Tierra Viva Seminar at the Association for the Study of Literature Conference
Tierra Viva Collaborative is seeking participants for a Tierra Viva Seminar at the Association for the Study of Literature Conference. This conference will take place June 22-24,2027 at the University of Maryland, College Park on the ancestral lands of the Piscataway People.
What is the ASLE Seminar Structure?
This is a new modality for ASLE. 9–12 participants agree to meet during the same time slot for all three days of the conference, with 3–4 participants presenting per day. The goal is for the seminars to proceed less as conventional presentations and more as writing workshops, fostering in-depth exchange over the course of several days rather than in the space of a single session. Tierra Viva will be submitting a proposal for a pre-formed seminar.
Who or What is Tierra Viva?
Tierra Viva is an emerging multi-institutional network for scholars, students, creatives, and organizers cultivating caring relationships, joyful collaborations, and ethical capacity in Latinx environmentalisms. We offer mutual support for scholarship, arts, grassroots organizing, and community-engaged work that turns theory into action.Co-founders are Moe Gámez, Gabriela E. Nuñez, David J. Vázquez, Sarah D. Wald, and Priscilla Solis Ybarra
What kinds of papers do you seek? We are looking for papers that engage with the intersections of Latinx Studies, the humanities, and the environment, broadly speaking. We are most interested in work that addresses one of Tierra Viva’s priority areas: Afro-Latinx Studies, Critical Latinx Indigeneities, and/or Queer and Trans Latinx Studies. Our second priority is work that engages with the ASLE Conference’s theme of Territory: Terra, Terroir, Terror. “Territory signifies both shared and contested space. The term takes its root from terra, meaning earth or land. It shares sensibility with terroir, the unique ecological aspects of a particular place. And the term simultaneously calls up the violences perpetrated in the name of ownership—the climate-changing realities of colonialism, settler colonialism, and racial colonial capitalism. Territory, in other words, tells not just of terra and terroir, but also of terrere—terror. The Association for Literature and the Environment’s 2027 conference theme invites us to consider these convergences.”
What resources are available? We will be able to provide $500 per person in funding for participants accepted into the Tierra Viva Seminar.
What expectations come with this funding? Tierra Viva believes in building community. We hope participants will join us for at least two additional networking activities (such as a meal during ASLE and pre-conference Zoom call to meet one another ahead of the conference). We also hope you will allow us to recognize the work that develops from the TV Seminar as part of our network and allow us to publicize across our network (such as on our socials and our website and announced at future receptions or networking events).
How do I apply? Please direct questions or applications to Moe Gámez at mog@uoregon.edu. To apply, please submit a (300 words/2000 characters or less) by Monday Nov 30th, 2026. Accepted panelists will be notified by December 14, 2027. Formal submission to ASLE is required by Friday, January 8th, 2027.
