Abstract

The overarching objective of this research was to develop a simple methodology that can be replicated in classrooms, libraries, youth groups, and so on, aiming at soothing the sense of doom, eco-grief or climate anxiety allegedly prompted by overexposure to end-of-world, apocalyptic or dystopian narratives. The generative (re)reading workshops were inspired by the communities of inquiry framework (Garrison, Anderson, and Archer 2010) and critical literacy practices (Freire 2018), whereby participants are encouraged to become active agents in constructing knowledge together and collaboratively (García-González and Deszcz-Tryhubczak 2020). It is important to note that the research contemplated thinking together with strangers, rather than within an established community such as a class; thus, the community was ephemeral. Nevertheless, I posited that (re)reading and discussing with other young adults supports participants in identifying threads of hope in dystopian narratives. To this end, climate generation young adults were invited to participate in a workshop. Volunteers had to complete an online consent form[2] that was followed by a brief survey, asking what words they associated with The Hunger Games. The only requirement was to be acquainted with The Hunger Games, whether they had read the book in English (2008) or Spanish (2009) or watched the film (2012).