In current neoliberal worlds, the infrastructures and technologies that surround them have been deeply adopted and adapted to certain lifestyles, to the point of seeming ubiquitous, in effect, a background noise that we have learned to ignore. From within these frameworks, it is difficult to distinguish the apparatus that lies behind them, not only on a technical level but also in regard to the models they pursue and sustain. What does electricity sound like?

What do snails think about nuclear power plants? is a public space sonic piece that investigates futures with energy sovereignty and more than human perspectives in Tivissa Catalunya. Being surrounded by three active nuclear power plants, (Ascó Power Plant, Vandellós I II Nuclear Power Plant), the municipality of Tivissa has installed a sound system in all the streets of the town to announce if any nuclear emergency occurs. These sound systems have been re-appropriated and are also used to communicate other official announcements.

What do snails think about nuclear power plants? is an intervention that gathers interviews with residents from 7 to 103 years old, while it investigates possibilities of post-nuclear futures in Tivissa. The piece, which was broadcasted as a sound composition from the public sound system of Tivissa, is a framework to conceive more-than-human perspectives and to imagine emerging possibilities rather than emergencies.

In Tivissa snails seem to be very important: there is a Plaça i Barri del Cargol, snail square, and neighborhood and when you walk through the olive and almond trees you can find a lot of empty snail shells. Snails are indicators of the humidity and water of the environment and in recent years there has been a decline in the snail population. Coincidentally, Tivissa and Terras de l’Ebre, as industrial regions that supply energy to Catalonia, also have a repopulation challenge.

Around 30 interviews were conducted with the questions: What do snails think about nuclear power plants? and what should emerge in Tivissa after the nuclear power plants are dismantled? The final sound piece which was broadcasted through the whole town includes excerpts from the interviews and a poem. After the transmission, the audio composition circulated through Whatsapp channels amongst neighbors who were interested in listening to it again.

The sound composition includes the voices of Ana, Loreto, Rodrigo, Ramón, Fany, Guillem, Rosa, Mariona, Dolores del Carboner, Montse, Vicens, Josep, Juan, Nela, Leire, Merce, Rut, Pau, Jordi, Magda, Esther, Lluis, Marisa, Rigoberto, Ebaristo, Ana, Marga, Tere, Jasin, Nuria, Eulalia, Marta, Cris, Noelia, Barabra, Montse, Javi, Jovanna, Stephanie, Teresa, Loredana, Tatiana, Lucia, Albert, Dario, María and mine.

WHAT DO SNAILS THINK ABOUT NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS?INTERVIEW WITH CITIZENS OF TIVISSA, TARRAGONA-CATALONIA Published in A*Desk Critical Thinking.