A Methodology for the Study of Children\u27s Environmental Knowledge in Other Cultures

This paper presents a methodology which I used to study the content and acquisition of children\u27s environmental knowledge as central to the social reproduction of a rural agricultural economy in the Sudan. My approach was forged drawing on methods of geography, linguistics and anthropology to provide information on (1) how children learn to interact productively with their environment, (2) the nature of their interactions and (3) their knowledge of environmental processes and resources. In this paper I will describe first the methodology adopted including participant observation, ethnosemantic interviews, child-led walks, environmental modeling and geo-dramas . I will then discuss its use amongst Sudanese children with reference to general questions raised by studies of environmental cognition in other cultures

The State Goes Home: Local Hyper-Vigilance of Children and the Global Retreat from Social Reproduction

In an early scene in The Terminator, the Cyborgian Arnold Schwarzenegger walks into an L.A. gun shop and asks to see the wares. The shopkeeper lays out Uzis, submachine guns, rocket launchers, and other sophisticated means of overkill, nervously understating, Any one of these will suit you for home defense purposes. The situation is likewise in the growing child protection industry. In keeping with the shopkeeper\u27s sly comment, these businesses feast on an all-pervasive culture of fear, while creating a mockery, alibi, and distraction out of what they are really about - to remake the home as a citadel through the peddling of private protective technologies that reinforce it against various forms of intrusion. These industries offer utterly inappropriate technocratic solutions for broad social problems. More important, the growth of the child protection industry is yet another response to the venomous and slippery fear-of-crime discourse that has become one of the key stocks in trade of the neoliberal state. Retrenching on its commitments to the social wage, the contemporary state has not reneged at all, of course, on its commitments to social order

Accumulation, excess, childhood : toward a countertopography of risk and waste

This piece grows out of my on-going project, 'Childhood as Spectacle', and my enduring concern with social reproduction and what it does for and to Marxist and other critical political-economic analyses. After more than 30 years of Marxist-feminist interventions around these issues, symptomatic silences around social reproduction remain all too common in analyses of capitalism. Working through these issues and their occlusion, I offer what I hope is a useful and vibrant theoretical framework for examining geographies of children, youth, and families. Building this framework calls into play three overlapping issues; neoliberal capitalism in crisis and David Harvey's notion of accumulation by dispossession, my ideas around childhood as spectacle, as a cultural formation associated with contemporary political economic crisis and its figuration of the child as waste, and how this figuration might be turned around to find libratory potential in and from the site of children's play and time.Aquest article sorgeix del meu projecte en curs, 'La infància com a espectacle', i de la meva preocupació constant per la reproducció social en l'anàlisi marxista i en altres anàlisis político-econòmiques crítiques. Després de més de 30 anys d'intervencions marxistes-feministes en relació a aquests problemes, els silencis simptomàtics sobre la reproducció social segueixen sent molt comuns en les anàlisis del capitalisme. Treballant en aquestes qüestions i la seva oclusió, ofereixo el que espero que sigui un marc teòric útil i dinàmic per a l'examen de les geografies dels infants, els joves i les famílies. La construcció d'aquest marc posa en joc tres aspectes que se superposen, el capitalisme neoliberal en crisi i la noció de David Harvey de l'acumulació per despossessió, les meves idees sobre la infància com a espectacle, com una formació cultural associada amb la crisi política i econòmica contemporània i la figuració de l'infant com a residu, i com aquesta figuració es pot invertir per buscar en i des del temps del joc dels infants un potencial alliberador.Este artículo surge de mi proyecto en curso, 'La infancia como espectáculo', y de mi preocupación constante por la reproducción social en el análisis marxista y en otros análisis político-económicos críticos. Después de más de 30 años de intervenciones marxistasfeministas en relación a estos problemas, los silencios sintomáticos sobre la reproducción social siguen siendo muy comunes en los análisis del capitalismo. Trabajando en estas cuestiones y su oclusión, ofrezco lo que espero que sea un marco teórico útil y dinámico para el examen de las geografías de los niños, los jóvenes y las familias. La construcción de este marco pone en juego tres aspectos que se superponen, el capitalismo neoliberal en crisis y la noción de David Harvey de la acumulación por desposesión, mis ideas sobre la infancia como espectáculo, como una formación cultural asociada con la crisis política y económica contemporánea y la figuración del niño como residuo, y como esta figuración se puede invertir para buscar en y desde el tiempo del juego de los niños un potencial liberador. Palabras clave: infancia; juego; riesgo; crisis; capitalismo.Cet article provient de 'L'enfance en tant que spectacle', mon projet en cours, et mon souci constant à propos de la reproduction sociale dans l'analyse marxiste et d'autres analyses politico-économiques critiques. Après plus de 30 ans d'interventions marxistes-féministes par rapport à ces questions, les silences symptomatiques sur la reproduction sociale sont encore très courantes dans l'analyse du capitalisme. A partir mon travail sur ces questions et leur occlusion, je vous offre ce que, j'espère, sera un cadre utile et dynamique pour l'examen des géographies des enfants, des jeunes et des familles. La construction de ce cadre met en jeu trois domaines qui se chevauchent, le capitalisme néolibéral en crise et la notion David Harvey de l'accumulation par dépossession, mes idées sur l'enfance en tant que spectacle, comme une formation culturelle associée à la crise politique et économique contemporaine et la figuration de l'enfant en tant que déchet, et comment cette figuration peut être inversée pour regarder dans le temps de jeu des enfants du potentiel de libération

Los terrores de la hipervigilancia : seguridad y nuevas espacialidades de la niñez

A partir d’estudis anteriors que vinculaven les geografies dels nens i les nenes amb una anàlisi dels efectes de la reestructuració de l’economia global en la reproducció social, aquest article examina les noves espacialitats de la infantesa als Estats Units. Defenso que els espais contemporanis de la infantesa, a totes les escales, des de les del cos fins a les globals, han claudicat davant la seguretat i l’avenç de la privacitat. Recorro al llenguatge del terror per aprofundir a l’entorn d’aquests efectes i les seves conseqüències a la vida quotidiana dels nens i nenes en un entorn públic cada vegada més privatitzat i en un entorn privat cada vegada més exposat. A partir d’aquí, examinaré la inseguretat que sorgeix de la pèrdua de protagonisme de l’assistència social, tant per part de l’estat com dels capitalistes. Mantinc que gran part de la hipervigilància mundana que ha passat a caracteritzar la vida quotidiana als Estats Units va vinculada a les inseguretats derivades de la «globalització» i el deteriorament de l’assistència social. El treball descriu algunes de les noves tecnologies de vigilància que s’observen a la llar de les persones, com ara les càmeres per vigilar les cuidadores d’infants o les mateixes criatures. Afirmo que aquests mitjans tenen per objectiu negociar el paisatge de l’alteralitat de la reproducció social, les desigualtats associades a la reestructuració de l’economia global i per mantenir les divisions de gènere laborals. Suggereixo que aquestes mesures privatitzadores ometen i, a la vegada, mistifiquen les fonts reals de la inseguretat, de manera que no s’aconsegueix corregir-les. El meu punt de vista és que les geografies contemporànies de la infantesa estan estretament afectades per la davallada generalitzada de l’assistència social, afavorida per la globalització de la producció capitalista i per l’ascens del neoliberalisme. Aquests són els afers que requereixen la nostra atenció.A partir de estudios anteriores que vincularon las geografías de los niños y las niñas con un análisis de los efectos de la reestructuración de la economía global en la reproducción social, este artículo examina las nuevas espacialidades de la niñez en Estados Unidos. Sostengo que los espacios contemporáneos de la infancia, en todas las escalas, desde las del cuerpo hasta las globales, han transigido frente a la seguridad y al avance de la privatización. Recurro al lenguaje del «terror» para indagar estos efectos y sus consecuencias en la vida cotidiana de los niños y las niñas en un entorno público crecientemente privatizado y en un medio privado siempre más expuesto. A partir de aquí, examinaré la inseguridad que emerge de la pérdida de protagonismo de la asistencia social, tanto por parte del estado como de los capitalistas. Sostengo que gran parte de la hipervigilancia mundana que ha pasado a caracterizar la vida cotidiana de los Estados Unidos se vincula a las inseguridades derivadas de la «globalización» y del deterioro de la asistencia social. El trabajo describe algunas de las nuevas tecnologías de vigilancia que se observan en el hogar, como las cámaras para monitorear las niñeras o para vigilar a los niños y niñas. Afirmo que éstos son medios para negociar el paisaje de la alteridad de la reproducción social, las desigualdades asociadas a la reestructuración de la economía global y para mantener las divisiones de género laborales. Sugiero que estas medidas privatizadoras omiten y, a la vez, mistifican las fuentes reales de la inseguridad; de esta manera no se logra corregirlas. Mi postura es que las geografías contemporáneas de la niñez están altamente afectadas por el retroceso generalizado experimentado por la asistencia social, facilitado por la globalización de la producción capitalista y por el ascenso del neoliberalismo. Éstos son los temas que requieren nuestra atención

Cultural Geographies lecture

As the 21st century picks up speed and settles into place, childhood has become a spectacle — a site of accumulation, commodification, and desire — in whose name much is done. In this article, I argue that the spectacle of childhood is associated with the rise of ontological insecurity provoked by anxieties around the political—economic, geopolitical, and environmental futures. I address how this spectacle is produced and made sensible, and lay out three configurations of the child — as accumulation strategy, ornament, and waste — that it calls forth. I suggest some of the consequences of these material social practices for actual children and the cultural geographies of their everyday lives. In exploring what is accomplished politically and socially by these cultural forms and material social practices, I draw out their connections with commodification, essence, distraction, and panic

It\u27s All Happening at the Zoo: Children\u27s Environmental Learning after School

Pairing dynamic out-of-school-time (OST) programs with zoos can encourage young people\u27s relationships with and sense of responsibility for animals and the environment. The project presented in this article, Animal Rescuers, gave the authors the opportunity to examine how such a pairing can work. OST programs enable learning in settings that are generally unavailable during school time (Honig & McDonald, 2005). They provide space for collaboration among students, teachers, and others such as program visitors or outside educators. Taking advantage of the flexibility, location, and educational playfulness of an OST setting, the authors worked intensively with a small number of 10-12-year-old children to discover how they thought and felt about animals and to develop creative ways for them to share their knowledge and experiences with others. The children participated in zoo visits, environmental education activities, and an online space for expressing their feelings and working through their emerging ideas. Examining these activities and their effect on the children gives a better understanding of the educational role of zoos and of the kinds of OST activities that can influence children\u27s understanding of animals, extend their knowledge of conservation issues, and foster an ethic of care for the natural environment. While the primary focus of the project was to understand children\u27s environmental learning through a series of OST activities, the authors also looked at how zoos encourage their visitors to understand and care for animals at all scales, from the individual through the global. Despite extensive research on human-wildlife interactions, there is very little work that explores the connection of these interactions with questions of environmental and animal justice--and even less concerning their role in children\u27s development (see Hart & Chawla, 1981; Kellert, 2002; Watts, 2000; Wolch, 2002, for some notable exceptions). Their project addressed these questions with particular attention to the ways OST programs might foster children\u27s engagement with and attention to the natural environment

Children and the Environment: Work, Play and Learning in Rural Sudan

In agricultural economies, environmental learning and the use of environmental knowledge are central practices of social reproduction. The former is important because it encompasses the acquisition of important vocational skills and knowledge, and the latter because it is often integral to the work of providing or procuring basic needs goods and services. In these societies children learn about the environment--that is, about agriculture, animal husbandry and the use of local resources-- largely in the course of their work and play in a variety of settings. In rural areas of the Third World the transition to capitalist relations of production is commonly effected by inclusion in a government-sponsored agricultural development project. Such projects not only transform the political-economy, but often change the local ecology fundamentally as well. In the course of this transition the knowledge necessary to reproduce the society as a socio-economic and cultural-ecologic formation is altered along with the means and settings for acquiring and using this knowledge

Le nature degli American Studies

Al “Futures of American Studies Institute” di Dartmouth del 2003 lanciai una provocazione sulle “geografie immaginate” dell’americanistica. Volevo mettere in discussione sia le celebrazioni romantiche del “luogo” in quanto elemento in qualche modo autentico e particolare, minacciato da un mondo sempre più globalizzato e controllato dalle multinazionali, sia l’esaltazione della “delocalizzazione” nelle società in rete, negli “spazi di flusso”, nella mobilità senza attrito. Suggerivo che queste, come altre geografie poco studiate, si sposano troppo facilmente con molte correnti dell’eccezionalismo americano

On the Grounds of Globalization: A Topography for Feminist Political Engagement

Globalization is nothing new. Global trade has been going on for millennia—though what constitutes the globe has expanded dramatically in that time. And trade is nothing if not cultural exchange, the narrow distinctions between the economic and the cultural having long been rendered obsolete. Moreover, our forbears, like us, were great miscegenators. If here I gloss the racialized and gendered violence often associated with miscegenation, I do so strategically to note that all recourse to purity, indigeneity, or aboriginality—however useful strategically—should be subject to at least as much scrutiny as the easy romance with hybridity (see Mitchell 1997). Globalization has been the signature dish of capitalism—a system of social relations of production and reproduction nourished by uneven development across a range of spatial scales, from the local or regional to the national or supranational, the ambitions of which have always been global—since its birth in Europe more than five centuries ago. European-born mercantile capitalism early on was driven by a real expansion for markets and the goods to trade across them. This was nothing new, particularly, until the agents of capital began to assemble an empire and deployed the physical and symbolic violence intended to redirect toward European interests the globe Europeans were discovering. With colonization and other imperial acts, Europeans of the ascendant capitalist class began to disrupt and rework ongoing material social practices and relations of production and exchange in other parts of the world in order to direct capital accumulation their way. Globalization, of course, is just another way of saying (and doing) imperialism, and since, worldwide, we are living in the shards of a Eurocentric but global capitalism, it behooves us to understand its work in the world, including the searing unevenness of capital\u27s investments and disinvestments, the social costs of the privatization of public life, and the excruciating predations of all manner of state violence