Ellen Smith Ahern

"Vulture Watching: Considering Our Relationship Through Ecology, History and Art" is an evening of prose, ecology and dance accompanying the interdisciplinary performance project, Vulture Sister Song (VSS). Lead Environmental Educator at the VT Institute of Natural Science (VINS), Anna Morris, reflects on the natural history and ecology of vultures, while Georgia-based writer, Josina Guess, shares writings inspired by watching and living in close proximity to black vultures and the unmarked graves of African American people. Followed by an opportunity for communal dialogue, Vulture Watching builds the context within which the more abstract dancing and storytelling elements of VSS can engage participants’ hearts and imaginations, opening multiple pathways by which to (re)consider relationship with and accountability to more-than-human lives. NEFA funding will enable artists to film Vulture Watching, thereby expanding its reach to communities with whom VSS engages beyond VINS' range.