts are offered to inspire new writing.

Course Outcomes

To write three new poems and develop an understanding of ecology. Explore ways to sustain a poetic practice that engages with natural history, ecosystems, and human-induced ecological chaos. Feedback and discussions will be tailored to individual and group needs and experience.

Jane Robinson is an Irish poet who lives in Dublin. She was educated at Trinity College Dublin and the California Institute of Technology and worked as a scientist in Ireland, India, and the US for ten years before turning to writing, particularly poetry, to express and explore the urgent issue of environmental change. Her poems have been recognized by awards including the Strokestown International Poetry Prize and the Shine Strong Award for her debut collection, Journey to the Sleeping Whale. A second collection will be published in March 2023.