Submerged methodologies: underwater ethnography contributing to hydrofeminist justice
Jop KoopmanPurpose
This article proposes a methodological framework for submerged ethnographic research, addressing the central question: How can a submerged methodology contribute to hydrofeminist justice? It responds to intensifying anthropogenic pressures on oceanic ecosystems by foregrounding the need for relational, multisensory methods that honor watery agency. Moreover, this article attempts to reorganize knowledge insofar as it serves a commons of care rather than a commons of extractivism.
Design/methodology/approach
Grounded in autoethnographic diving, underwater fieldwork, and interviews with scholars, writers and activists, the article draws on hydrofeminist theory to develop a methodology based on listening, embodiment and immersion. These practices enable research with, in, and on water, fostering attunement to the ocean as a dynamic, more-than-human presence.
Findings
Submerged methodologies cultivate attentiveness to sound, movement and vulnerability in underwater environments. They offer alternative epistemologies that challenge and reorganize extractive, colonial ways of knowing. At the same time, the article reflects on the ethical, practical and conceptual limitations of conducting research in submerged and watery spaces.
Originality/value
This article articulates and presents a submerged methodology for, among others, hydrofeminist justice research. It contributes to environmental humanities, social sciences and feminist scholarship by centering the ocean as an agential participant in ethnographic inquiry.