Interview, Queer Mycology, & In[ter]dependence Day Celebration
Starting the summer off right with an abundance of fungal love.
Dear Fellow Myconauts,
To celebrate Pride this month we will be hosting our second queer mycology discussion - this time featuring lichens & Lynn Margulis. Check out our in[ter]dependence day July 4th potluck celebration hosted by fellow myconaut Robyn and a mushroom growing field trip!
Last month I was interviewed by Voyage LA as part of their series to highlight community organizers in the LA area. I share a bit about my love story with fungi and why I started creating spaces of belonging – like the Mycoverse – that did not exist for people like me.
Queer Mycology
Monday, June 26th, 7pm @ Arlington Garden, Pasadena, CA
“We are all lichens.”
- Gilbert, Sapp, and Tauber
After watching the ever-so-inspiring Symbiotic Earth, we will discuss it and Lynn Margulis's legacy as a group. We will also discuss how her work has affected the world of fungi and inspired such things as the Queer Theory for Lichens.
The Queer Theory for Lichens is in response to the provocative work from Margulis and her colleagues that we have never been individuals and we are all lichens. What are some of the new questions and new relationships among different living entities that arise from this? For instance, if we have never been human – if we are all composites like lichens – then what does this mean for sexuality?
Before the discussion we invite you to:
Read the Queer Theory for Lichens
Watch Symbiotic Earth – if you missed the screening earlier this month, the film is screening on Vimeo here.
Take a look at the helpful further reading and questions in the free Symbiotic Earth Study Guide
Bonus: Read/revisit Mycology as a Queer Discipline by Patricia Kaishian. We discussed this last year and loved it – highly recommended for those who haven't read it yet.
Mycoverse Field Trip - Oyster Mushroom Grow Kit Workshop
Thursday, June 29th, 5pm, @ Los Angeles State Historic Park 1245 North Spring Street Los Angeles, CA 90012
We will be visiting fellow Radical Mycologist James Oliver from Metabolic Studios at the end of the month to learn more about his literally groundbreaking work about remediating the LA River and cultivating relationships with fungi! Folks who show up and can take home an oyster mushroom grow bag, RSVP is encouraged.
In[ter]dependence Day Potluck
Tuesday, July 4th, 3-6pm, Robyn’s Backyard Glendale, CA
Let’s celebrate the independence (and interdependence) that learning about and from fungi has brought to our lives with a potluck gathering in Robyn's backyard in Glendale on July 4! Thank you Robyn for hosting!!
For more info click the link above.
Things that caught our eye
Evolution of Mycorrhizal Fungal Relationships animation by Merlin Sheldrake (ft. soundtrack by Cosmo Sheldrake)
The Man Who Turned the World on to the Genius of Fungi – an excellent profile on Merlin Sheldrake by New York Times Magazine
Hyphal and mycelial consciousness: The concept of the fungal mind by Nicholas Money