{"id":907,"date":"2026-06-05T13:17:49","date_gmt":"2026-06-05T12:17:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/aunomdelanature.be\/?page_id=907"},"modified":"2026-06-09T09:18:27","modified_gmt":"2026-06-09T08:18:27","slug":"genese-du-projet","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/aunomdelanature.be\/en\/genese-du-projet\/","title":{"rendered":"The origins of the project"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

The origins of the project<\/h2><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Narrated by Pascale Smeesters, the director<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

\n

At the beginning, two observations<\/h2><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n
\n
An anthropocentric ecology<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

The series \u201cIn the Name of Nature\u201d arose from two observations: all too often, environmental discourse assigns nature a purely instrumental value, thereby adopting the same narrative as the capitalist society that is destroying it. Nature is viewed as a resource necessary for our survival: this is supposedly the main reason to preserve it. But how can we possibly imagine emerging from this crisis while clinging to the same anthropocentric worldview? To me, this represents a glaring contradiction.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

\n
A catastrophist ecology<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

The second observation is this: no one wants to hear the science-based environmentalist argument anymore\u2014the one that lays out the current and future disasters threatening the long-term survival of our species. We cover our eyes and cling to sweet illusions, because reality is too ugly to bear. And the longer we wait, the worse the situation gets, the more disillusioned we become, and the more we ask ourselves, \u201cWhat\u2019s the point?\u201d Motivation crumbles, eco-anxiety takes hold, and the far right gains ground.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

\n

My inspirations<\/h2><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n
\n
Philosophy<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

While studying philosophy and the ethics of public policy at UCL\u2014and more specifically while writing my thesis\u2014I had the opportunity to discover a branch of philosophy that is little known in the French-speaking world: environmental ethics. This field challenges our conception of the world and the relationship between humans and nature. What if we stopped seeing ourselves as superior to the rest of the living and non-living world? What if we included nature in our moral framework? Unfortunately, philosophy in Belgium today is too often confined to the academic world. It\u2019s seen as too abstract, distant, almost aloof. I wanted to bring it back down to earth, to make it tangible, to make it accessible to everyone. Because I\u2019m convinced that philosophy has a lot to offer ecology. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The project of The Nomadic Philosophers<\/a> was born.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

\n
Anthropology<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

Anthropology\u2014that is, the discovery and study of different ways of thinking and living in other cultures\u2014has also always fascinated me. During my studies, I went on volunteer projects to immerse myself in Benin and then in Mongolia, in search of ways of seeing the world that differed from the hackneyed Western perspective. I was eager to go further.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Beauty<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

Finally, nature photography and videography have always been a passion of mine. As someone who loves nature, I am even more captivated by its fragile and fleeting beauty, which I love to capture and share.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/path><\/svg><\/span>
Beauty will save the world.<\/div>