SURGE: The Lowcountry Climate Magazine, Issue 5

Belvin Olasov Co-Editor in Chief

Belvin Olasov is the co-founder and co-director of the Charleston Climate Coalition. His background is in creative writing and he believes in bringing vision-making and art to climate work.

Sydney Bollinger Co-Editor in Chief

Sydney Bollinger (she/her) is a writer and editor affiliated with Surge, The Changing Times, and Peregrine Coast Press. She aims to connect communities to climate action through narrative and collaborative storytelling. Find her online @sydboll.

Camela Guevara Art Director

Camela Guevara (she/her) is a multidisciplinary artist and designer living and working in Charleston. She creates handmade monuments to unsung labor. See her work @camelaguevara.

Hailey Williams Creative Writing Editor

Hailey “Pell” Williams is a Charleston native, poet, and swamp-trekker. You can find her work in The Birmingham Poetry Review and Tupelo Press’s June 2023 30/30, amongst others.

editor’s note

We’re coming out of a summer that felt different. This wasn’t the climate crisis simmering the pot – this was a flash-fire of unprecedented heat, boiling oceans, rolling smokestorms from Canadian wildfires. This was a summer to make you realize that the climate crisis isn’t some abstract future problem. It’s something that will be making our lives demonstrably harder, year after year.

We here at Surge Magazine believe that you, the reader, deserve to be well equipped for this new phase of life on Earth. Let’s not lose sight of our love for the Earth and for humanity as thermal energy hugs our planet tighter and tighter. Let’s accept what we cannot change: that we’re in for some adventurous, dangerous decades. Let’s change what we cannot accept: letting fossil fuels send us even further down an ecological death spiral. And let’s meet our challenges with a social movement so vital, creative, and righteous that we win climate liberation in our lifetimes.

Welcome to the Solar Age. Have you read the manual yet?

Love, Belvin Olasov and Sydney Bollinger, Surge Co-editors-in-chief.

Jirah Perkins is a multidisciplinary artist based out of Charleston, South Carolina. She has been creating ever since she was a child. Art has always been her favorite way of expressing her creative voice and has stood as a tool of therapy. She experiments through different mediums and styles with a focus on women empowerment. Jirah incorporates her photography references, bold colors and textures and even poetry to create a sensory experience through her work.

Her most recent collection, “Miss Mary Mack,” focuses on the representational meaning of childhood handgames. This collection involves the use of abstract and realistic subjects to depict the flair and unadulterated joy of black girlhood.

See her work @ujorii on Instagram or online at https://ujorii.com

The Gardner The Gardener The Gardener

Written by Noelle Hisnanick-Murphy

Pollen-stained air and sun-glare quicken in her veins like sap warmed by a westblown wind. In over-washed housedress and rubber soles, she stoops, stiff-kneed on the mown grass. This small plot—hid many years ago to rot beneath the children’s sandbox—now her domain. Her dirt-darkened fingers strain against the scrawl of soft-prickled dandelion stems and wild onions. Sweat slicks her coarse gray curls like soap-shine on steel wool, the high sun heavy on her back. She will not rest until every weed, roots-gnarled, relents to her firm grasp as she prepares the dark, warm dirt for seeds. At the end of the day, slow with bone-deep ache, her spine will unfurl, like a tendril of tomato vine pointed skyward— she’ll stand and survey this tended bit of earth ready for new life.

Written by Wm. Baldwin

Rebundling what has come undone, marsh stems now locked by shadow’s bond, and lost to setting, fire-quenched sun, in a splashing run the coots respond.

Exhibit next: dike’s stunted pines commemorate with a stir and sigh, while crucial to the arts involved, appearance of star sectioned sky.

Wild smiling Glory in all that. Small owl swoops down to snatch my hat.

CHARLESTON 2030 PROJECT

Highlighting aspirational, eco-futurist visions for the Lowcountry

CHS 2030: NURTURING URbAN CREEkS

Written by Belvin Olasov

As any hydrological engineer knows, systems are complicated. Joshua Robinson has built his career by accepting and working with the inevitable chaos and complexities of ecosystems, whether in marsh restoration or green building neighborhoods. Now, he’s found himself in the advocate position for an approach that Charleston consistently resists: allowing for urban creeks and salt marsh to flourish.

His most recent proposal hones in on Gadsden Creek, the 4 remaining acres of salt marsh where there were once over 95 acres on the peninsula’s west border. Those who support filling in the creek to expand the Westedge development have claimed that rehabilitating the creek would be impossible, too complicated, the fanciful dream of activists. But to ecological engineer Joshua Robinson, rehabilitating the creek is not only totally possible but the exact sort of eco-urban infrastructure that’s needed in the Lowcountry.

“I think any opportunity we can find to use natural systems to manage water, both tidal water and stormwater, we should take those opportunities. And we should place a premium on the natural systems that continue to exist,” Robinson said.

To Robinson, Gadsden Creek remains an incredible natural resource and a soul-nourishing link to nature for the neighboring Gadsden Green community. For the City of Charleston to look at the damage it’s done – transforming the creek into landfill, giving land that once served Charleston’s black population over

OUR

to development – and justifying filling in the remainder of the tidal creek because of that strikes Robinson as deeply wrong.

“It’s very offensive to try to do this victory lap and and, say, oh well, you know, we’re gonna help you out because it’s flooding and it’s polluted and we’re doing something good for you. It’s like, you created this problem? That is the definition of gaslighting.”

LEARNING FROM OTHERS’ SUCCESS

Robinson’s Gadsden Creek proposal draws on the many projects from other cities that share crucial qualities with the Gadsden Creek case. Rehabilitating an urban creek with pollution concerns? Look to Proctor Creek in Atlanta, Georgia, or Waller Creek in Austin, Texas. Dealing with an old landfill that needs rehabilitation? Look to the planned reclamation of the NYC Fresh Kills Landfill, where tidal creeks and coastal marsh became the largest landfill in the world that is now planned to return to marsh and parks for public waterfront access.

The old landfill site on the banks of the French Broad River in the city of Asheville is a standout blueprint for a restored Gadsden Creek. For years, it was a salvage yard in an urban environment with a small creek flowing through, prone to extreme flooding. So when the New Belgium Brewery went to build in Asheville and were looking at that location, they were planning on piping, filling, and building over the creek, having been told that it was unsalvageable as a natural resource.

But the New Belgium Brewery leadership considered themselves environmental stewards and wanted to find another way. They pursued grant funding, got the resources, and enlisted ecological engineers (including Joshua Robinson) to restore the creek.

“Some nonprofit groups got behind the project and other local ecological designers got engaged where the creek went from being this ditch – like literally a giant ditch, with car parts and crushed cars on the banks of it… an order of magnitude more polluted looking and feeling, and actually polluted, than Gadsden Creek, right? It went from that to being this beautiful creek,” Robinson said. “To me, it shows how a degraded landfill with real water quality problems can be salvaged and improved, and then turned into this beautiful success story, creating this community resource of this restored creek that helped to resolve flooding.”

GREEN vS GRAy

When Dutch hydrological engineers came to Charleston and shared their best practices on working with water in the Dutch Dialogues, their thesis was clear: preserve and expand green infrastructure, such as wetlands, berms, and urban vegetation. Robinson considers saltmarsh to be an unbeatable tool for stormwater control and water quality improvement, and one that dodges key issues that come with underground piping.

“That sort of underground subsurface gray infrastructure, that needs to be a last resort, because once that water goes underground, it can’t be seen. Any issues with the drainage infrastructure can’t be repaired or visualized in real time,” Robinson said. “The creek, as it is now, if there were to be a blockage during the flood, it could be visualized – humans could literally remove the blockage.”

He does see potential for gray infrastructure being used in tandem with a revitalized creek, such as taking Hagood Avenue, which has sunk multiple feet since being built on top of the former Gadsden Creek, and elevating the road to protect the

Gadsden Green community next-door. Raising barriers could also protect Gadsden Creek from car runoff pollution.

Too much decisionmaking, in Robinson’s eyes, is motivated by fear. Developers and politicians pitch hard infrastructure like it’s the solution to all of our problems, like it’ll bring the security that we crave. Robinson and his team, on the other hand, harken back to the words of Wendell Berry: what would nature be doing if we were doing nothing?

“The idea of, we build a storm surge barrier, we can go back to eating and drinking and being married and happy hour can continue. We fixed it,” Robinson said. “I sometimes feel like the dude in the sandwich board on the street with the bullhorn. It’ll fix it most of the time, but when it doesn’t fix it, it’s just gonna be a whole lot worse than if we haven’t done anything to it.”

TAkING CARE OF EvERy CREEk

Gadsden Creek is only one of the Charleston water bodies with “urban creek syndrome:” contaminants from surrounding car traffic and development, reduced water intake from inflexible anti-flood infrastructure, and reduced ecological diversity. To put it simply, we don’t take care of our creeks.

“We don’t have a whole lot of areas where visitors and residents in the city can interact with an impact ecosystem, and certainly few opportunities for people to actually interact in a meaningful way. Boating, paddling, wading, seeing shellfish,” Robinson said. “We very much have these barriers and keep our distance, but if there’s a way to have new developments and redevelopments interact more with these areas – that would help us over time regain the philosophy of Charleston in the first place. Which is not that these areas are to be avoided, but that they are one of the real benefits and unique qualities of this area.”

This integrative approach, where there are fewer obstructions like culverts or gates and an active expectation that folks will be using the creeks for recreation, will require time and care given to rehabilitating the creek. That involves inventorying the plants, marine life, and bird life, identifying the physical or chemical impairments, and developing plans to improve them.

Robinson sees this work as a bridge to a future where urban creeks are centered in Charleston life – where our waterways aren’t subject to disregard from the City or treated like inefficient and troublesome flooding infrastructure.

“That’s the way they’ve been treated up until now. Like either a little dumping grounds or ongoing plumbing.”

“Gray infrastructure does sort of create that promise of the shining new car where you clip the ribbon, politicians have the photos, and your risk perception goes to zero. Whereas the climate crisis is making us confront the limitations of what we can do and it’s forcing us to think more creatively, Robinson said. “If you get a bad bill of health from your doctor, there is no magic wand that is going to make that go away. You have to change what you’re eating. Got to change how you move.”

Robinson, the engineer drafted into advocacy by a system resistant to ecological principles, wants to see us moving like a waterway: organically, connectively, and open to shifting tides.

Read more: http://robinsondesignengineers.com/work/Gadsden-creek

One of our core issues, as Robinson sees it, is our desire for easy solutions, security, and certainty. His hope is that the climate crisis serves as a wakeup call – and at the same time, hopes that we don’t let fear keep us from living in the present.

Penland Creek Restoration in progress

New Belgium restored creek

Main Auto Parts. Photo from Asheville Citizen Times

New Belgium brewery in Asheville, NC

HOMEGROWN AT THE POINT 2023

Friday, Aug. 4 through Friday, Sept. 8 at Charleston Harbor Resort & Marina

DIRTY ROTTEN IMBECILES Sunday, Sept. 17

MICKEY AVALON

THU, SEPT. 28 AT 7PM AT THE COMMODORE

CHARLESTON LITERARY FESTIVAL PRESENTS UHTRED’S LITERARY FEAST

THU, NOV. 2 AT 6PM AT GARDEN & GUN

AFTER HOURS SAT, SEPT. 16 AT 10PM AT AZUR EVENTS

VELMA DEARWOOD’S QUEER CABARET SUN, SEPT. 17 AT 8PM - 10PM AT SOUTH OF BROADWAY THEATRE COMPANY COCKTAILS FOR A CAUSE

Tuesday, Oct. 10 6 p.m. - 8 p.m. at Harbour Club at Westedge

BUXTON BOOKS PRESENTS MARY KAY ANDREWS IN CHARLESTON!

Friday, Oct. 13 | 6 p.m. at Buxton Books

Deeper. Impact.

With each visit to the South Carolina Aquarium, you support wildlife within our walls and beyond. From education and fieldwork to conservation and animal care, the Aquarium is fostering positive change for the natural world. Visit today! scaquarium.org

WE NEED YOU TO KEEP SOUTH CAROLINA WILD

CONSERVE The S.C. Wildlife Federation, South Carolina’s first conservation group, has relied on science since 1931 to conserve the state’s special places and wildlife for all.

ADVOCATE Work with us to promote conservation of our wild places by working with policymakers in Columbia and Washington.

RESTORE We have a broad range of hands-on and education programs for members to restore habitats around the state.

EDUCATE Enjoy our ongoing educational programs to inspire hope and ignite passions for protecting natural habitats.

SOUTH CAROLINA WILDLIFE FEDERATION

How Charleston's Zoning Codes Impact Climate Resilience Building a Better Future:

Written by Sydney Bollinger

The water in Charleston is rising, and there’s no way around it. Yet, developers continue to seek out low-lying and vulnerable areas for new construction, and often these developments have real, physical impacts on long-standing Charleston communities, like Gadsden Creek and their legal battle with WestEdge.

Flood risks will only continue to increase, so beginning in Spring 2023, the City, in collaboration with Clarion Associates began a rewrite of the zoning codes, which have not been comprehensively updated since 1966.

Zoning codes regulate specific uses and regulations for specific plots of land, including density, height, distance a building must be from the road, and size of any secondary buildings on the plot. These codes shape the type of development that happens in the City.

“In basic terms, the zoning code is the ‘what can I do with my property?’ and ‘what do I have to go through to get approval to do something with my property?’ Think of the zoning code as the instruction manual for your LEGO set,” said Robert Summerfield, City of Charleston Planning Director.

For example, single-family home zoning, which disallows building dense housing like apartment complexes, could be reduced in favor of midsized development zoning. An area with higher elevation could be zoned to encourage development, whereas an area with a major flood-risk could be zoned to discourage building major infrastructure.

To bring the zoning codes into modernity, the City is tearing them down to the basics and rebuilding with a focus on equity and resilience.

“For the City of Charleston, what does resilience mean? We are making investments in infrastructure, adapting our land use policies, our zoning ordinances, and our approaches to development to reflect current water risks and other natural hazards,” said Dale Morris, Chief Resilience Officer for the City of Charleston

In developing the new zoning codes, the City will not only consider the current and future impacts of rising sea levels, but also high winds and extreme heat. The climate change impacts we are facing now are here to stay, and continuing to develop

as if the impacts of climate change are not serious is a threat to the city’s longevity.

Part of this means figuring out how to best approach new development that might happen in Charleston, especially when much of the City is very low-lying. Morris, who was also the Co-Director of the Dutch Dialogues, plans to focus on zoning for development in places with higher ground, like Maybank Highway and the surrounding area.

“One of the things that we want to make sure is ‘future-proofing’ the code, making it more adaptable so that if there are new building practices or green infrastructure elements…that the code does not make it so that’s not a viable option,” said Summerfield.

Zoning codes involve building policy, but are not the same as building codes. While the rewrite can encourage the use of more sustainable materials, it will not necessarily dictate if and how those materials must be used.

Since the City of Charleston is still in the beginning of this process, it is important for citizens to be involved and advocate for zoning ordinances informed with a sustainable, climate-minded perspective. The rewrite as a whole is expected to take until 2025 to be completed.

“We have a very diverse community here in Charleston,” Summerfield said. “We want to make sure part of the reason that the code is going to take so long to write is because we need to make sure that we’re getting community input on the issues with the current codes and [the community’s] thoughts on proposed code language.”

Advocate for Charleston’s Future

Charleston Climate Coalition is working on advocacy to ensure the City of Charleston centers climate action in the zoning code rewrite. Through research and action, the group hopes to advocate for climate-friendly zoning that betters all of Charleston.

Primary research scopes include:

• Looking into current zoning codes and division between building/zoning codes

• Best practices from other cities

• Achieving specific goals through codes

• Zoning districts and their climate consequences

l onging Song

My welcome is the egret, drawn inland by the promise of rest. He stands with beak down, staring with desire at the frogs sitting dormant under summer heat. Throwing them into relief is the long side of the shed where, painted fresh over the whitewash, a vine-ripe tomato at the peak of its succulence. Looking towards this, there’s no question that I’ve come here to repent the lookahead into my future; to enjoy the past through which I hardly lived but through the stories of others.

Where the egret stalks further west, the tomatoes rise in the reflection of their perfect likeness. They make breakfasts for those with pitiless stomachs, breaking up days of repetition with thankful plates and the root-deep knowledge of need, tasting of eternal time, as it always has and should be. And evenings within the farm’s solitude, those remaining in the porch light’s halo smell the salt air rise. They eat at the front steps and will bunk there, too, where before sleep they will pray to He who provided and proved the seed a continuum of abated hunger. Their mother ensures it.

Wadmala

There is a cycle, years turning and folding upon themselves, a growing unnaturalness: acres driven down by boot soles, then the pump of combusting machines until, exhausted, they breathe their final shaking breath, lie fallow, depleted in rest. In this cycle, it seems — to those who remember — that the world tilts ever faster towards the now, the now of praising what is simple and the simple lives that raised the first standard. As if a people could, if just imagined hard, stand still long enough for the spot tail to come along and pluck fruit for her young. If we dared not move, we could watch it happen, not daring to disturb a young family in their peace.

The deer moved ground after the final harvest; they scrabble now at shrubs and stalk fence perimeters in hopes of fallen figs or wild pears. And as they fill the bellies of their young far from the rotting shed, I pick tomatoes by their cheapness, paralyzed by the notion that a family half round the speeding world bends to earth now and, in snatches of quiet, sits together at table. Perhaps many sons and daughters are dreaming daily as they peel the skin for supper, certainly with the slate of generational sweat.

In an effort to not look forward, to keep my eyes forever at my back, the understanding that I am of convenience lingers. The dirt at the roadside is too hot for me to sit now, should I go and seek it. But if life were, for me, to come back in keen perspective, I suppose I should lie stomach down, and stare at a great painted tomato with elbows propped, knowing therein rest great tractors at the sunset of their work.

Creative Nonfiction by Erin Davis

FROM THE ASHES

A CLIMATE CHANGE TABLETOP ROLEPLAYING GAME (TTRPG)

Written by Sydney Bollinger

The day is sunny and warm – a perfect, welcoming Charleston day. And then, like out of a bad dream, a record-breaking earthquake shatters the city.

Rainbow Row exists only as piles of pastel-colored rubble. The Medical District is underwater. Survivors walk through flooded areas and downed power lines looking for relief from the burning sun.

The situation may be dire, but all is not lost. Solutions are at our fingertips, but it will take a community working together to rebuild from the ashes.

HOW TO PLAY

Tabletop Roleplaying Games (TTRPGs) are collaborative storytelling games meant to be played in a group where you and your friends get into character, explore new areas, overcome roadblocks, and ultimately work to achieve a collective goal.

From the Ashes can be played both in a group setting (with or without a Game Master*) or as a solo journalling game. This game is designed to be quick and played over the course of 1-2 hours.

WHAT YOU NEED

• Standard deck of 52 cards

• 1 six-sided die

• Paper and something to write with

Use the die as instructed and for skill/trait checks as needed. Use the standard deck of cards to encounter new characters, obstacles, and conflicts on your journey to rebuild the area.

CHARACTER CREATION

For your character, choose a set of traits and a goal.

Trait & Skill Examples: community-building, architecture, resilience, cooking, gardening, bike mechanics, leadership, strength, writing, creativity, fundraising, organizing, speaking, innovation

Goals: increasing access to necessary services, developing affordable and safe housing, restoring natural areas, supporting local wildlife, creating accessible transportation options, growing a sustainable food system, better management of waste.

It’s time to put Charleston back together. What area of town will you be focusing on? Roll one die:

1. Charleston Historic District

2. Park Circle

3. Avondale

4. Lower King

5. Medical District

6. Riverland Terrace

Take stock of the neighborhood. What used to be there? What still remains? What does it look like now? Explore the neighborhood, making notes of obstacles you may find, the people who still live there, and new empty spaces. Draw a map of your area and make a mark or symbol to show how you improved it.

With your group, establish why you are in this neighborhood. Who sent you here? What are your roles? Why were you assembled?

CREATE SOLUTIONS

Now, it’s time to begin rebuilding the area. Create a plan. As you play, use the deck of cards and the table on the right to encounter new characters, physical barriers, obstacles to overcome, and boons to help you on your journey.

Players, if multiple, take turn drawing cards. Throughout the game, rely on communication with one another to make decisions on what to do and how to do it. Think through how what cards you draw impact your journey. Charleston’s future is yours.

Gameplay in TTRPGs is collaborative. You are creating the world and the people in it, whether you are playing solo through journaling or with a group of close friends. Let your imagination run wild and don’t be afraid to think of a radically different Charleston than the one we have today.

Characters from the table can be played by the Game Master or members of the group. If playing solo, imagine how that character might interact with you and write out a scene.

*Game Masters lead a TTRPG for other players, often coming up with unique storylines to guide players on the adventure.

CHARACTER (HEARTS) OBJECT (CLUBS) OBSTACLE (DIAMONDS) BOON (SPADES)

Disgruntled mayor opposed to progress Time capsule from the 70s Neighborhood group opposed to change

Out-of-state developer looking to make a profit Small tomato plant in a pot

Massive flooding event after a thunderstorm

Older woman who grew up in the neighborhhod Old bicycle with a broken chain High water toxicitiy

Young child who wants to help with the project

Vintage book on Charleston’s history

Wealthy person whose home was destroyed Stack of old car tires

7 Stray cat that follows you around Flyers for a community justice group

8 News anchor filming a segment

9 Young father looking through wreckage

10 Tourist walking through the area

City sells 3 acres to an out-of-state developer

Major bridge in the area collapses

Destructive aftershocks

Large grant from national organization

Pro bono consulting from a green architect

City approves small park construction

Local justice org. helps clear debris

Someone donates solarpowered generators

Unknown person sets up a community pantry

Small kayak You run out of funding

Cell phone with a cracked screen

Historical marker for a destroyed building

J Frustrated small business owner Pile of broken glass

Q College student who lives in the area

Minister praying over the neighborhood

Retired fisherman

Collection bags filled with pine straw

Three cans of white spray paint

Simple gardening tools

The power goes out for several days

Historical lots are now off-limits

You (or someone in your group) becomes very ill

Several buildings are aflame

Shorebird has nested in the middle of a large lot

Several large oak trees have fallen

Neighborhood kids build a community garden

City officials asks for a report on your progress

Community sets up a farmer’s market

Conservation team consults on best practices

Local housing justice org. partners with you

Neighborhood church creates a safe haven

Activist group hosts neighborhood cleanup

Support Local Climate Activism

Support the necessary work of Charleston Climate Coalition and Surge Magazine through a tax-deductible donation. All donations help us fund climate action projects and pay dedicated staff.

Use the QR below or go to: http://bit.ly/chs-climate-donation

Upcoming Events

Beachniks Love Folly

September 23rd

Live music and ecocelebration at Chico Feo

Farm-to-Planet: Sustainable Supper and Soirée

October 5th

Fundraiser dinner served with local, climate-friendly food

Charleston Mayoral Forum on Climate Action

October 12th

Mayoral candidates speak on climate policy

A Night of Environmental Poetry

October 21st

Workshop and readings of ecopoetry with the Free Verse Festival

Art by Cara Fischer

Vassiliki Falkehag

Written by Caroline Frady

Vassiliki’s art is living. She differentiates space and place by highlighting the contrasts as well as the interconnectivity between the organic and the inorganic, the animate and the inanimate. A core part of Vassiliki’s inspiration comes from her daily walks, where she gathers objects that strike her. She tunes into what both the physical and metaphysical have to say. Vassiliki’s attention to the natural world is apparent in her work – it is her work. I’m fascinated by her ability to embody a spirit of openness, awareness, and a profound sensitivity to the spaces and the people that she encounters.

Vassiliki shared a favorite poem with me by CP Cavafy that has extensively influenced her art:

Arriving there is what you’re destined for. But don’t hurry the journey at all. Better if it lasts for years, so you’re old by the time you reach the island, wealthy with all you’ve gained on the way, not expecting Ithaka to make you rich.

We must care for the Earth – it is better if it lasts for years. Don’t hurry the journey at all. I think about something that she said to me, “What is the point of process if you are not enjoying it?” Taking your time and caring for the Earth makes you unexpectedly rich.

We met in person for the first time at Romney Urban Garden to prepare for a Charleston Climate Coalition Earth Day art show. She brought a few of her recent works: a birds’ nest woven together with plastic bags, and plants encased and displayed on canvases of plastic bags. I loved the bags. Vassiliki said my response meant I was now a part of the piece. She included me in the process; she cared about what I thought and how I felt.

I go on daily walks now because of Vassiliki. I look for found objects, like her. When we hang out, we get to share the items that inspire us. We pick up pieces of colored, oddly shaped plastic or dirty glass bottles. Vassiliki’s curiosity makes me feel seen – I too, am constantly wondering!

For my birthday, Vassiliki gave me a gift of the elements: an oil lamp for the element of light, a lemon tree that she planted for me from the seed of a Trader Joe’s lemon for the element of earth, and her most prized found item, discovered during a creek sweep, for the element of water. She tells me that many people in her life have sought after this found item. I have never been more honored to receive a piece of “trash.”

A Greek native, College of Charleston graduate, and head art professor at Orebro University in Sweden, Vassiliki Falkehag spent several decades dividing her time between the Lowcountry of South Carolina, Athens, Greece, and Stockholm, Sweden. Each of these distinctly geographically and culturally different locations impacts and inspires Vassiliki’s work through her exploration of places, issues, and words.

Prized water object

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FEATURING OVER 30 EVENTS, INCLUDING:

CLAIRE KEEGAN

Small Things Like These Noon, Nov. 3, 2023

Circular Congregational Church

$25

LITERARY FICTION

RICHARD FORD

American Odyssey

4 p.m., Nov. 3, 2023

Circular Congregational Church

$25

LITERARY FICTION

SAFIYA SINCLAIR with Tamara Butler

How to Say Babylon: A Jamaican Memoir

2 p.m, Nov. 8, 2023

Dock Street Theatre

$25

NONFICTION EXCELLENCE

A.O. SCOTT with Wenda Harris Millard

“Are We in a Reading Crisis?”

2 p.m., Nov. 4, 2023

Circular Congregational Church

$25

IMPORTANT TOPICS

JONATHAN EIG

King

4 p.m, Nov. 8, 2023

Dock Street Theatre

$25

NONFICTION EXCELLENCE

ANDRE ACIMAN, KARL

BAKEMAN and JAMES BARRAT

“Artifical Intelligence: Friend or Foe?”

6 p.m., Nov. 9, 2023

Dock Street Theatre

$25

IMPORTANT TOPICS

PAUL HARDING and Edoardo Ballerini with Geoffrey Harpham

This Other Eden

2 p.m., Nov. 10, 2023

Dock Street Theatre

$25

LITERARY FICTION

PATRICK BRINGLEY

All the Beauty in the World Noon, Nov. 11, 2023

Dock Street Theatre

$25

NONFICTION EXCELLENCE

GARY YOUNGE with Kerri Forrest

Dispatches from the Diaspora

2 p.m., Nov. 12, 2023

International African American Museum

$25

IMPORTANT TOPICS