WATER NARRATIVES—
RETHINKING THE ‘ELSEWHERE’ 

Water Narratives is an ongoing collaborative project between marine biology NGOs, maritime museums, and ocean activists that explores oceans and islands, focusing on the Mediterranean Sea and the Pacific Ocean. Inspired by the poet and philosopher Édouard Glissant’s concept of “archipelagic thinking,” this project examines the tensions between the continent and the island, contemporary migration, and the historical legacies of colonial maritime routes. By engaging with European and South American archipelagos—such as Palermo (Italy), Malta, and Chiloé (Chile)—as key case studies, the project seeks to reimagine islands as spaces of possibility rather than isolated peripheries. It also aims to challenge Eurocentric perspectives on multispecies and non-human relationships from a Global South standpoint, while addressing the urgent ecological crises threatening marine biodiversity and the fragile balance of archipelagic ecosystems.

Castro, Chiloé 2025  © Rosemary Garland

This project employs performative processes and sound-based interventions, including collective listening sessions, sensory walks, and marine soundscape recordings. Rooted in a feminist ethics of care and decolonial practices, it examines socio-political struggles embedded in colonial histories, with a particular focus on their manifestation in urban-ocean spaces and cultural narratives. By engaging local island communities, Water Narratives aspires to collaboratively reimagine the "Elsewhere"—often represented by the island—as a space rich in cultural, ecological, and historical layers. Through artistic and urban sound mapping, the project unveils the complex relationships between coloniality, ecology, and the island-continent dichotomy. Ultimately, it offers a critical and poetic way to connect the Mediterranean and the Pacific through interdisciplinary approaches that address pressing global issues such as migration, climate change, and biodiversity loss.