Pathogen of War

An immersive experience exploring a mysterious killer born of war. In 2023, this pathogen kills between 50,000-100,000 people a year. We’ll take you forward to 2073, a decade after the Bio-Rift – the moment when all bacteria became resistant to all our antibiotics, resulting in the deaths of around half the human population. This speculative interactive work combines real science with a possible near future looking at the dangers of antibiotic resistance. As participants, you’ll become members of the Recovery Administration being trained in what caused the Bio-Rift and tasked with ensuring it never happens again. Iraqi medical anthropologist Dr. Omar Dewachi will take you on a journey to understand the how Acinetobacter baumannii went from being a relatively benign bacteria, to a “perfect killer”, also known by its US moniker ‘Iraqibacter’ or the ‘invisible enemy’. Together you’ll reveal the many layers of this bacteria’s social history from the microscopic to the geopolitical, unearthing how the consequences of war can drive pathogens, which threaten the viability of antibiotics, and our health, globally.Part of Shubbak Festival