This interdisciplinary conference will explore the interconnectedness of humans and nonhumans. These interconnections are explored through research and practice in academia, and are engaged daily in our human lives. The impacts of these interconnections are being rendered increasingly visible via the effects of global economies, the growing impacts of climate change, and the possible futures of the sixth mass extinction.

The theme of Interconnectedness will be explored through panels of presenters, keynote speakers, and a roundtable discussion. The panels will be exploring questions such as: How can we as humans visualise and experience the nonhuman? How does your research implicitly or explicitly engage with nonhumans? What is the added benefit or utility to your research from nonhumans? How do nonhumans influence your research? Is there a reciprocal influence? What are the differences between ‘nonhumans’ and ‘others’ and how does your research engage with a philosophy of ‘others’? What can we learn from the nonhuman? What changes in your research by engaging with the nonhuman? How do the sensual capacities of the other translate into human technologies [e.g. echolocation (in the physical, artistic, emotional, philosophical realms, etc)]? What religions or mythological frameworks encompassing nonhumans influence or inform your approach to research? What are the boundaries of the human/nonhuman (animal transplants, chimerism, technological developments, legal rights, cyborgs, intellectual property rights . . .)? What is the role of zoons in research (human/nonhuman/technological collaborations)? How do varying definitions of human impact research ethics? What methodologies might we employ to identify and ethically interact with the nonhuman? What are the processes of negotiation with the nonhuman in research? What are the impacts on output? What are the relationships between humans and nonhumans yesterday, today, and tomorrow?