All creatures breathe the same air – are we so different?

Every being on Earth – human and non-human - breathes the same air. Yet air is shared unevenly: we pollute it with our factories and lights at night, claim it with our airplanes, and even capitalize it through our wind turbines. In a world of climate disaster and rapidly vanishing habitats, an urgent question arises: who gets to claim air, who suffocates?

Despite all of our differences we have at least one thing in common: breath is universal. Shared breath could form the basis of a different kind of politics. One that reminds us of our connection with all living beings. This politics also opens a space for existential reflection: to sense how our lives are intertwined with all that breathes.

At this event, philosopher Sophie van Balen explores air, wind, and breath as our shared space. Can we reimagine the use of it? Van Balen investigates how shared breath and wind shape space for everyone. After that we will investigate how to be sensitive to the needs of animals, plants, and landscapes – how can we learn to listen and respond?

One of our speakers tonight is a strandbeest. Strandbeesten - created by artist Theo Jansen – feed on wind energy. They are meant to roam beaches independently and were created to survive on nothing more than the wind. Tonight, the strandbeest in the Library Hall will come to life. From its perspective it reflects on us, the humans who divide air and occupy space. Together with the audience, we explore what it means to truly share breath, life, and the Earth.