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Black Feminism and the Polycrisis: Configuring a Novel Solution Space Through Intersectional Methodology

How can we use the unique insights and intersectional methods of Black feminism to respond to the complexities of the contemporary polycrisis?

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Black Feminism and the Polycrisis: Configuring a Novel Solution Space Through Intersectional Methodology

How can we use the unique insights and intersectional methods of Black feminism to respond to the complexities of the contemporary polycrisis?

Marcia Kure, "Shifters and Monarchs. The Series X" (2018). Collage and 23 Karat Gold on Arches Hot Press Watercolor paper. © The Artist. Courtesy of Susan Inglett Gallery, NYC. | Read More

Relevancy

The term polycrisis was popularized by historian Adam Tooze to describe the interconnected crises of climate change, pandemics, inequality, economic downturn, and the war in Ukraine that characterize our current era. While this definition is accurate, it is also incomplete in crucial ways. First, there are other pressing crises that aren't typically mentioned in the polycrisis discourse, such as the wars in Gaza and Sudan, the epidemic of male violence against women, and the refugee crisis. Second, there are deeper "meta" crises: the crisis of relationships – between different social groups and between humans and the ecosystems they are part of – and the crisis of knowledge, rooted in epistemic methods derived from Enlightenment dualism and objectivism.

The central idea of the program is that Black feminism provides a critical and transformative lens through which we can understand and address the deeper layers of the polycrisis more inclusively. The program explored how intersectional methodologies offer complex and imaginative responses to global crises that are embedded within systems of power and oppression, focusing on lived experience, interconnectedness, and holism, alongside analytical frameworks and actionable strategies.

The aim of the program is not only to critique the technocratic and Europatriarchal power structures that dominate crisis responses, but also to propose a more inclusive and dynamic approach, one that values imagination, aesthetics, and embodied knowledge just as much as intellectual critique. By integrating these dimensions, we hope to shed light on pathways towards a more just and sustainable future.

About

Chaired by Minna Salami, the Black Feminism and the Polycrisis program brought together a group of scholars and activists dedicated to reframing the global polycrisis through the lens of Black feminist thought: Akwugo Emejulu, Pumla Dineo Gqola, Adenike Titilope Oladosu, Abosede Priscilla Ipadeola, Kathryn Sophia Belle, and Maha Marouan.

The program’s research was concerned with who gets to define and respond to global crises. The term "polycrisis" has gained significant traction in elite circles – from institutions like the World Bank to academic settings – but these same spaces often exclude marginalized voices from the conversation. When these groups are included, they are often contextualized as marginalized voices rather than as experts in their own right, whose insights could shape meaningful decisions.

This distinction is critical: those most directly affected by the polycrisis bring solutions that are both theoretical and practical, grounded in lived experience.

They know what it means to live through these overlapping crises, not just to study them from a distance. The issue isn’t merely one of exclusion, which is problematic enough when attempting to tackle global challenges. We cannot disempower and repair destructive power dynamics (crises) by replicating those same dynamics in the ways in which we address them.

When searching for the term "polycrisis" on Google Trends, it is interesting to see that the term is most often searched for in countries such as India, Sri Lanka, South Africa, and Kenya. This suggests that those most impacted by the polycrisis, particularly in the Global South, are actively engaging with the concept. Yet, despite their engagement, their voices remain underrepresented in mainstream discussions. Our research sought to address this gap by advocating for a more inclusive and multidimensional understanding of the polycrisis, one that incorporates the insights and lived experiences of those directly affected. Much of the conversation about the polycrisis has been dominated by data – statistics, facts, diagrams. While these are important, we must not forget that every data point represents a living entity. The crisis is not simply technological or abstract; it is deeply human and ecological. That lived, breathing story is as vital to our understanding as any dataset.

Black feminism is crucial here because it reframes the polycrisis and examines it from the perspective of silenced voices. It interrogates the patriarchal and imperialist structures that shape responses to these crises and addresses the underlying, interconnected meta crises that are often ignored. Black feminist methodologies not only critique these power dynamics but they also offer imaginative and inclusive ways forward, providing both an intellectual and a practical framework to address global challenges from a position of lived reality rather than distant abstraction.

HIGHLIGHTS

Several key moments during the program year were critical to the development of our work.

A collective understanding emerged that imagination, historical context, and critical debate are essential to identifying "solution spaces" for the polycrisis. This realization shifted the focus from purely analytical or data-driven approaches to more creative and holistic methods.

Throughout the year, the group approached the issue from this vantage point, resulting in a multi-perspective approach, addressing critical issues, such as climate change, the war in Gaza, feminist foreign policy, artificial intelligence, and resilience. The program’s work has contributed to high-level policy discussions with the German Institute for International and Security Affairs and was addressed at a United Nations session of the Permanent Forum on People of African Descent, where fellow Maha Marouan used black feminist praxis to address the polycrisis. These engagements have been instrumental in expanding the reach and influence of Black feminist perspectives in global policy discussions.

The group also implemented a "Black feminist poetics" – the idea that aesthetics, personal narratives, and embodied knowledge are essential tools for how we engage with crisis. Out of these creative sensibilities, the group created a short film with fellows Mac Premo and Adrianna Dufay. The film is a finalist in the Lovie Awards in the category of Best Video: Public Service and Activism, and was shortlisted for Best Art Direction and People’s Favorite awards. The film is being screened at universities internationally, helping to bring the insights of the Black feminism program to a wider audience. In addition to documenting the program, the film serves as a creative intervention, using visual storytelling to emphasize the importance of diverse perspectives in responding to crises.

To further explore the polycrisis through art, the program also hosted an artist-in-residence, worked with musicians, and organized a concert. Public events and screenings were held at Hamburg cultural institutions, including the MARKK museum and M.Bassy. Additionally, the program invited speakers from diverse backgrounds to THE NEW INSTITUTE, ran workshops, and organized “imagination” dinners.

OTHER ACTIVITIES

Program Affiliates

  • Ethel-Ruth Tawe

    stayed: 20-26.05.2024

    Ethel-Ruth Tawe is a multidisciplinary artist, writer, curator and creative researcher exploring memory in Africa and its diaspora. Image-making, storytelling, and time-travelling compose the framework of her inquiry. From collage to moving image, Ethel examines space and time-based technologies often from a speculative lens. Her burgeoning curatorial practice took form in an inaugural exhibition titled 'African Ancient Futures', and continues to expand in a myriad of audiovisual experiments. Ethel is recipient of the Magnum Foundation 2022 Counter Histories Grant-Program for her project 'Image Frequency Modulation', which was also recently selected for the International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam (IDFA) 2023 DocLab Forum and Black Public Media's BPM+ Fellowship. She is recipient of the 10x10 Photobook 2024 Research Grant for her project 'The Algorithms of Colonial African Photobooks’.

    At THE NEW INSTITUTE, Ethel will produce an art piece responding to the program question: How can we use the unique insights and intersectional methods of Black feminism to respond to the complexities of the contemporary polycrisis?

  • Mazviita Chirimuuta

    Originally trained in neuroscience, Mazviita Chirimuuta is a philosopher at Edinburgh University who writes about the history of ideas behind the mind/brain sciences. Her book on colour vision and perceptual reality, Outside Color, was published by MIT Press in 2015. This was recently followed by a new book, The Brain Abstracted, about the ways that the theories developed in neuroscience are a vast simplification of the underlying complexity of brain, mind and body. She is currently doing research on the biological basis of cognition and the philosophical origins of the AI programme.

    At THE NEW INSTITUTE, Mazviita gave a talk that examines the historical and social context of the invention of computers and AI, machines which, like all other machines, are designed to replicate specific forms of productive labour previously performed by humans or other animals. The process of mechanising thought – the reconfiguration of the concept of intelligence in such a way as affords performance of cognitive tasks by a machine – is akin to other forms of disenchantment that we see at the origin of industrialisation. This presents a challenge to claims for the equivalence of biological and machine intelligence and ultimately provides a reason to be doubtful that artificial general intelligence (AGI) is an imminent possibility.

  • Susan Arndt

    Susan Arndt is Professor of Anglophone Literatures at the University of Bayreuth. After studying German, English and African literature in Berlin and London, she completed her doctorate on feminism in Nigerian literature and orature. After a period as a Research Fellow at St. Antonys College (Oxford), she taught and researched as a research assistant at the Humboldt University in Berlin, the Centre for Literary and Cultural Research in Berlin and the Goethe University in Frankfurt/Main. Her research on postcoloniality, feminism and intersectionality takes place within the framework of transcultural literary studies, with a focus on narratives of migration, diversity, whiteness and resistance.

    At THE NEW INSTITUTE, Susan gave a talk about the longevity of racism’s white supremacy, while linking the AfD as fascist party to the völkisch racism of c19/20. in conclusion, she will talk about intersectional solidarity as a mode of intervention.

  • Toni Haastrup

    TONI HAASTRUP is Professor and Chair in Global Politics at the University of Manchester. She earned her PhD in Politics from the University of Edinburgh. With a keen focus on interdisciplinary approaches, Haastrup's research often engages the complexities of global politics, with particular attention to the intersections of gender, race, and power. Her work has not only advanced academic understanding but has also contributed to shaping policy and practice in addressing global challenges.
    Beyond her academic work, she is also deeply committed to supporting the next generation of scholars, fostering a diverse and inclusive academic community. She is a founding member of the African Feminist Collective on Feminist Informed Policies (AfIP Collective).

    At THE NEW INSTITUTE, Toni gave a talk “Is Feminist Peace within Reach?”.

  • Cassandra Ellerbe

    Cassandra Ellerbe is a certified diversity/social justice and specializes in empowerment trainings for Black, migrant and refugee women of color. From 2011-2019 she served as a board member of Eine Welt der Vielfalt e.V. Berlin. She was an academic Fellow at the Bayreuth Academy of Advanced African Studies (2013-2014) and a network member of the Black Diaspora in Germany Scholars Project funded by the German Research Foundation (2010-2014).
    Along with conducting workshops as a certified diversity trainer in the “World of Difference” method and intercultural communication, Cassandra is currently a guest faculty member at Bard College Berlin and she is a board member of Frauenloop. Cassandra currently also holds the position of Officer for Diversity & Inclusivity for the EU project YUFE: Young Universities for the Future of Europe at University of Bremen.
    She earned her PhD in Comparative Cultural Studies/Anthropology at the University of Ghent, Belgium in 2006.

    At THE NEW INSTITUTE, Cassandra conducted and lead a program workshop.

  • Emilia Roig

    Emilia Roig is the Founder and Executive Director of the Berlin-based Center for Intersectional Justice (CIJ), a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting justice, equality and a life free from systemic oppression for all. Her experience growing up in a multiracial Algerian-Jewish-Martinique family in France shaped her commitment and passion for intersectional social justice. Emilia is a faculty member of DePaul University of Chicago's Social Justice Study Abroad Program and has taught graduate and postgraduate courses in Intersectional Theory, Postcolonial Studies, Critical Race Theory, Queer Feminism, and International and European Law at universities across Europe.
    She holds a PhD in Political Science, a Masters of Public Policy and an MBA in International Law. Before her doctorate, she worked extensively on human rights issues at the UN in Tanzania and Uganda, at the German Society for International Cooperation (GIZ) in Cambodia and at Amnesty International in Germany - and decided to leave the field of "development" to focus on focus on social justice in Europe.

    At THE NEW INSTITUTE, Emilia was the guest speaker for our Monastery Wednesday on “Creating the New Paradigm: deploying the full potential of the great transformation ushered in by Black Feminists”.

  • Shishani Vranckx

    Shishani Vranckx is a singer, songwriter and guitarist with Namibian and Belgian roots, but she grew up mainly in the Netherlands. As a performer she has received numerous awards, including the 'Last Band Standing' (Namibia, 2012) and the singer-songwriter competition Mooie Noten (Netherlands, 2013). She was also a finalist in the Radio France International Discovery Awards (2014). In 2016, Shishani & Namibian Tales quartet won Best World Music Album from Netherlands with their debut album Itaala. She has performed internationally at events such as the Africa Festival in Wurzburg (Germany), Glastonbury Festival (UK), Lake of Stars (Malawi), and in numerous other countries. She is a founder of ARTNAM, advocating for the promotion of Namibian arts, and has written for the Bloomsbury Encyclopaedia of Contemporary Music of the World and other platforms such as Music in Africa. Currently she is project coordinator, musician and researcher in the UNESCO funded project 'Namibian Tales - Kalahari Encounters'.

  • Jennifer C Nash

    Jennifer Christine Nash is the Jean Fox O'Barr Professor of Gender, Sexuality, and Feminist Studies at Duke University within its Trinity College of Arts and Sciences.

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