ABSTRACT
The humanities have long relied on specific ways of creating and sharing knowledge—modes that, we argue, no longer serve the field or broader publics. How can we move from a one-to-many mode of information sharing to true dialogue, rooted in reciprocity and respect for each other as keepers of varying knowledges? In doing so, how can we attend to the very real dynamics of power and trust across groups that may assign value in very different ways? In this chapter, we will focus on spaces of communion and conversation, epistemic justice in scholarly communication, and the value of shifting institutional attitudes and structures within a larger framework of broad social engagement. We aim to explore these questions through perspectives of care and sustainability, emphasizing abundance rather than scarcity—perspectives that have been articulated and enacted by generations of Indigenous thinkers, Black feminist thinkers, and people situated within many other knowledge traditions. Engaging a series of ecological metaphors, the system of knowledge-making and knowledge-sharing we ultimately propose is that of a mycorrhizal network—the seldom-seen, underground, symbiotic relationships between mycelia (the complex threadlike structure of fungi) and the roots of plants. Blending our own voices as an example of the kind of polyvocal, collaborative work we uphold, this chapter proposes a version of humanities scholarship that is messy, organic, meandering, and—we hope—open to joy.
