Episode #45: Will Smith and Monica Minnegal

Conversations in Anthropology

In this episode, Tim sits down with Associate Professor Monica Minnegal to chat to Dr. Will Smith, an environmental anthropologist and research fellow at Deakin University. Will’s book, ‘Mountains of Blame: Climate and Culpability in the Philippine Uplands’ recently published with University of Washington Press, explores the political ecologies of forests in relation to the experiences and effects of climate change on the island of Pala’wan, in the Philippines. This conversation tackles some thorny questions around Indigenous understandings of changing climates, the refusal by communities to be categorized by governments as vulnerable victims or resilient saviours, and more-than-human relations marked by fear and violence, rather than reciprocity, flourishing, or love. As Will states, the forests are full of malevolent spirits, and he has been bitten by a lot of stuff in the forests of Pala’wan. Enjoy this great conversation between Will Smith, Monica Minnegal, and Tim Neale. Show Credits Lead Production: Tim Neale Editing: Mythily Meher, Tim Neale, and Matt Barlow. This episode was recorded by Tim Neale on the lands of Wurundjeri people of the Kulin Nation. Check us out on twitter @ anthroconvo.