Entangled in the Mangroves: Negotiating Anthropocene Heritage in the Terrestrial/Marine Interzone of an Iconic Harbour City

Abstract

The Anthropocene is a multifaceted phenomenon. One aspect that is often overlooked is that it constitutes a heritage. Heritage is itself a complex notion that manifests in different ways depending on subjective and/or ideological positions taken towards it. The picture is further complicated if we attempt to take non-, pre- or post-human perspectives into account. This paper attempts to unravel various aspects of Anthropocene heritage through a case study of a small area of Sydney’s inner harbour. The area concerned is one explored and experienced on a daily basis by the author as a resident engaged in auto-ethnographic contemplation of the locale and aware of the contradictions of living in such an urban space whilst advocating and campaigning for various Green concerns. The paper thereby addresses the entanglement of human and nonhuman, urban and ecological ways of living, and various senses and perceptions of space in a particular terrestrial/marine interzone. More particularly, it examines the manner in which mangroves are an active agent and key marker of space within this area.