Tanya Gautam holds a BA in English Literature, Philosophy and Psychology from Pune University, India, and an MA in English Studies from the University of Heidelberg, Germany. Her research interests lie in investigating the role contemporary eco-poetics, lyric poetry in particular, can play in cultivating socio-ecological change and creating eco-political impact. During her doctoral studies at MESH, Tanya aims to look at the works and lives of some contemporary eco-poets from Australia and the USA to further imagine local practices that can mend and strengthen the ways humans interact and engage with the more-than-merely-human world. The working title of her PhD project is —
“The Living Lyric: Contemporary Eco-poetics and the Eco-Political Praxis of Attention, Communication and Activism in a Time of Climate Crisis”.
Tanya is a reaearch associate in the project EcoLit. Before joining the MESH team, she worked as research associate in the EUniWell project (European University of Wellbeing). Tanya is also passionate about organising cultural events and creative writing workshops. In the past, she has worked as a kindergarten educator, journalist and editor and continues to pursue her passion for poetry as a spoken word artist and poet.