In 2019, the Comparative Literature & Translation Studies program at Barnard College began offering students the opportunity to study photography as a language. This year's course theme was Nature, Environment, and Ecology, taught by Barnard Distinguished Artist Diana Matar. The nine photo essays by Barnard and Columbia Students in THE ANIMACY OF NATURE suggest a collective attention that is at odds with life in the city. The exhibiting artists have refrained from showing us examples of a degraded planet. Instead, they reveal what we might miss if humans don't take seriously our role in sustaining a healthy ecological environment.