I Think I Could Live Here

9th September 2026

Creative Perspectives

How do our experiences shape the way we see the places around us? Can the same landscape tell different stories to different people?

Written as part of the Rising Issues project, this short speculative piece by Project REPAIR researcher Dr Chris Pak explores themes of place, belonging, and environmental change. Through a brief conversation on a guided nature walk, it invites readers to consider how different perspectives can influence the way we understand landscapes and imagine their futures.

Creative writing and speculative storytelling are central to Project REPAIR's Reflection (Futuring) Thread, offering new ways to explore how people experience place and how imagination can help shape conversations about biophilic living and more sustainable futures.

The following speculative piece was written by Dr Chris Pak as part of the Rising Issues project.

“It’s beautiful.”

She gazes at a tree her guide is pointing to, which has been twisted over the years by the coastal wind as its form responds to its environment. Time embodied.

At first disappointed by the small turnout on this nature and history walk, she finds that the three others who’ve turned up are enchanting. She’s caught off-guard—their camaraderie is so different to what she’s used to from her former home in Abuja.

“I was really pointing to the plants on the ridge behind it. As the coast changes we find new configurations of plants, along with many invasive ones.”

“They’re beautiful too.”

There’s a slight pause as her guide considers this.

“So what brings you to this nature walk?”

“I love learning about new places and meeting new people.”

Another slight pause.

“I was really trying to point out how the landscape’s unrecognisable.”

“I think I recognise it. I think I could live here.”