Nienke Roth – ‘How can stories protect the climate?’

Storytelling is vital in our understanding of the world around us; folk tales contribute to the identity of a country and its landscape. Lens-based artist, writer and collector Nienke Roth researches the role of nature in Dutch folk tales. She wonders whether the declining presence of folk tales was an early malefactor that fuelled the disconnect between the human species and planet earth. Her project is an investigation in how stories can have the power to protect the climate. How can tales influence the way humans treat nature, and can they bring us closer to reconnecting with the ecosystems all around? Can the act of remembering and passing on stories give a new meaning to a man-made land that colonized the sea?