Concrete underpins modern construction and allows for building processes that are mostly taken for granted. But where does the cement that comprises concrete actually come from? What natural resources, state territories, power relations, and political ecologies does cement bring into view? And how are the stakes of these ecologies raised in the fraught space of Palestine, where cement mediates exhaustion and anti-colonial survival against the constrictions of the Israeli occupation?

In this episode, Dom spoke with Samir Harb, a trained architect, human geographer, comics maker, and artist to discuss his research into the politics of cement in occupied Palestine. The conversation covered Samir’s early training as an architect in the West Bank, how the circulation of cement exhausts the metabolism of Palestinian cities, why Samir has used comics to explore the territorial contradictions of the Israeli occupation, and why he has turned to art in response to the genocide in Gaza.

Pictures to illustrate the conversation are available on the @TTinfraNetwork Instagram page. Please take a moment to like, subscribe, and review the podcast to help us reach more listeners.