Decentring in More-than-Human Design

Abstract

We present a thought experiment exploring the role of more-than-human–human relations in the socio-political fabric of smart cities and historical political conflicts in Palestine. The site of focus (and struggle) is Palestinian East Jerusalem, where ‘natural’ land protections create inequities. We interrogate decentring of humans experiencing oppression while centring non-human entities at the intersection of land, race, natural, and cultural heritage in imagining a smart ‘just’ East Jerusalem. We argue decentring may create dualities that do not adequately account for issues of power, risking further marginalisation for those on the periphery of existing power structures. We propose alternative framings of custodianship, evoking multiple dimensions across geography and temporalities to reimagine more equitable and emergent justice founded on decolonial more-than-human–human relations.