This inaugural volume focuses on the Korean diaspora residing in Canada. We acknowledge that this territory is the subject of the One Dish, One Spoon Wampum Belt Covenant, an agreement between the Iroquois Confederacy and the Confederacy of the Ojibwe and allied nations to peaceably share and care for the resources around the Great Lakes. Continued.
VOLUME 1 | FALL 2020
In Canada, water is taken for granted. With just a turn of the tap, we have an abundance of water. Water is everywhere when we wash our food or flush the toilet. But water may not be as ubiquitous in the near future. A turn of the tap may no longer exist for some of us, if at all.
How does water exist in our everyday lives? What significance does water have in our lives? How does water shape our relationships with each other and the spaces we navigate? For our inaugural volume, we want to use water to open up conversations on the climate crisis, as well as the multiple existences of water in our daily lives.
캐나다에 사는 우리는 물을 당연한 자원으로 여기며 살아가고 있다. 수도꼭지만 돌려도 물이 흘러나올 거라는 확신이 있으며 현재 손을 자주 씻어야 하는 현실 속에서도 우리는 쉽게 물을 접할 수가 있다. 하지만 우리의 가까운 미래에는 언제나 우리가 원하는 만큼 물을 찾지 못할 수도 있다. <초아>의 첫 호에서는 물을 통해 기후 위기에 관해 이야기하고자 한다. 다양한 분야의 전문가들과 예술가들을 초대해 물이 우리와 어떤 관계를 맺고 있고 우리의 삶에 어떤 존재를 차지하고 있는지에 대해 살펴본다.
How does water exist in our everyday lives? What significance does water have in our lives? How does water shape our relationships with each other and the spaces we navigate? For our inaugural volume, we want to use water to open up conversations on the climate crisis, as well as the multiple existences of water in our daily lives.
캐나다에 사는 우리는 물을 당연한 자원으로 여기며 살아가고 있다. 수도꼭지만 돌려도 물이 흘러나올 거라는 확신이 있으며 현재 손을 자주 씻어야 하는 현실 속에서도 우리는 쉽게 물을 접할 수가 있다. 하지만 우리의 가까운 미래에는 언제나 우리가 원하는 만큼 물을 찾지 못할 수도 있다. <초아>의 첫 호에서는 물을 통해 기후 위기에 관해 이야기하고자 한다. 다양한 분야의 전문가들과 예술가들을 초대해 물이 우리와 어떤 관계를 맺고 있고 우리의 삶에 어떤 존재를 차지하고 있는지에 대해 살펴본다.
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Founders Harriet Kim and Mirae Lee reflect on starting choa and why water is the theme of the inaugural volume.
Cover art by Hanna Lee Joshi
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"There’s a lot of onus on individuals—for example, plastic straws—but will that stop climate change?"
Interview by Harriet Kim & Mirae Lee 
"Whenever I contemplate water, I find myself returning to nature."
Jeannie Kyungjin Kim / Visual & Text 
"Whenever you have a scarce resource, human beings may not always act their best and so it could lead to so many different safety concerns as well."
Interview by Harriet Kim 
“Everyone’s story is unique, but for some people, these stories can be reduced to a category—even worse—be met with skepticism.”
Jiwon Chun / Non-Fiction |
"While laying on the rubbery, bubble gum pink dais and looking up at the ceiling, I would see a myriad of water droplets getting heavier and heavier from the steam in the air."
Cat Lamora / Visual & Text 
"Is it not telling that, globally, wildlife cautiously emerged from the shadows, while humans observed stay-at-home measures in lockdown during the pandemic?"
Jenny Yoo / Non-Fiction 
“Water reflects, holds us softly, and fits exactly to our bodies. It can also rise, drown, and destroy. Water is life and death, and I behold it with great reverence.”
Janice Jo Lee / Song & Video |
