Estraven Lupino-Smith is a scholar, artist and educator whose work is informed by their curiosity and critical engagements with human interactions in their environments: natural, cultural, and constructed.
Their artistic practice is influenced by graduate work in geography, where they draw from the fields of political ecology, geohumanities, critical human geography, ethnoecology and queer theory.
Currently, their work examines how people respond to the environment and their land base through material practices. They consider the relationships between humans and the non-human world, natural and cultural landscapes, settler colonialism and navigating complex identities through embodied practices.
Experience
Estraven’s work as an educator is rooted in a belief that access to knowledge is important for social change and the empowerment of diverse communities. With experience working in colleges, universities, and community organizations, they have had the chance to produce student-centred learning experiences that enrich and empower students.
They maintain active art and writing practices that are rooted in research, and use a variety of texts and media in the classroom, including relevant and exciting fiction or art work.
Estraven is currently a PhD Candidate in Geography at the University of British Columbia where their research focuses on the social construction of space. Specifically, they investigate the ways that power effects how landscapes are shaped and constrained, and how racialization and whiteness have material effects on ecologies and relationships to landbase.
Memberships and Committees
- Editor, Network in Canadian History and Environment
- Member, Canadian Association of Geographers
- Member, Association of American Geographers
- Cultural and Political Ecology Specialty Group
- Queer and Trans Geographies Specialty Group
- Feminist Geographies Specialty Group
- Animal Geographies Specialty Group
Education
2019
MSc Geography, Urban and Environmental Studies
Concordia University
2012
BA, Gender & Equity Studies
University of Toronto
Awards
2021
Chih-Chuang & Yien-Ying Hsieh Award
Centre for Studies in Religion and Society, University of Victoria
Research
Research interest
Political ecology
Decolonizing methodologies
Practice-based research