Terraforming: Historical Vision, Challenges, Limits
- conference
-
projection
TerraForma tells the remarkable story of Ascension Island, a remote volcanic outcrop in the South Atlantic Ocean that emerged from the sea just over a million years ago, a geological newborn in the Earth's 4.6-billion-year history. Located about 1,600 kilometers from the nearest landmass, this arid island remained largely lifeless for millennia—a stark landscape of volcanic rock and ash with minimal vegetation, earning it the nickname "island of ashes" by early sailors. Its youth meant that life had barely begun to establish itself when humans arrived. Discovered by the Portuguese on Ascension Day in 1503, the island remained uninhabited until the British established a naval garrison there in 1815 following Napoleon's exile to nearby Saint Helena. What followed was one of the most ambitious ecological experiments in history. When Charles Darwin visited the island in 1836 aboard the HMS Beagle, he was struck by its arid desolation and suggested it should be transformed into a "productive place." Seven years later, in 1843, botanist Joseph Hooker visited and, encouraged by Darwin's vision, drew up an ambitious plan to turn Ascension's barren summit, Green Mountain, into a lush garden. From 1847, Hooker, who would later lead the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew, organized the shipment of plants, trees, and seeds from across the Empire—Australian eucalyptus, Asian bamboo, Norfolk pines from the Pacific—creating an entirely artificial ecosystem atop the island. This "terraforming" project of the Victorian era reshaped the island's ecology to meet the British Empire's political and economic needs, establishing a green supply station for ships and a symbol of imperial power over nature—but only at the expense of what existed before. The new environment, apparently a paradise, was in fact a mirage: a reflection of Victorian ambition, empire, and understanding of the natural world. And as such, it was doomed to unexpected failure. Many believe that future geoengineering projects on our planet, or terraforming of other planets, would simply follow the same pattern. With the help of experts in geoengineering, ecology, politics, and design, TerraForma explores lessons we might learn from Ascension Island's unique history. What does its story mean for our planet, in a future where terraformed landscapes and human-shaped environments could distort our understanding of "nature" itself?
Good to know
62 min film by Kevin Brennan and Laurence Durkin, followed by a discussion with the directors.
Free entry, registration required.
Automatically translated from French.
Where does it take place?
Cercle Cité
Pl. d'Armes
1648 Ville-Haute Luxembourg
by 
Weather forecast (Luxembourg)
Otherwise… check out the agenda
see all the things
to do around you
Hey, don’t go away...
Get the best
outings around you
All the best deals
events
spots
