Sub sections:
February 2006
Rural Studies Group Newsletter
| Vol 9. No. 1 February 2006 |
| FROM THE CONVENOR |
| MEMBERS’ NEWS |
| CONFERENCES |
| PUBLICATIONS |
It was great to catch up with those members who braved the bracing cold but clear mid-winter of Armidale for the 2005 IAG Conference. I think that those there would agree that we had some very good rural sessions with papers covering a range of themes from rural housing to environmental regulation to pressures on agriculture to community capacity issues. A busload of delegates took a trip to see how a town whose fortunes have depended heavily upon its natural resources and its particular position within the national and international agro-commodity production and trade systems has weathered the collapse of its key industry, the wool industry in the early 1990s, and the loss of one of its major employers, the local abattoir, in the mid-1990s. To its considerable credit, Guyra has worked very hard on rejuvenating its main street and at marketing its natural comparative advantages to the wider world. The dynamism of the local Mayor, Robin Jackson, and fellow local businesswoman, Grace Kane, was plain for us all to see. One of the highlights of the trip was a visit to the Kos tomato farm on the outskirts of town. Those on the trip would be pleased to know that the first season of their ‘Blush’ branded tomatoes was a success and plans are at advanced stage for an extension of the glasshouse complex. And, yes, they do taste like real tomatoes….
As you would also be aware, planning is also at an advanced stage for the combined IGU/IAG/NZGS conference in Brisbane this July (see the section on ‘Upcoming Conferences’ for further details). The IAG Rural studies Group is offering the following special paper sessions:
- Multifunctionality and rural land use change, co-sponsored by the IGU Commissions on Sustainable Rural Systems and Land Use/Cover Change;
- Rural service provision issues;
- Rural youth issues, co-sponsored by the IAG Cultural Geography Study Group; and
- Creativity, co-sponsored by the IAG Cultural Geography Study Group.
In addition, there will be a special plenary session at which Prof. Paul Cloke (University of Exeter) will deliver the keynote speech on ‘Future directions for rural studies’. Two discussants will respond to Prof. Cloke’s paper: Prof. Chris Bryant and Dr. Lynda Herbert-Cheshire. A special panel session on the topic of the changing links between farm and rural community, featuring Prof. Geoff Lawrence and two other invited speakers (details being finalised as I write) will also be held.
Calls for each of the special paper sessions have been sent out over the past few months. Deadlines for abstracts for papers to be offered in these sessions are due by February 28. Abstracts can be submitted online at http://www.igu2006.org/. You will need to register at the same time. We will also be running ‘normal’ paper sessions on other rural issues so if you can’t fit your paper into any of the above sessions, it doesn’t matter. It would great to see as many of you as possible in Brisbane.
At some stage during the Brisbane conference, we will hold a business meeting to elect new officers, and set the agenda for the group’s activities for the next few years. At this stage, I should warn you that we will be looking for a new Convenor and Newsletter Editor. I have been Convenor for nigh on six years and it is really time for someone else to take over the mantle. Matthew has done a terrific job as Newsletter Editor over the past couple of years. However, with his already hectic work schedule Matthew needs to pass this job on. So, are there any enthusiastic post-graduate students out there keen to take on a smallish but rewarding job? If so, please contact Matthew or myself if you would like to volunteer your services or find out more about what is involved.
See you in Brisbane!
Best wishes,
Neil Argent
Division of Geography and Planning
University of New England
Eleanor Button (Flinders University) is embarking on the fieldwork component of her PhD into Gambling and Pathways into Homelessness. A significant part of her fieldwork will be undertaken outside of the metropolitan area, specifically in the Riverland of South Australia.
Dr Meryl Pearce and Dr Eileen Willis (Flinders) were granted support from the Department for Aboriginal Affairs and Reconciliation for a project on Water service delivery and State and Commonwealth water reform objectives - a response from Aboriginal communities in South Australia. The grant is worth $18,500.
Bev Clarke, Mr Eric Compas, Andrew Beer and Cecile Cutler (Flinders) recently completed a period of fieldwork on Kangaroo Island focussing on the impact of the introduction of the Endeavour Marine Protected Area in that region. A paper has been submitted to the South Australian Journal of Geography.
Mike Bourke (Human Geography, ANU) is working on a number of projects funded by the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research. These are on agroforestry in PNG (as part of an ANU project), evaluation of sweet potato cultivars in Madang Province, PNG (a World Vision project), soil fertility management in the PNG Highlands (with the University of Queensland). They have involved fieldwork in the PNG highlands and lowlands. He is also working as the Rural Livelihood Strategy Adviser for the Solomon Islands Community Sector Program and has made one trip to Solomon Islands on that project. Mike has also been awarded a 30th Anniversary of PNG Independence Medal for his services to agriculture in PNG.
Ruth Panelli (Otago University) continues to work on aspects of young people in rural areas, and is currently co-editing a book of material presented at the 2005 IBG conference on ‘Young Rural Lives’, forthcoming with Routledge. This will include conceptual and case study chapters on children and youth in diverse rural settings from as far afield as Bolivia, Norway, Uganda and the United Kingdom. Ruth is also working with Jo Little (Exeter University) on a cultural analysis of the ‘Desperately Seeking Sheila’ series recently screened in Australia on SBS. Themes they are exploring include gender relations, sexuality, rurality and nature.
Matthew Tonts (University of WA) was recently awarded an ARC Discovery grant with Mike Taylor (Birmingham), Bob Fagan (Macquarie) and Paul Plummer (Bristol). The project is investigating the notions of ‘new regionalism’ and the way in which these play out in the nature of local economies. The study includes an investigation of firms in both metropolitan regions and rural localities.
Matthew Tonts (UWA) and Fiona Haslam-McKenzie (Curtin) have received funding from the Western Australian government to examine the spatial and sectoral patterns of skilled labour shortages in non-metropolitan WA.
Frank Vanclay (University of Tasmania) has received an ARC Discovery grant with Wendy Russell (Wollongong University) and Heather Aslin (Bureau of Rural Sciences) to commence in 2006 to look at ways of incorporating social issues into the assessment of new agricultural biotechnologies. They will be interested in a PhD student for this project and invite expressions of interest. Frank is also involved in the Forestry CRC and has a project about enhancing community engagement by the forestry industries. He is also involved in the Bushfire CRC and has some social research projects to commence and is looking for students.
Amanda Davies has recently joined the Institute for Regional Development at UWA as a postdoctoral fellow, having formerly been at UNE. To date, her research has focussed on aspects of leadership in rural revitalisation. More recently, however, she has started work on new projects relating to youth employment in rural areas. Amanda is also teaching in undergraduate units in rural geography and urban and regional planning.
Roy Jones (Curtin University) is working with colleagues on a Tourism CRC project investigating the impacts of four-wheel drive tourism in remote areas. Roy is also conducting research on the environmental impacts of special events, such as festivals, concerts and sporting events. The longer term objective of the CRC Tourism funded project is to develop user-friendly environmental indicators to enable events organisers, local governments etc. to assess the ecological sustainability of special events.
John Fien and Dave Mercer (RMIT) have received funding from the Victorian State government to support a PhD student for three years from early 2006. The project is entitled "Enhancing Social Learning for Sustainability in Water Management and Conservation in Victoria".
Michael Buxton, Dave Mercer (RMIT), Trevor Budge, Brendon Gleeson and Darryl Low Choy (Griffith) have received funding for a study on ‘Change and Continuity in Peri-Urban Australia’. This is a large research project that involves a collaboration between the School of Social Sciences and Planning at RMIT University and the Urban Research Program within the School of Environmental Planning at Griffith University in Brisbane. It is funded through the Social and Institutional Research Program of Land and Water Australia, with supplementary funding from the Department of Environment and Heritage under the National Vegetation Initiative within the Natural Heritage Trust. It commenced in 2005 and will run until mid-2007 ( approximately $400,000 over 2½ years).
Ruth Lane and Quentin Farmar-Bowers (RMIT) are working on a project called ‘Understanding Farmer Decision Systems that Relate to Land Use’. This research project is funded through the Department of Sustainability and Environment and builds on previous research conducted for the Drivers of Land Use Change (DLUC) project into farmer decision systems. That project developed a ‘drivers model’ that has two elements to farmer decisions - motivations on the one hand, and available and suitable opportunities on the other. The DLUC project explored motivations in depth. This project will address the opportunities dimension, while also testing previous findings about motivations. This research also links with research that has been undertaken by Ruth Lane, Dave Mercer and Chris Harrington on farmer decision-making and conservation covenants in Victoria. This research is in the final stages of preparation for publication.
Senses of Place Conference
Hobart 6th – 8th April 2006
This is a joint conference of the Place Research Network, the National Museum of Australia, the Mountain Festival and the Community, Place and Change Theme Area of the University of Tasmania. The theme of the conference will be an exploration of place in multiple formats and media. The conference will go far beyond the traditional concept of ‘conference’ as well as of ‘place’ to create a venue for place to be experienced as a sense, analysed as a concept, and expressed creatively. Specially invited presenters will provide their reflections on the meaning and being of place in their chosen format. They will be chosen to reflect place through different senses or lenses.
‘Place’ is to be regarded as a metaphor and will include conventional and broader understanding of: home, virtual, border, embodied, Indigenous places, urban and rural, significant, heritage and iconic places, islands, mountains, forests, deserts, aquatic places, and more. Equally, ‘senses’ and ‘lenses’ are also metaphors to express different ways of experiencing, expressing and seeing places
Venue
Most of the activities will be in the School of Art of the University of Tasmania in the art precinct of Hobart’s waterfront (Sullivan’s Cove), very near the CBD and close to a range of accommodation, shops, and tourist attractions.
The maximum number of total participants will be 200. There will be 180 registrations available for the conference. This will be an interdisciplinary conference aimed at reaching a diverse audience beyond the narrowly academic or institutional. Those for whom this conference is aimed include: place researchers in Australia and overseas; other people interested in ‘place’ from around Australia; Mountain Festival participants; and the general public
For more information see: www.utas.edu.au/placenet/senses
International Geographical Union 2006 Brisbane Conference and joint meeting of the Institute of Australian Geographers and the New Zealand Geographical Society
3rd – 7th July 2006
IGU 2006 Brisbane, held at Queensland University of Technology (QUT), will focus geographical attention on critical physical and human processes driving global change. Complex, global-scale processes exert pressures on environmental, social, cultural and economic resources at regional and local scales. It will look at regional responses in a changing world, with emphasis on tropical and arid zones, particularly in Australia, New Zealand, south-east Asia and the south-west Pacific.
Join us for challenging keynote addresses and a programme offering five days of Commission and Study Group symposia, excursions and tours. See http://www.igu2006.org/ for more details.
Post IGU Congress Fieldtrip – Commission on the Sustainability of Rural Systems, Commission on Land Use Cover Change, and Commission on Local Development.
9th – 14th July, 2006
The field excursion will follow the IGU 2006 Brisbane Conference, but is being organised as a stand alone event. It will include paper sessions for the three Commissions, two regional field study trips, a full-day excursion to the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park, a major attraction in the Cairns region, and an opportunity to sample local Aboriginal culture.
The event is being organised by Roger Epps and Tony Sorensen from the University of New England, Armidale, NSW. Unlike many recent field excursions organised by the CSRS, this one uses one location (Cairns) as a base for the whole trip, radiating outwards to a variety of destinations. In an endeavour to accommodate the needs of all delegates, and with particular attention to those who may wish to bring their spouses/partners, we have devised several different packages, which all include:
- Conference registration for delegates
- Comfortable accommodation for five nights
- All meals and refreshments except for one ‘free’ evening (partners/spouses will also provide for themselves for lunch on Tuesday)
- Two full-day excursions
- A gala conference dinner and cultural experience presented by the Tjapukai Aboriginal group including a welcoming ceremony and Aboriginal dancing
- A full day reef experience, including explanatory talks on the coral reef management and its problems, a guided tour of the local marine life and geological features, a chance to view coral via snorkelling (with instruction and with or without guide) and/or a glass-bottomed boat, as well as the chance to explore one of the Marine Park’s protected islands.
- A CD with conference proceedings (those wanting a hard copy of the proceedings should contact Tony Sorensen, UNE, Armidale)
- Transfers to and from Cairns Airport
Package costs are as follows:
A Delegate with single or own room A$1175
B Delegate sharing room with non-delegate partner A$1010
C Partner accompanying delegate A$935
D Delegate sharing room A$955
For those wishing to bring additional family members, the cost would be $935 each if there were two sharing a room or sharing with the delegate, and $1100 if using a single room. As a rough guide, A$1 = €0.62 or ₤0.42 or US$0.75 or ¥86.
For further details visit the Commission on Sustainable Rural Systems website:
http://www.geog.umontreal.ca/igu-rural-systems
Ruth Panelli
Panelli, R., Kraack, A. and Little, J. Claiming space and community: rural women’s strategies for living with, and beyond fear. Geoforum (2005) 36(4): 495-508
Panelli, R. and Welch, R.V. Why community? Environment and Planning A (2005) 37(9): 1589-1611
Little, J., Panelli, R. and Kraack, A. Women’s fear of crime: a rural perspective. Journal of Rural Studies (2005) 21 (2) 151-163
Panelli, R. Pini, B. ‘This beats a cake stall!’: farm women’s shifting encounters with the Australian state. Policy and Politics (2005) 33(3): 489-503
Frank Vanclay
Building capacity for community engagement in museums and NRM agencies: Final report of the Committing to Place project.
The Final Report of the Committing to Place research project can be downloaded from the project website. http://www.utas.edu.au/ruralcommunities/committing-to-place.htm
The Committing to Place research project was an Australian Research Council Linkage Grant project based at the Tasmanian Institute of Agricultural Research (TIAR), University of Tasmania, and conducted in partnership with the Murray-Darling Basin Commission (MDBC) and the National Museum of Australia (NMA). The overarching aim of the research was to investigate means of activating and maintaining community participation in natural and cultural resource initiatives in the Murray-Darling Basin.
The main research activity of the Committing to Place project was to evaluate and reflect on a series of outreach and education projects. Specifically, the four outreach activities comprising the Murray-Darling Basin Outreach Project, a suite of museum outreach projects developed by the NMA in partnership with the MDBC, were investigated: BasinBytes, Murray-Darling Basin TalkBackClassroom, PasstheSalt, and ManyRhymes, OneRhythm. In addition, a MDBC sponsored environmental education event, the MDBC International Riverhealth Conference, was assessed. The Committing to Place research project considered three research questions:
- In what ways do these outreach and education activities engage diverse communities?
- Do these outreach and educational activities influence engagement in NRM issues?
- What methods are useful for organisations to use in developing and implementing outreach and educational activities that are meaningful for communities?