Disciplinary Webs: The Growing Role of Environmental Storytelling in the School of Writing, Literature, and Film
By Sam Olson
When Tim Jensen, Director of the School of Writing, Literature, and Film, was asked to describe the School's growing relationship to "environmental storytelling," one of the first things that came to his mind was the term "mycelial growth." Mycelium is the root-like subterranean structure of fungus; stretching through soil and drawing in resources, it often transforms nutrients for the benefit of other beings. "That's totally the word for what's happening here," Jensen said, "we're growing towards nourishment."
From welcoming high-profile writers and scientists such as Robin Wall Kimmerer, Michael Pollan, and Ben Goldfarb, to offering students diverse opportunities for academic and experiential cross-pollination, the School of Writing, Literature, and Film has both intentionally and organically leaned into its role as a nexus for environmental storytelling.
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"We're recognizing our own unique responsibility and skillset to respond to the most pressing ecological and socio-political issues," Jensen explained. "It's a moral exigency. We must use storytelling to attend to these very real issues." As the author of Ecologies of Guilt in Environmental Rhetorics, Jensen's academic background lends itself towards recognizing the urgent need for effective communications, especially given the shortcomings of past environmental movements. That's why one of his goals is "to prioritize collaboration both within and beyond Moreland Hall to create an ecosystem of academic professionals that includes and benefits, first and foremost, our students."
One such opportunity for that "enmeshment" of science and writing happened when 2024 Stone Award recipient Robin Wall Kimmerer, celebrated for her literary explorations around the intersections of Western science and traditional Indigenous ecological knowledge, visited campus. Students engaged with the Potawatomi scientist and author of Braiding Sweetgrass in a variety of manners, including a discussion-based book club, a campus "moss-walk," and a chance to hear the author speak on May 17th at the Patricia Valian Reser Center for the Arts (PRAx). As Jensen stated, it was "an opportunity to connect with students and faculty across the
OSU community, particularly those in the natural sciences, who recognize the essential role of skilled writing when engaging urgent environmental issues.
Those students invested in deepening their scientific communication skills can work towards a "Science, Technical, and Professional Communication" certificate offered by the School of Writing, Literature, and Film. By taking classes in Technical Writing, Science Writing, Environmental Interpretation, Advanced Argumentation, and other subjects ranging from agriculture to digital literacy, students learn to identify, study, and develop rhetorical strategies to respond to complex, nuanced scientific and cultural issues. This certificate draws students of diverse disciplines who "want to create nonfiction that matters, or could matter, to a lot of people," says SWLF Professor Ehren Plugfelder. "We see a lot of students investigating the events and concepts that they’re both concerned and anxious about. Often, they recognize that pursuing these stories helps them both communicate with a broader public and ground them in the ideas that matter most to our collective futures."
The School's commitment to environmental storytelling is also reflected in its "organic growth" through interpersonal connections, both academic and professional. By bringing in "high-profile writers and thinkers," the department continues to broaden its reach and pull for students across disciplines. One recent visitor includes Michael Pollan, known for expansive yet accessible research on the cultural impacts of food and food systems. In April, the author and sustainable food advocate participated in the 2023-2024 Provost's Lecture series, joining Dr. Emily Ho, University Distinguished Professor of Nutrition, for a public discussion. Beforehand, Pollan also met privately to chat with a group of about thirty students from across disciplines, including those from SWLF's Food Writing and Magazine Writing classes.
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That same month, the department-sponsored film "The Wonder and the Worry" premiered at PRAx. A documentary that explores the power of environmental storytelling through the "intertwined" careers of OSU alumnus and former National Geographic Editor in Chief, photojournalist, and OSU alumnus Chris Johns and his daughter, also a freelance photographer, the feature film follows their respective paths, examining the "real world" impact and effect of photojournalism on how ecological issues are communicated. Chris Johns' connection to the School goes even deeper; a graduate of the class of 1974, he is also a member of the advisory council for the Oregon Stater alumni magazine and has mentored student journalists through internships and classroom collaborations.
The School also welcomed environmental journalist Michelle Nijhuis, whose fall and winter seminars focused on exploring how students might "talk about conservation so people will listen," as well environmental journalist and writer Ben Goldfarb, whose talk on the ecological value of beavers drew so many attendees (of Oregon State's kind and beyond), Jensen turned to a colleague and said, "if you need a reminder for the importance of environmental storytelling, here it is."
What runs through the "mycelial web" stretching out from the School and into the broader academic community is a shared commitment to "tell the environmental stories that need to be told." It's a recognition that the environmental problems we're faced with, both locally and globally, are too complex to be solved by any one discipline or approach. "Embedding storytellers dealing with those very real problems in this department is not only a naturally advantageous move," Jensen said, "but a responsibility." No matter what tangible solutions arise, how we tell those stories will drive their impact. The School of Writing, Literature, and Film's intentional and organic growth as a center for environmental storytelling is a sign of its attunement to, and dedication to supporting, the academic ecosystem of concerned earthly citizens.