Name: Talking Trees: A-bombed “Witness Trees" Teach Peace
Start: 2026-10-08T13:30:00-0400
End: 2026-10-08T14:00:00-0400

Talking Trees: A-bombed “Witness Trees" Teach Peace

Thursday October 8, 2026 1:30pm - 2:00pm EDT

Lecture Hall

Eighty years ago, one uranium bomb destroyed Hiroshima. Three days later, a plutonium bomb devastated Nagasaki. Among the ruins of both cities lay tens of thousands of casualties. Rumors spread that an “atomic plague” would leave Hiroshima barren for 75 years. Yet, by mid-September, fireweed and morning glory wound their way through the rubble and bloomed with vigor. In the months and years that followed, a few blackened trees sprouted new growth, giving hope to survivors.

First journeying to Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 2008, I discovered a lush and vibrant landscape. Stumbling upon yellow-tagged “A-bombed trees” on that first visit, I later discovered a registry indexing some 160 hibakujumoku—literally "explosion-affected trees”—preserved within Hiroshima and some 60 trees in Nagasaki. Unable to shake the impact of my first encounter, I returned to Japan in 2013, camera in hand, seeking more of these green witnesses. Returning four more times, most recently in April 2025, I have crisscrossed Hiroshima and Nagasaki, returning to favorite trees and seeking to discover others, aiming to represent the indomitable spirit of these arboreal witnesses.

As many of the trees live on school grounds, friends in Hiroshima and Nagasaki have helped me arrange visits with principals, teachers and students. On one of these visits I met Hiroshima’s “Tree Doctor,” Chikara Horiguchi, who has been caring for the A-bombed trees for 60 years. These trees withstood unspeakable horrors and survived, grounding the stories that remind us of the importance of peace and working through our differences. My paper, accompanied by photographs, elaborates upon the connections between practices of care, the witness trees, and hope for the future through peace education.

Speakers

Katy McCormick

Associate Professor, School of Image Arts, Toronto Metropolitan University

Katy McCormick is a photo-based artist and educator born in Kansas City, Missouri, and based in Toronto. She received her MFA from The School of the Art Institute of Chicago. A member of the Atomic Photographers Guild since 2014, her work examines commemorative sites, revealing narratives... Read More →

Thursday October 8, 2026 1:30pm - 2:00pm EDT
Lecture Hall

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