“Houston’s characteristic heat allows signs of global warming to go largely unnoticed. In this project, we wanted to explore Houston’s sprawl and urbanization in tandem with its curated nature to expose an exhaustively fevered city, emphasizing the dual experience of awe and grief while apprehending the ecological degradation.”

Maha Ahmed is an Egyptian-American poet and translator. She holds an MFA in Poetry from the University of Oregon and is currently an English & Creative Writing PhD candidate at the University of Houston specializing in Empire Studies. Her poetry and reviews have appeared or are forthcoming in Grist, The Adroit Journal, Rusted Radishes, The Recluse, and elsewhere. Her critical and creative work explores the Arab-American diaspora, eco-poetics, world literature, global feminism, and inter-religious history. She is edits poetry at Rusted Radishes and nonfiction at Gulf Coast. Find her on twitter @mahaahmed81.

Jennifer Battaglia is a conceptual artist and independent filmmaker who utilizes both traditional and digital mediums—collage and assemblage, and digital video and photography to curate connections between the subconscious mind and day-to-day experiences associated with advancements in technology, changes in family values and social norms, and current events. She has also created music videos for various Texas based musicians and promotional videos for Houston area shops, businesses, and art galleries.