the piñon project

The Piñon Project explores the ecological and cultural resonance of piñon pine (Pinus edulis) in New Mexico and contends with its potential extinction due to climate change and the co-extinction of its vital mycorrhizal fungal partner, Geopora pinyonensis. Centering the nuances of co-extinction, or plant anachronisms, this project connects emerging science with zine-making, multimedia collage, mythmaking, installation, and piñon seedling germination to advocate for community-supported change and repair. This project is an emplaced, tangible, community science approach to the onslaught of grief and uncertainty experienced when a vital member of our ecological community begins to suffer.

View a zine flier on The Piñon Project.

The Piñon Project is an exercise in grief and immortality.

“We perform grieving as mutiny against established patterns.” 

-- Bayo Akomolafe

How do you hold onto a dying being? 

What does care look like at the end of an era?

What are the ethics of saying goodbye--or choosing a species out of the many to support in survival?

We are foraging stories about this tree and its vital partners.

Please join us in collective knowledge and memory making. We’re hoping to gather stories, memories, observations, and thoughts around piñon to continue making sense of the ecological and cultural resonance this species holds for our beloved New Mexico. 

Click here to share any thoughts you have on piñon, such as:

 • A brief memory of piñon

• Observations of piñon

• Thoughts on species loss

• Experiences of using the wood, sap, seed, or needles

• Recipes or practices with piñon

• Thoughts about or observations of other species living within piñon habitat (piñon jays, for example)

• Sensory moments with piñon or within piñon country (scent, sounds, feelings, etc.)

• A picture, image, or other visual artifact of piñon

This project is supported by the Fulcrum Fund, a grant program of 516 ARTS made possible by The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts and the Frederick Hammersley Fund for the Arts at the Albuquerque Community Foundation.