Dr. Beata Dreksler (LDEM) along with Ms. Dorota Fleszar (Communication Skills Program) conducted 'Landscape Narratives. Narrative Landscapes' workshop in Jabal Moussa Biosphere Reserve (JMBR) from March 4 to 6, 2022. Ten AUB students from different programs (FAFS, OSB, FAS) and different backgrounds (Lebanese and international students) participated in the 3-days hiking and writing getaway workshop.
The workshop was based on the approach to walking as an immersive, spatial practice of experiencing nature. This workshop responded to the need to authenticate both the study of landscape and writing by temporarily removing it from the physical, emotional and mental confines of a classroom. It allowed participating students to experience the surrounding nature through the five senses, innate strength and weakness of their own bodies as interconnected with the surrounding landscape, as well as reflect on its social, economic, historical, and literary significance. Through a careful choice of multi-modal writing activities completed individually or in pairs, students expand their appreciation of nature and gain awareness of writing processes as construction of multiple perspectives, impressions, and spaces. The workshop was funded by the EduBioMed project and was possible thanks to the collaboration with Salma Talhouk (LDEM-NCC) and The Association for the Protection of Jabal Moussa (APJM).
