The Ecological Translation symposium and exhibition, taking place at the Goethe-Institut in Athens from April 28 to May 30, 2026, offers a profound interdisciplinary exploration of the climate crisis.
By bringing together experts from law, science, technology, policy, and the arts, the event interrogates how digital technologies, specifically AI and bioacoustics, are transforming our ability to “listen” to and communicate with the natural world.
The core premise asks a provocative question: how would our approach to climate change shift if we could move beyond the anthropocentric view of nature as a resource and instead foster direct, interspecies communication?
Drawing on Michel Serres’ concept of the “natural contract,” the event examines the emergence of “digital conservationism.” Bioacousticians and scientists are now utilizing sensors, hydrophones, and AI to decode the “languages” of whales, birds, and even plants. These advancements suggest that by translating non-human communication into human terms, we might develop more sophisticated, integrated responses to environmental collapse.
The program is structured to bridge the gap between abstract theory and practical application. It features a two-day symposium (April 28–29) where panels discuss the “interfaces” of media systems, the power dynamics of digital ecological management, and “speculative ecologies.”
Alongside the academic inquiry, the event includes a public exhibition and immersive experiences, such as the Hidden Mother Waters sound walk led by Eleni Riga. This walk invites participants to attune themselves to the “submerged” and “buried” flows of water beneath Athens, highlighting the invisible environmental infrastructures that define urban life.
Ultimately, Ecological Translation does not propose a simple technological fix. Instead, it serves as a critical forum to examine the opportunities and ethical hazards inherent in our reliance on data-driven ecological management.
By fostering a dialogue between those who study the law of the Anthropocene and those who map the dialects of the ocean, the project invites the public to reimagine the human place within an increasingly mediated, fragile, and communicative planetary ecosystem. It is an essential moment for considering how, in an age of data, we might finally learn to “speak” with the life that sustains us.
