Learning from memories and experiences of the COVID-19 pandemic for the future
"It must be noted that studies related to disaster memory often focus on the discourse of commemoration through museums and memorials. For instance, after the Indian Ocean tsunami of 2004, it has been found that memorials are constructed more ‘for the people than by people’. Memorialisation is often a political process, as these representations are highly influenced by the imaginations and voices of the privileged sections of a population. Similarly, post COVID-19, there are many examples of memoralisation in museums, exhibitions and many digital platforms. However, it is important to ask- whose voices are represented in this process of memory making?"
Researchers Emmanuel Raju, Anne Bach Nielsen and Suchismita Goswami from the Global Health section at the Dept. of Public Health have recently published a paper on PLOS Climate titled "Learning from memories and experiences of the COVID-19 pandemic for the future". They reflect on their recent fieldwork on heatwaves in Chennai (see Suchismita's recent Op-Ed) and explore the importance of looking into how affected communities make memories out of disasters.
From the paper:
In our recent fieldwork in February 2024 in Chennai, communities would only reflect closely on the recent floods of December 2023 and rarely mention impacts of heatwaves. Using participatory tools such as seasonal calendars and focus groups to understand how different disasters affect them throughout the year, how their livelihoods are impacted and how this has been changing over the years, the community members tell us how specifically during the summer they were not able to work due to the heat and its impact on their wages and loss of livelihood. However, the residents in the resettlement sites spoke extensively about the impacts of the floods and the pandemic compared to the heatwaves during these conversations. There is a need for further investigation here—what contributes to sharing these impacts, experiences and memories differently for each of these disasters from the community’s perspective?
It must be noted that studies related to disaster memory often focus on the discourse of commemoration through museums and memorials. For instance, after the Indian Ocean tsunami of 2004, it has been found that memorials are constructed more ‘for the people than by people’ [4]. Memorialisation is often a political process, as these representations are highly influenced by the imaginations and voices of the privileged sections of a population. Similarly, post COVID-19, there are many examples of memoralisation in museums, exhibitions and many digital platforms. However, it is important to ask- whose voices are represented in this process of memory making?
There are many untold stories of memories and of processes of memory making. Across centuries there have been peoples and communities who have passed on the memories and intangible heritage of their coping mechanisms through oral histories and songs. This practice of memorialization of intangible knowledge has proven to be invaluable, [5,6]. Similarly, indigenous knowledge about climate change builds on memories through generations [7]. Taking this further, different stakeholders should take imperative steps to not only document disaster memories but also account for diverse, untold and under-represented voices.
Access the full paper here.