School of Geography - Theses
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ItemHotter in the city: Experiences of spinal cord injury during heat waves in Melbourne.( 2022)As a direct result of anthropogenic climate change, Melbourne will likely experience heat events of greater duration, intensity and regularity (Steffen et al., 2014). The impacts of these heat waves will not be evenly felt, however, and people living with a disability will likely experience disproportionate vulnerabilities and be exposed to particularly profound challenges. The bodies of literature that aim to map and understand the context-specific impacts of climate change have thus omitted primary accounts from the disabled community, leaving a void in existing knowledge and understanding that it is vital to address. This research aims to address this knowledge gap by listening to and learning from the experiences of people living with a spinal cord injury (SCI) as they live and move through Melbourne during periods of extreme heat. Additionally, this project contrasts the researched lived experience of people living with SCI with local, State and Federal government policy that seeks to govern these experiences, to explore the nuances of policy thinking and framings and their misalignment with the interests of people living with SCI in Melbourne. This research also takes the step of considering strategies that might better support the health and agency of this particular social group. This thesis uses a novel duet of qualitative methods – semi-structured interviews and a virtual go-along interview – to examine structural and systemic barriers to equal access to space, resources and services and thus to equitable participation in a warming world.
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ItemNot/ at Risk: A Case Study of Young Adult Perspectives on COVID-19 and Vaccination in Melbourne( 2021-12-07)Given the importance of vaccination in halting the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic across the globe, research on vaccine intention and hesitancy in specific place-based contexts is vital (Butter et al. 2021; Craddock 2000; Dubé & MacDonald 2020; Piltch-Loeb et al. 2021). Within Australia, studies exploring COVID-19 vaccine intentions both before and after the development of vaccines demonstrated varying results, meriting further analysis at a cohort level (Alley et al. 2021; To et al. 2021; Davis et al. 2021; Edwards et al. 2021). However, little research has explored young adult perspectives despite their increasing importance in the vaccine rollout, increased susceptibility to the delta variant, and higher risk of adverse effects from vaccination. To address this research gap, this thesis presents a case study of young adult experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic in Melbourne – the epicentre of the pandemic in Australia - and examines primary drivers and barriers towards vaccine intention as informed by broader socio-spatial and temporal contexts. A vaccine hesitancy-specific risk culture and healthism framework informs this study, predicated on vaccine decision-making reflecting an individual’s commitment to minimising personal risk and maximising health benefits (Peretti-Watel et al. 2015). Through semi-structured interviews conducted in July of 2021, this thesis explores the attitudes and beliefs of young adults during a critical period, as the delta variant presented an emerging threat, but vaccine access was still largely age-restricted. Two major themes emerged: COVID-19 risk perception among young adults was experienced at multiple scales, from the global to individual; and perceived marginalisation of young adults by a conservative government in the vaccine rollout was experienced through the lens of past vulnerability and potential future insecurity.
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ItemCitizenship in crisis: international students, food insecurity and the COVID-19 pandemic in Melbourne( 2021)Between the months of March and December 2020, food insecurity emerged as key issue among the international student community of Melbourne. The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in widespread job losses, and many international students - whose temporary migrant status rendered them with limited access to state support - experienced serious difficulties in accessing food. This thesis explores the nexus of citizenship and food insecurity in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic by drawing on 54 semi-structured, in-depth interviews with international students attending Victorian higher education institutions; 48 were conducted as a part of the Talking Hunger project on student food insecurity in Victoria and six were follow-up interviews. This research fills a gap in current qualitative work on the experiences of food insecurity among higher education students and adds to a growing body of literature concerning the dynamic nature of citizenship in moments of crisis. Theorising citizenship as the entitlements and responsibilities derived from membership to a community, I bring the practice and status elements of citizenship together in conversation with international students’ lived experience of food insecurity during the COVID-19 pandemic. In doing so, I discuss participants’ reflections on the nature of their membership to formal institutions namely the state and education institutions within the context of an acutely felt and interconnected experience of COVID-19 induced food insecurity. Furthermore, I demonstrate how students engaged in novel practices of citizenship based in care, empathy and solidarity in responding to food insecurity. This thesis therefore makes a contribution to the literature on food insecurity and citizenship in moments of crisis.
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ItemThe role of gardens in neighbourhood houses( 2018)While there is plenty of literature on most types of community gardens, there is none in the space of neighbourhood house gardens. Neighbourhood houses are places focused on community development, targeting the needs of residents in the local area, with a particular focus on disadvantaged groups. Gardens in these contexts are different to stand-alone community gardens due to their attachment to a service provider, in this case, one that provides for individuals and groups attending the neighbourhood house for programs, classes, assistance, and leisure. How the garden is in turn used may reflect what these spaces are trying to achieve for the disadvantaged community members they serve. This research investigated neighbourhood house gardens in Melbourne. The aim of this study was to understand what roles the gardens fulfil, their purpose, who uses them, and how they function. Comparing them to stand-alone community gardens reveals how these spaces deal with the issues associated with community gardening. A mixed-methodology was employed to uncover information about neighbourhood houses across Melbourne, using a desktop review and phone survey to provide an overview of gardens, and semi-structured interviews with four garden coordinators in four houses across Melbourne, to gain a more detailed look at how some of these gardens are used. Most gardens are governed by the house and operates both as an extended classroom and as a productive garden servicing the house and its attendees. Neighbourhood houses use gardens for purposes that extend beyond food production, most notably, as educational spaces for learning outcomes. People from culturally diverse backgrounds use them to learn about food in Australia, and to learn English. Produce is used to supplement the diets of severely disadvantaged groups. Gardens are also places of leisure and interaction between people who use the neighbourhood house but do not necessarily garden in the space. Gardens are operated with a communal system, with only a handful of houses using individual plots and paid memberships, like those found in most stand-alone gardens. Gardeners volunteer their time and labour in the space, and will harvest produce for their own use, for the house to use in its own programs or distribute to other house attendees, or produce is made available to the wider public by ensuring the garden is open access. Neighbourhood house gardens can potentially overcome some of the issues related to ownership and exclusivity found in stand-alone gardens due to their operation as communal and collective spaces. However tensions are ever present and are managed accordingly by staff. The house plays a major role in shaping the space, choosing what outcomes are to be prioritised, and deciding the direction of the space. Volunteers are often consulted when deciding plants, however this is mainly under the control of the house and its representatives in the garden: coordinators and employed garden staff. While much is intended for these spaces, the perspectives of house attendees who tend the garden would further shed light on what outcomes are experienced in these spaces, and as such, should receive ongoing research attention.