Attached to the Living World: A New Ecopoetry Anthology

by Ann Fisher-Wirth (Editor), Laura-Gray Street (Editor), Margaret Ronda (Introduction), Camille T. Dungy (Foreword by)

Overview

The Ecopoetry Anthology is the authoritative book of contemporary American poetry about nature and the environment. Ann Fisher-Wirth and Laura-Gray Street, the editors of the daring first volume, have reunited to create Attached to the Living World. The second anthology explores the issues and conversations in ecopoetry over the past decade and features more than 150 established and emerging poets, including Mildred Barya, Nickole Brown, Simmons Buntin, Lauren Camp, Iris Jamahl Dunkle, Vievee Francis, CMarie Fuhrman, Ross Gay, Erin Hollowell, Marie Howe, Petra Kuppers, J. Drew Lanham, Ada Limόn, Aimee Nezhukumatathil, January Gill O’Neil, Catherine Pierce, Tracy K. Smith, Brian Teare, and Natasha Tretheway. With a foreword by Camille Dungy and an introduction by Margaret Ronda, the poems gathered here provide vital visions to nurture our imaginations and spur us to act.

The anthology delves into the multifaceted ecological crises of our time, highlighting the toxic aftermath of industrial progress and the inequities of environmental racism. It underscores the stark realities faced by communities at the frontline of climate change, emphasizing the overlaps of land degradation and social injustice. Despite themes of loss and devastation, the work is imbued with a current of hope, showcasing poetry’s ability to inspire a reconnection with the natural world. It also amplifies the voices of indigenous poets, offering invaluable perspectives on land stewardship and cultural resilience in the face of ongoing colonial impacts. These contributions speak to the essential role of native knowledge and practices in habitat preservation and cultural survival.

Taken as a whole, the anthology emerges as a powerful call to action, urging collective reflection on our carbon footprint and a shared commitment to sustainable futures. It stands as a profound exploration of the intersections of ecological awareness, social justice, and poetic expression, inviting readers to contemplate their place in the broader web of life.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781595343086
Publisher:	Trinity University Press
Publication date:	03/11/2025
Pages:	416
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.00(d)

About the Author

Ann Fisher-Wirth is the author of several poetry books, including Paradise Is Jagged, The Bones of Winter Birds, Mississippi, and Carta Marina. She has received the Malahat Review Long Poem Prize, the Rita Dove Poetry Award, two Mississippi Arts Commission Poetry fellowships, and the Mississippi Institute of Arts and Letters Poetry Prize. She teaches in the English Department at the University of Mississippi, where she also directs the minor in environmental studies.


Laura-Gray Street is the author of Pigment and Fume and Shift Work. Her work has appeared in ISLE, Shenandoah, Blackbird, Notre Dame Review,  Best New Poets 2005, and elsewhere. Her honors include four Pushcart Prize nominations, a poetry fellowship from the Virginia Commission for the Arts, Terrain.org’s Poetry Prize, and the Dana Award in Poetry. Street is an assistant professor of English at Randolph College and president of the Greater Lynchburg Environmental Network.

Camille Dungy is the poetry editor for Orion, host of the podcast Immaterial, and a UniversityDistinguished Professor at Colorado State University. She is the author of Soil: The Story of a Black Mother’s Garden and four collections of poetry. She lives in Fort Collins, Colorado.

Margaret Ronda is the author of Remainders: American Poetry at Nature’s End and the poetry collections Personification and For Hunger. She teaches American poetry, environmental literature and theory, and creative writing at the University of California Davis and lives in Davis.