Candide —
Journal for Architectural Knowledge

Candide No. 11 — 06/2019 — Essay

Nabil Ahmed
Ecocide in West-Papua – The case of the Grasberg Mine.

Ecocide, the extensive loss, damage or destruction of ecosystem(s) of a given territory, is the missing international crime of our era. Gathering and examining evidence of ecocide requires a shift of perspective in understanding conflict as a territorial phenomenon. It also involves re-examining the material transformation of landscapes in ecological terms. This visual essay presents the investigative methods of INTERPRT 1 , a transdisciplinary research and design project dedicated to examining environmental crimes. It collects and displays spatial evidence of widespread and long-term environmental damage from industrial mining. The larger project, within which this visual essay can be contextualized, addresses the future role of the International Criminal Court (ICC) in prosecuting ecocide and includes an exhibition proposed to take place at the Assembly of State Parties, the governing body of of the court. This project claims that architectural and spatial readings have a critical role to play in the campaign to promote a law against ecocide in environmental justice contexts.

Candide No. 11, 06/2019