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“IF THE HUMAN ISN’T NATURE, THEN WHO DECIDES WHAT HUMAN IS?” : A TRANSECOLOGICAL LENS ON GENDER AND NATURE IN EDINBURGH, SCOTLAND

Nyegaard, Maya Linnea LU (2025) HEKM51 20251
Department of Human Geography
Human Ecology
Abstract
This thesis contributes to the recording of trans stories to counter our erasure-and to the small but growing field of transecology. The aim is to explore the in-sights a trans perspective has for human ecology’s conception of nature, human,-gender, and binaries. This was done through 12 semi-structured qualitative inter-views with trans people in Edinburgh. Employing a critical queer methodology-and ‘friendship as method’, we discussed gender, nature, transitions, and belong-ing and exclusion. I find that the participants are simultaneously forced to engage-with commonplace binary thinking and conventions to be rendered legible in so-ciety; but they also complicate and destabilise binaries through transition and-acts of belonging. This... (More)
This thesis contributes to the recording of trans stories to counter our erasure-and to the small but growing field of transecology. The aim is to explore the in-sights a trans perspective has for human ecology’s conception of nature, human,-gender, and binaries. This was done through 12 semi-structured qualitative inter-views with trans people in Edinburgh. Employing a critical queer methodology-and ‘friendship as method’, we discussed gender, nature, transitions, and belong-ing and exclusion. I find that the participants are simultaneously forced to engage-with commonplace binary thinking and conventions to be rendered legible in so-ciety; but they also complicate and destabilise binaries through transition and-acts of belonging. This thesis argues that trans people belong in both nature and-human, but hegemonic definitions of ‘nature’ and ‘human’ are not able to deal-with our transness. Including a trans perspective in human ecology thereby ex-pands and destabilises concepts of nature, human, gender, and binaries. Not in-ways that completely destroy these concepts, but rather in ways that push one-to think across and beyond boundaries. A trans perspective thereby highlights-the arbitrary character of clear-cut binaries and classifications of nature, human,-and gender as phenomena. It also emphasises the violence and power laden in-such classifications. Thus, this can be read as a call to think across and beyond-these boundaries. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
Nyegaard, Maya Linnea LU
supervisor
organization
course
HEKM51 20251
year
type
H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
subject
language
English
id
9188526
date added to LUP
2025-07-31 12:52:58
date last changed
2025-07-31 12:52:58
@misc{9188526,
  abstract     = {{This thesis contributes to the recording of trans stories to counter our erasure-and to the small but growing field of transecology. The aim is to explore the in-sights a trans perspective has for human ecology’s conception of nature, human,-gender, and binaries. This was done through 12 semi-structured qualitative inter-views with trans people in Edinburgh. Employing a critical queer methodology-and ‘friendship as method’, we discussed gender, nature, transitions, and belong-ing and exclusion. I find that the participants are simultaneously forced to engage-with commonplace binary thinking and conventions to be rendered legible in so-ciety; but they also complicate and destabilise binaries through transition and-acts of belonging. This thesis argues that trans people belong in both nature and-human, but hegemonic definitions of ‘nature’ and ‘human’ are not able to deal-with our transness. Including a trans perspective in human ecology thereby ex-pands and destabilises concepts of nature, human, gender, and binaries. Not in-ways that completely destroy these concepts, but rather in ways that push one-to think across and beyond boundaries. A trans perspective thereby highlights-the arbitrary character of clear-cut binaries and classifications of nature, human,-and gender as phenomena. It also emphasises the violence and power laden in-such classifications. Thus, this can be read as a call to think across and beyond-these boundaries.}},
  author       = {{Nyegaard, Maya Linnea}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{“IF THE HUMAN ISN’T NATURE, THEN WHO DECIDES WHAT HUMAN IS?” : A TRANSECOLOGICAL LENS ON GENDER AND NATURE IN EDINBURGH, SCOTLAND}},
  year         = {{2025}},
}