Ritual, Ancestry, and Cultural History in Modern China, with Alice Mah

What do we owe to the dead? What responsibilities do we inherit from the past, and how do they intersect with the crises of the present? In an era of ecological collapse and cultural dislocation, how can we meaningfully honour ancestral memory when the material sites of remembrance - tombs, villages, traditions - are themselves vanishing? In this episode, sociologist and author Alice Mah joins us to discuss her new book, Red Pockets, a deeply personal yet globally resonant exploration of ancestry, ecological anxiety, and cultural memory. Mah is a writer and Professor of Urban and Environmental Studies at the University of Glasgow. Originally from a small town in northern British Columbia, she has a long-standing interest in ecology and place. Drawing on her experiences tracing her family’s lineage from the rice-growing villages of South China, through the Chinatowns of Western Canada where she was raised, to the post-industrial landscapes of Scotland and England where she now lives, Mah reflects on what it means to reckon with a legacy of silence, displacement, and environmental degradation. As Qingming Festival tomb-sweeping traditions fade and wildfires rage across ancestral lands, Mah’s meditation on the “hungry ghosts” of forgotten obligations is both an intimate memoir and a cultural history of rupture. Joining Mah to discuss environmental sociology, intergenerational responsibility, and the often overlooked spiritual dimensions of ecological grief, is journalist and book critic Mythili Rao. If you'd like to become a Member and get access to all our full conversations, plus all of our Members-only content, just visit intelligencesquared.com/membership to find out more. For £4.99 per month you'll also receive: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared episodes, wherever you get your podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series - 15% discount on livestreams and in-person tickets for all Intelligence Squared events ... Or Subscribe on Apple for £4.99: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series … Already a subscriber? Thank you for supporting our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations! Visit intelligencesquared.com to explore all your benefits including ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content and early access. … Subscribe to our newsletter here to hear about our latest events, discounts and much more. https://www.intelligencesquared.com/newsletter-signup/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices