Home interiors, national identity and curatorial practice in the art photography of Simryn Gill

In cultural geography, connections between home, identity, and multi-scalar notions of belonging are well established. Intersections between interior design and national identity are linked likewise to a broader material and symbolic politics of dwelling. Through an interview with the artist, alongside analysis of two exhibits focused on the domestic landscapes of Malaysia (‘Dalam’, 2001) and Australia (‘Inland’, 2009) – the paper explores ideas about nationalism invested in the art photography of Simryn Gill. By exploring the intimate politics inherent within the creation, curatorship, and review of her work, the home emerges as an ambiguous and incomplete referent of both nationalism and self. </jats:p

The Climate Change-Modern Slavery Nexus in Cambodia

Focuses on Cambodian brick kilns to examine how a high vulnerability to climate change can facilitate trafficking into new industries and greater susceptibility to modern slavery.ESRC-DFI

Investigating Domestic Violence Law in Cambodia

Legislation seeking to address violence against women has grown in recent years – at least 144 countries now have laws on domestic violence (DV). However, many women are still prevented or deterred from accessing justice. The ESRC-DFID Joint Fund for Poverty Alleviation Research on DV law in Cambodia not only contributed to greater understanding of the limitations of the legislation but was used as evidence in a law court. The Principal Investigator (PI) acting as expert witness was a significant factor in preventing a domestic abuse survivor living in the United States from deportation to Cambodia where she feared being harmed. The research provided the grounds for relief from deportation through the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (UNCAT).ESRC-DFI

Geography and legal expertise: The transgressive nature of research at the boundary of geography and law‐making

While legal geographers have considered the geography of legal processes, there has been less attention on how geographers are contributing to the making of law. By orientating attention to the experiences and attitudes of the geographical profession, this paper examines how specific forms of knowledge become legally useful and the ensuing ethical, legal, and disciplinary implications. We are interested in the situated nature of these productions, as scholars seek to advocate for specific communities, interests, or environments, practices that are set within and, at times, against personal or institutional priorities. We argue that geographical legal work involves transgressing established professional practices and locations of knowledge production. Through our interviews with geographers, we explore three aspects of transgression as a situated practice: the experiences of boundary crossing, the costs and benefits of entering new epistemic communities, and the lasting impacts of intervening in legal processes. In conclusion, we outline the mechanisms through which geographical legal work could be better accommodated within the work of professional geographers

Gender relations in the Khmer 'home': Post-conflict perspectives.

In the context of Cambodia's post-conflict society of transition, this thesis traces the changing contours of gender relations and inequalities in the Khmer 'home' and beyond. Drawing on 165 oral histories, discussion groups and semi-structured interviews, with men and women from rural and urban localities in Siem Reap, the thesis argues three main points. First, by examining the interplay and relative significance(s) of conflict and now global integration, the research demonstrates that while the Khmer Rouge period is an important and inherent part of the fabric of Cambodian history, using it as the major benchmark for tracking change fails to encapsulate the diversity of contemporary forces affecting gender relations. I argue that tourism-generated employment and the associated rise of livelihood-related migration is having just as significant an impact on intra-household (in) equality and the spatial dislocation of households. Second, despite the discourse of egalitarianism that the Khmer Rouge regime tried to enforce, I argue that Pol Pot did not manage to unseat persistent gender inequalities which continue to disadvantage women's lives. Combined with the persistence of normative meanings of 'gender' and 'home', I argue for the perspectives, roles and identities of men, and gendered power relations, to be the subject of greater academic and policy action. Third and finally, the thesis argues the utility of 'home' both as an empirical site and conceptual tool for understanding the nature, depth and resilience of gender inequality in discursive and pragmatic terms. The thesis concludes by emphasising the critical need for women's equality in the home to become an integral part of future international development agendas. This is particularly the case, if advances towards fulfilment of the Millennium Development Goals are to have a positive and meaningful impact on the lives of women in Cambodia, and in the Global South more generally