Maya Hey: "Microbial diversity: A double bind and a way out"

Microbial diversity: A double bind and a way out

Abstract

Microbes are everywhere, all of the time, mostly unbeknownst to us. We share a co-evolutionary history with these organisms that spans millennia, even if most people cannot see or detect them easily. Standout microbes include bacteria like E.coli and the penicillin fungus that once revolutionised medicine. But beyond these notorious species are swarms of microbes that permeate our everyday lives, covering every body, every landscape, and airspace. Most are along for the ride, some may even help us, but others can kill.

This talk brings microbial diversity into view, both as an ideological double bind and as a practical challenge for planetary co-existence ahead. Although common notions of microbial diversity tend to categorise organisms along ‘good’ and ‘bad’ binaries, this talk draws on ethnographic data collected at a brewery to explain the futility of this either-or framework. Instead of focusing…