(Re-)negotiating access: The politics of researching skills and knowledge for 鈥榮ustainable communities鈥?/span>

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• 作者：Julie Newton^a ; ^{NewtonJ2@cardiff.ac.uk} ; Alex Franklin^b ; ^{Franklina1@cardiff.ac.uk} ; Jennie Middleton^c ; ^{j.middleton@kingston.ac.uk} ; Terry Marsden^b ; ^{MarsdenTK@cardiff.ac.uk}
• 关键词：Sustainable communities ; Research methods ; Reflexivity ; Research access ; Research impact
• 刊名：Geoforum
• 出版年：2012
• 期刊代码：30_00167185
• 类别：soc
• 出版时间：May, 2012
• 卷：43
• 期：3
• 页码：585-594
• 文件大小：230 K

摘要

The last decade has witnessed a surge of interest in 鈥榮ustainable communities鈥?within the UK. This has stimulated a plethora of research aimed at acquiring a better understanding of what 鈥榮ustainable communities鈥?might look like and how they can be achieved. However, this has not been accompanied by a reflection and interrogation of the actual processes, challenges and politics of doing 鈥榮ustainable communities鈥?research. This paper addresses this gap by highlighting the importance of paying attention to the on-going process of negotiating access when carrying out sustainability research at the community level. We draw on a recent study of skills and knowledge for 鈥榮ustainable communities鈥?in Stroud Gloucestershire, UK, to illustrate the importance of sensitivity to social relationships throughout and beyond the research trajectory within sustainability research. Our experience raises important questions about the politics of research practices when doing sustainability research 鈥榳ith鈥?communities and the challenges associated with participatory approaches as a means to demonstrate research impact. We argue that in developing a fuller understanding of why and how different types of community level initiatives can contribute to the 鈥榮ustainable communities鈥?agenda, greater consideration needs to be given to how these community practices can be better supported through the process of doing academic research.