In this review, we synthesise the results of studies that examine how the relationships between p... more In this review, we synthesise the results of studies that examine how the relationships between public urban nature spaces and wellbeing vary by ethnicity in cities of the Global North. We searched for articles that reported on the relationships between public urban nature spaces, ethnicity and wellbeing. We found 65 articles that met our inclusion criteria. From our review, we found positive and negative relationships between public urban nature spaces, ethnicity and wellbeing in four interrelated domains: integration/relationship building, therapy, safety and capabilities/competency building. The findings of this review inform park management by offering twelve wellbeing pathways to design urban nature spaces that are more inclusive to all residents.
Are mobility scooters harbingers of a future where small and versatile electric vehicles roam our... more Are mobility scooters harbingers of a future where small and versatile electric vehicles roam our cities
It\u27s a local government truism that Australian city dwellers care about only three things - ra... more It\u27s a local government truism that Australian city dwellers care about only three things - rates, rubbish and parking. They want lower rates, the freedom to turf out as much trash as they like, and convenient free car parking. The arrival of dockless share bikes set these attitudes towards parking and rubbish on a collision course
Once upon a time when something was simple to do we said: "It's as easy as riding a bike." But sw... more Once upon a time when something was simple to do we said: "It's as easy as riding a bike." But switching from driving a car to riding a bike as one's main means of transport is anything but easy. The welldocumented obstacles holding people back from cycling include a lack of proper bike lanes, secure parking arrangements, end-of-trip facilities and bike-friendly public transport, as well as lack of convenient storage space. Despite these obstacles, people continue to try to make cycling a central part of their lives, with varying degrees of success. While we know broadly what the impediments are, we don't know how individuals confront them over time. We tend to approach this issue as an "all or nothing" affair-either people cycle or they don't. Research is often framed in terms of cyclists and non-cyclists. But, for most people, our research tells us it is a gradual process of transformation, with setbacks as well as small victories. The hesitant maybe-cyclist of today is potentially the fully committed cyclist of tomorrow. Unfortunately, the reverse is also true. We have taken a lead from research into smoking, which sees failed quit attempts not as failures but as necessary steps on the road to success. Part of our research is interested in the faltering starts people make in transitioning from motor vehicles to bikes. Our aim is to help identify new intervention points for cycling policy.
1 A relational approach to walking: methodology, metalanguage , and power relations Key insights ... more 1 A relational approach to walking: methodology, metalanguage , and power relations Key insights When asked to share experiences of walking regular city routes, residents are adept at gauging constant changes that characterise their walks, their ways of knowing and being in the world, and their approaches to navigating varied power relations. A relational approach to studying, speaking and writing about, and understanding those changes can also enrich both walking studies and geographical studies of mobility.
Migration from the Global South to Global North is a major feature of contemporary population mov... more Migration from the Global South to Global North is a major feature of contemporary population movements, and provides a lived experiment of the implications of moving from less resource-intensive modes of living towards more resource-intensive ones. Pre-migration practices come together in complex ways post-migration with established norms and infrastructures in destination countries. Here we examine the barriers to and enablers of sustainable practices, synthesising in-depth research from nine different studies in southeastern Australia in relation to household water use, food growing and transport. The total sample includes 323 migrants from 33 countries. The main barriers include infrastructure and broader patterns of work and society. The main enablers are cultural norms of frugality and preferences for public transport. Barriers and enablers interact in diverse ways. We show that migrants are important contributors to inadvertent sustainabilities, but their contributions may be weakened by infrastructural, structural and cultural barriers. Addressing the diverse capacities of migrants would enhance system change for everyone.
This paper presents a survey study with 1,444 low-income older residents in regional NSW, Austral... more This paper presents a survey study with 1,444 low-income older residents in regional NSW, Australia exploring their value perceptions towards using energy efficiently, as an approach to segmentation in social marketing. The study theorises that insight regarding the perceived functional, economic, emotional, social, and ecological value of using energy efficiency by participants can be used to segment, target and position social marketing programme activities to facilitate energy efficient behaviour(s). Latent class analysis was conducted on the participant sample, and identified seven distinct latent classes: frugal eco warriors, value opportunists, greenies, indecisive, apathetic independent spendthrifts, independents, and ambivalent ecologists. Each of these distinct latent classes displayed particular orientations with respect to value of using energy efficiently. This analysis presents new insights for social marketers from an appreciation of how different groups frame value in...
presented at the World Social Marketing Conference, 19-21 April 2015, Sydney, Australiapresented ... more presented at the World Social Marketing Conference, 19-21 April 2015, Sydney, Australiapresented at the World Social Marketing Conference, 19-21 April 2015, Sydney, Australia
It's a local government truism that Australian city dwellers care about only three things rat... more It's a local government truism that Australian city dwellers care about only three things rates, rubbish and parking. They want lower rates, the freedom to turf out as much trash as they like, and convenient free car parking. The arrival of dockless share bikes set these attitudes towards parking and rubbish on a collision course.
Are mobility scooters harbingers of a future where small and versatile electric vehicles roam our... more Are mobility scooters harbingers of a future where small and versatile electric vehicles roam our cities?
In Australian homes, reliable hot water supplies for taking showers or bathing the kids are taken... more In Australian homes, reliable hot water supplies for taking showers or bathing the kids are taken for granted. But this has a significant cost conventional hot water heaters can account for up to 30% of household energy use and can be significant carbon emitters. One alternative is solar hot water, which can supply more than 90% of household hot water and reduce energy bills by 50-85%, as well as lowering carbon emissions. Unfortunately, it is likely that households are not getting the most from their solar hot water systems. In Australia and overseas, there is evidence that the potential of solar hot water is not being realised. So how can you can get the most out of your solar hot water system?
This paper develops a methodology for understanding how relations between people and place are co... more This paper develops a methodology for understanding how relations between people and place are co-constituted through music and sounds. Using the case of Four Winds Festival Bermagui, New South Wales, the paper discusses our use of “sound diaries” as a means to better understand the role of sound in participants’ understanding of place. Highlighted within our discussion is how our experimental methodology overcomes some of the inherent problems of researching so-called “sound geographies.” Sound diaries provide a possible technique to provide partial insights into the embodied knowledge triggered by sounds and music. Woven within these personal interpretations and their attributed meanings are more general themes concerning the concept of soundscapes, practices of listening, the role of sound in the mutual constitution of place and identities, and the embodied underpinnings of place-making practices in relation to sound and music. Introduction Only in the last decade or so have geog...
Transportation Research Interdisciplinary Perspectives, 2021
In western societies, the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic restrictions created a boom in cycling activity ... more In western societies, the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic restrictions created a boom in cycling activity and business. This article reports findings from an Australia-wide survey that invited responses from those who changed their cycling behaviour during the pandemic lockdowns. The survey premise was that the pandemic lockdowns in each state presented the conditions of a 'natural experiment' to test whether the reduction in automobile traffic affected how cyclists reported experiencing the cycling environment. The survey was in the field from 3 August to 16 September 2020 with purposive sampling. A total of 699 respondents participated, with 444 complete surveys. Key questions we seek to address include: Did cycling activity increase during the pandemic shutdowns? How did cyclists from under-represented groups experience the pandemic lockdowns? The findings are twofold. First, cycling activity increased among most respondents during pandemic lockdowns for exercise and wellbeing, but not for transport. Our survey reports that for respondents the pandemic lockdowns did not result in an uptake of active transport, despite the appearance of 'pop-up' cycle lanes. Second, the reduced traffic of the pandemic shutdown period created a particular opportunity for women to ride bikes. The key policy implication is that cities in Australia should be designed for more relaxed modalities of mobility if the goal is to increase rates of active travel and cycling activity.
As founding, past and current editors, we are very excited to welcome you to this special issue c... more As founding, past and current editors, we are very excited to welcome you to this special issue celebrating the 20th anniversary of Tourist Studies. In 2001, this journal was established in what the founding editors, Franklin and Crang (2001), called an 'exciting and challenging time for work on tourism' (p. 1). In their inaugural editorial, they questioned the apparent trajectory of tourist studies at the beginning of the 21st century, puzzled because at a time of exciting scholarship in such transdisciplinary fields as mobility studies and cosmopolitanism, they felt that 'tourism studies had become stale, tired, repetitive and lifeless' (p. 5). Much research identified multiple variants of the tourist quest for authenticity, and expressed a preoccupation with self-aware post-tourists who commented
Domestic refrigerators have become symbols of climate change in energy efficiency campaigns; they... more Domestic refrigerators have become symbols of climate change in energy efficiency campaigns; they are equipment that both permits and prohibits the performance of environmental citizenship. However, little is known about how subjectivities and practices interact, particularly with regard to questions about refrigeration and domestic energy. What might those of us interested in household sustainability learn from the relationships among refrigerators, energy, subjectivities, and practices, and from what these may reveal about environmental responsibility? We draw on data from mixed‐method qualitative research conducted with 28 households in Wollongong, Australia, and frame the analysis in terms of social practice theory, with additional attention to subjectivity. This framing helps us develop thinking about how refrigeration is done and consider whether and how things become waste by paying closer attention to the spatial imperatives underpinning these practices. It also assists us i...
Purpose This paper aims to present a discursive and evaluative analysis of Energy + Illawarra, an... more Purpose This paper aims to present a discursive and evaluative analysis of Energy + Illawarra, an Australian Government Low Income Energy Efficiency Program (LIEEP) funded interdisciplinary social marketing energy efficiency programme. Energy + Illawarra was a community programme working with low-income older people in Australia and involving social marketers, human geographers and engineers. The paper aims to identify how ecological systems theory can inform social marketing, and what practicalities there may be in doing so. The paper also aims to assess whether a social marketing programme that draws on ecological systems theory can have a positive impact on people’s thermal comfort. Design/methodology/approach First, the paper uses critical discursive analysis to examine the use of various elements of a social marketing energy efficiency programme in relation to the different levels of ecological systems theory. Second, a longitudinal cohort survey study design is used to evaluat...
This paper empirically tests the concept of value-in-behavior (consumer perceived value towards t... more This paper empirically tests the concept of value-in-behavior (consumer perceived value towards the performance of behaviors), considers how it influences consumer behavioral outcomes, and identifies implications for social marketing. Value-in-behavior was tested in the context of energy efficiency, an important area for prosocial marketing. A survey of a random sample of 1444 consumers measured value perceptions towards the performance of energy efficient behaviors. Latent class analysis identified four segments based on consumers' perceived value of energy efficiency behaviors. The demographic and psychographic predictors of these latent classes are shown, and ANOVA and multinomial logistic regression are used to identify the relationships between the latent class value segments and behavioral outcomes. Implications for marketing theory and practice and suggestions for future research are discussed.
This article seeks to contribute to the literature that assesses the local outcomes of hosting ha... more This article seeks to contribute to the literature that assesses the local outcomes of hosting hallmark events by examining the expressed levels of enthusiasm for the year 2000 Olympic Games within Sydney. We report on the results of a telephone survey of 658 Sydney residents conducted in February 1998 designed to measure enthusiasm for the 2000 Olympic Games. As of February 1998, it appeared that enthusiasm for the 2000 Olympics remained strong in Sydney, thereby providing support to the views of those who regard hallmark events as a psychological mechanism to assist residents to feel a sense of pride in their city and nation. However, higher levels of enthusiasm were recorded in the lower socioeconomic status suburbs of Western Sydney than in the higher status suburbs of the North Shore. These differences were not statistically differentiated by economic indicators (income, occupation, and education levels) but were significant by association with social variables such as country of birth, age, and marital and family status. Several implications of these results are considered within the literature debating the outcome of hosting hallmark events.
The complex and variable structure of households makes it difficult to design policies to help th... more The complex and variable structure of households makes it difficult to design policies to help them behave in a greener way. Cultural research methods, particularly ethnography, provide survey research with the necessary extra depth. These perspectives illustrate pathways towards sustainable results and the problems of achieving more sustainable outcomes.
In this review, we synthesise the results of studies that examine how the relationships between p... more In this review, we synthesise the results of studies that examine how the relationships between public urban nature spaces and wellbeing vary by ethnicity in cities of the Global North. We searched for articles that reported on the relationships between public urban nature spaces, ethnicity and wellbeing. We found 65 articles that met our inclusion criteria. From our review, we found positive and negative relationships between public urban nature spaces, ethnicity and wellbeing in four interrelated domains: integration/relationship building, therapy, safety and capabilities/competency building. The findings of this review inform park management by offering twelve wellbeing pathways to design urban nature spaces that are more inclusive to all residents.
Are mobility scooters harbingers of a future where small and versatile electric vehicles roam our... more Are mobility scooters harbingers of a future where small and versatile electric vehicles roam our cities
It\u27s a local government truism that Australian city dwellers care about only three things - ra... more It\u27s a local government truism that Australian city dwellers care about only three things - rates, rubbish and parking. They want lower rates, the freedom to turf out as much trash as they like, and convenient free car parking. The arrival of dockless share bikes set these attitudes towards parking and rubbish on a collision course
Once upon a time when something was simple to do we said: "It's as easy as riding a bike." But sw... more Once upon a time when something was simple to do we said: "It's as easy as riding a bike." But switching from driving a car to riding a bike as one's main means of transport is anything but easy. The welldocumented obstacles holding people back from cycling include a lack of proper bike lanes, secure parking arrangements, end-of-trip facilities and bike-friendly public transport, as well as lack of convenient storage space. Despite these obstacles, people continue to try to make cycling a central part of their lives, with varying degrees of success. While we know broadly what the impediments are, we don't know how individuals confront them over time. We tend to approach this issue as an "all or nothing" affair-either people cycle or they don't. Research is often framed in terms of cyclists and non-cyclists. But, for most people, our research tells us it is a gradual process of transformation, with setbacks as well as small victories. The hesitant maybe-cyclist of today is potentially the fully committed cyclist of tomorrow. Unfortunately, the reverse is also true. We have taken a lead from research into smoking, which sees failed quit attempts not as failures but as necessary steps on the road to success. Part of our research is interested in the faltering starts people make in transitioning from motor vehicles to bikes. Our aim is to help identify new intervention points for cycling policy.
1 A relational approach to walking: methodology, metalanguage , and power relations Key insights ... more 1 A relational approach to walking: methodology, metalanguage , and power relations Key insights When asked to share experiences of walking regular city routes, residents are adept at gauging constant changes that characterise their walks, their ways of knowing and being in the world, and their approaches to navigating varied power relations. A relational approach to studying, speaking and writing about, and understanding those changes can also enrich both walking studies and geographical studies of mobility.
Migration from the Global South to Global North is a major feature of contemporary population mov... more Migration from the Global South to Global North is a major feature of contemporary population movements, and provides a lived experiment of the implications of moving from less resource-intensive modes of living towards more resource-intensive ones. Pre-migration practices come together in complex ways post-migration with established norms and infrastructures in destination countries. Here we examine the barriers to and enablers of sustainable practices, synthesising in-depth research from nine different studies in southeastern Australia in relation to household water use, food growing and transport. The total sample includes 323 migrants from 33 countries. The main barriers include infrastructure and broader patterns of work and society. The main enablers are cultural norms of frugality and preferences for public transport. Barriers and enablers interact in diverse ways. We show that migrants are important contributors to inadvertent sustainabilities, but their contributions may be weakened by infrastructural, structural and cultural barriers. Addressing the diverse capacities of migrants would enhance system change for everyone.
This paper presents a survey study with 1,444 low-income older residents in regional NSW, Austral... more This paper presents a survey study with 1,444 low-income older residents in regional NSW, Australia exploring their value perceptions towards using energy efficiently, as an approach to segmentation in social marketing. The study theorises that insight regarding the perceived functional, economic, emotional, social, and ecological value of using energy efficiency by participants can be used to segment, target and position social marketing programme activities to facilitate energy efficient behaviour(s). Latent class analysis was conducted on the participant sample, and identified seven distinct latent classes: frugal eco warriors, value opportunists, greenies, indecisive, apathetic independent spendthrifts, independents, and ambivalent ecologists. Each of these distinct latent classes displayed particular orientations with respect to value of using energy efficiently. This analysis presents new insights for social marketers from an appreciation of how different groups frame value in...
presented at the World Social Marketing Conference, 19-21 April 2015, Sydney, Australiapresented ... more presented at the World Social Marketing Conference, 19-21 April 2015, Sydney, Australiapresented at the World Social Marketing Conference, 19-21 April 2015, Sydney, Australia
It's a local government truism that Australian city dwellers care about only three things rat... more It's a local government truism that Australian city dwellers care about only three things rates, rubbish and parking. They want lower rates, the freedom to turf out as much trash as they like, and convenient free car parking. The arrival of dockless share bikes set these attitudes towards parking and rubbish on a collision course.
Are mobility scooters harbingers of a future where small and versatile electric vehicles roam our... more Are mobility scooters harbingers of a future where small and versatile electric vehicles roam our cities?
In Australian homes, reliable hot water supplies for taking showers or bathing the kids are taken... more In Australian homes, reliable hot water supplies for taking showers or bathing the kids are taken for granted. But this has a significant cost conventional hot water heaters can account for up to 30% of household energy use and can be significant carbon emitters. One alternative is solar hot water, which can supply more than 90% of household hot water and reduce energy bills by 50-85%, as well as lowering carbon emissions. Unfortunately, it is likely that households are not getting the most from their solar hot water systems. In Australia and overseas, there is evidence that the potential of solar hot water is not being realised. So how can you can get the most out of your solar hot water system?
This paper develops a methodology for understanding how relations between people and place are co... more This paper develops a methodology for understanding how relations between people and place are co-constituted through music and sounds. Using the case of Four Winds Festival Bermagui, New South Wales, the paper discusses our use of “sound diaries” as a means to better understand the role of sound in participants’ understanding of place. Highlighted within our discussion is how our experimental methodology overcomes some of the inherent problems of researching so-called “sound geographies.” Sound diaries provide a possible technique to provide partial insights into the embodied knowledge triggered by sounds and music. Woven within these personal interpretations and their attributed meanings are more general themes concerning the concept of soundscapes, practices of listening, the role of sound in the mutual constitution of place and identities, and the embodied underpinnings of place-making practices in relation to sound and music. Introduction Only in the last decade or so have geog...
Transportation Research Interdisciplinary Perspectives, 2021
In western societies, the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic restrictions created a boom in cycling activity ... more In western societies, the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic restrictions created a boom in cycling activity and business. This article reports findings from an Australia-wide survey that invited responses from those who changed their cycling behaviour during the pandemic lockdowns. The survey premise was that the pandemic lockdowns in each state presented the conditions of a 'natural experiment' to test whether the reduction in automobile traffic affected how cyclists reported experiencing the cycling environment. The survey was in the field from 3 August to 16 September 2020 with purposive sampling. A total of 699 respondents participated, with 444 complete surveys. Key questions we seek to address include: Did cycling activity increase during the pandemic shutdowns? How did cyclists from under-represented groups experience the pandemic lockdowns? The findings are twofold. First, cycling activity increased among most respondents during pandemic lockdowns for exercise and wellbeing, but not for transport. Our survey reports that for respondents the pandemic lockdowns did not result in an uptake of active transport, despite the appearance of 'pop-up' cycle lanes. Second, the reduced traffic of the pandemic shutdown period created a particular opportunity for women to ride bikes. The key policy implication is that cities in Australia should be designed for more relaxed modalities of mobility if the goal is to increase rates of active travel and cycling activity.
As founding, past and current editors, we are very excited to welcome you to this special issue c... more As founding, past and current editors, we are very excited to welcome you to this special issue celebrating the 20th anniversary of Tourist Studies. In 2001, this journal was established in what the founding editors, Franklin and Crang (2001), called an 'exciting and challenging time for work on tourism' (p. 1). In their inaugural editorial, they questioned the apparent trajectory of tourist studies at the beginning of the 21st century, puzzled because at a time of exciting scholarship in such transdisciplinary fields as mobility studies and cosmopolitanism, they felt that 'tourism studies had become stale, tired, repetitive and lifeless' (p. 5). Much research identified multiple variants of the tourist quest for authenticity, and expressed a preoccupation with self-aware post-tourists who commented
Domestic refrigerators have become symbols of climate change in energy efficiency campaigns; they... more Domestic refrigerators have become symbols of climate change in energy efficiency campaigns; they are equipment that both permits and prohibits the performance of environmental citizenship. However, little is known about how subjectivities and practices interact, particularly with regard to questions about refrigeration and domestic energy. What might those of us interested in household sustainability learn from the relationships among refrigerators, energy, subjectivities, and practices, and from what these may reveal about environmental responsibility? We draw on data from mixed‐method qualitative research conducted with 28 households in Wollongong, Australia, and frame the analysis in terms of social practice theory, with additional attention to subjectivity. This framing helps us develop thinking about how refrigeration is done and consider whether and how things become waste by paying closer attention to the spatial imperatives underpinning these practices. It also assists us i...
Purpose This paper aims to present a discursive and evaluative analysis of Energy + Illawarra, an... more Purpose This paper aims to present a discursive and evaluative analysis of Energy + Illawarra, an Australian Government Low Income Energy Efficiency Program (LIEEP) funded interdisciplinary social marketing energy efficiency programme. Energy + Illawarra was a community programme working with low-income older people in Australia and involving social marketers, human geographers and engineers. The paper aims to identify how ecological systems theory can inform social marketing, and what practicalities there may be in doing so. The paper also aims to assess whether a social marketing programme that draws on ecological systems theory can have a positive impact on people’s thermal comfort. Design/methodology/approach First, the paper uses critical discursive analysis to examine the use of various elements of a social marketing energy efficiency programme in relation to the different levels of ecological systems theory. Second, a longitudinal cohort survey study design is used to evaluat...
This paper empirically tests the concept of value-in-behavior (consumer perceived value towards t... more This paper empirically tests the concept of value-in-behavior (consumer perceived value towards the performance of behaviors), considers how it influences consumer behavioral outcomes, and identifies implications for social marketing. Value-in-behavior was tested in the context of energy efficiency, an important area for prosocial marketing. A survey of a random sample of 1444 consumers measured value perceptions towards the performance of energy efficient behaviors. Latent class analysis identified four segments based on consumers' perceived value of energy efficiency behaviors. The demographic and psychographic predictors of these latent classes are shown, and ANOVA and multinomial logistic regression are used to identify the relationships between the latent class value segments and behavioral outcomes. Implications for marketing theory and practice and suggestions for future research are discussed.
This article seeks to contribute to the literature that assesses the local outcomes of hosting ha... more This article seeks to contribute to the literature that assesses the local outcomes of hosting hallmark events by examining the expressed levels of enthusiasm for the year 2000 Olympic Games within Sydney. We report on the results of a telephone survey of 658 Sydney residents conducted in February 1998 designed to measure enthusiasm for the 2000 Olympic Games. As of February 1998, it appeared that enthusiasm for the 2000 Olympics remained strong in Sydney, thereby providing support to the views of those who regard hallmark events as a psychological mechanism to assist residents to feel a sense of pride in their city and nation. However, higher levels of enthusiasm were recorded in the lower socioeconomic status suburbs of Western Sydney than in the higher status suburbs of the North Shore. These differences were not statistically differentiated by economic indicators (income, occupation, and education levels) but were significant by association with social variables such as country of birth, age, and marital and family status. Several implications of these results are considered within the literature debating the outcome of hosting hallmark events.
The complex and variable structure of households makes it difficult to design policies to help th... more The complex and variable structure of households makes it difficult to design policies to help them behave in a greener way. Cultural research methods, particularly ethnography, provide survey research with the necessary extra depth. These perspectives illustrate pathways towards sustainable results and the problems of achieving more sustainable outcomes.
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Papers by Gordon Waitt