In English

Ever since he founded the „Grupo de los Cien” (the Group of 100)—writers, artists, and scientists devoted to the protection of the environment—Homero Aridjis has dedicated his poetry to raising awareness, gaining insights, and provoking concern for the environment—in other words: ecopoetry. “As leader of the „Grupo de los Cien” I have often felt like Sisyphus, confronting the same environmental problems over and over again, or Cassandra, prophesying disaster, or Don Quijote, because we sometimes seem like madmen tilting at windmills,” he writes. And yet he goes on campaigning. Homero’s love poem for A New Divan is entitled The Creation of the World by the Animals (according to the Popol Vuh). It ends on an optimistic note: “Y la creación se hace cada día.”—“And life is re-created every day.” What sustains a sustainability campaigner? How does an activist keep going? These and other questions will be discussed by the festival’s artist in residence, activist Bahia Shehab, and eco-poet and campaigner Homero Aridjis.