Shin Koseki was invited to speak at the Jardins de Métis for the inauguration of the International Garden Festival, which took place from June 21 to 23. Koseki gave a lecture on the “Right to the River”, discussing the social, environmental, and economic issues facing the world’s major rivers, including the St. Lawrence, the Mekong, and the Mississippi. This invitation took place as part of the festivities for the 25th anniversary of the festival, and gathered, in addition to the winners of the international garden competition, a delegation from the Domaine de Chaumont-sur-Loire, landscape architects and architects, as well as people from indigenous communities.
According to Koseki, addressing the topic of the Right to the River has become a necessity to mitigate against the challenges marking the 21st century: combating climate change and social inequalities. Based on the work of the French philosopher and sociologist Henri Lefebvre, author of “The Right to the City,” the Right to the River is a social, cultural, and scientific project for sustainable living. This theme was developed as part of the Fluvialities research project on the urbanization of major rivers, led by the UNESCO Chair in Urban Landscape. With a strong international, intersectoral, and transdisciplinary approach, Fluvialities aims to identify the strengths and weaknesses of continental rivers in the face of climate change and increasing global urbanization.
As such, Shin Koseki’s participation extends the commitment of the UNESCO Chair in Urban Landscape to the Jardins de Métis. This unique place in the world hosts the workshop “Atelier Métis” of the School of Urban Planning and Landscape Architecture at the University of Montreal every year. This course, initiated by Philippe Poullaouec-Gonidec, the former holder of the UNESCO Chair, has been taught for nearly 20 years and is now supervised by Emile Forest, visiting professor at the School and associate researcher at the UNESCO Chair. Philippe Poullaouec-Gonidec was also among the co-founders of the International Garden Festival.