‘Nature doesn’t care that we’re there’: Re-Symbolizing Nature’s ‘Natural’ Contingency

This article draws upon the work of Timothy Morton and Slavoj Žižek in order to critically examine how mountain bike trail builders orientated themselves within nature relations. Beginning with a discussion of the key ontological differences between Morton’s object-oriented ontology and Žižek’s blend of Hegelian- Lacanianism, we explore how Morton’s dark ecology and Žižek’s account of the radical contingency of nature, can offer parallel paths to achieving an ecological awareness that neither idealises nor mythologises nature, but instead, acknowledges its strange (Morton) and contingent (Žižek) form. Empirically, we support this theoretical approach in interviews with twenty mountain bike trail builders. These interviews depicted an approach to trail building that was ambivalently formed in/with the contingency of nature. In doing so, the trail builders acted with a sense of temporal awareness that accepted the radical openness of nature, presenting a ‘symbolic framework’ that was amiable to nature’s ambivalent, strange and contingent form. In conclusion, we argue that we should not lose sight of the ambivalences and strange surprises that emanate from our collective and unpredictable attempts to symbolize nature and that such knowledge can coincide with Morton’s ‘dark ecology’ – an ecological awareness that remains radically open to our ecological existence

Walking in the shoes of others: Critical reflection in community sport management and physical activity

The term community sport management means different things to different people. Traditionally, to 'manage' community sport was to ensure the effective control of an organisation through a range of hierarchical systems, which would extend to the users of facilities, events and initiatives. However, in recent years this model has come under intense criticism for its failure to deliver meaningful outcomes for marginalised communities, spawning a range of alternatives that place greater emphasis on aspects of relationship-building, community empowerment and political change. In this chapter, we advocate a critical approach to community sport management that encourages students and practitioners to exercise their sociological imaginations, and to actively question the relationship between sport and society. In so doing, we shall deconstruct taken-for-granted assumptions about 'community', 'sport' and 'management', whilst assessing the use-value of this philosophy in tackling contemporary social problems such as discrimination, ill-health, crime and poverty, from the 'bottom up'. Each argument is animated via a series of case studies - often drawn from the author’s own experience, such as Football Unites, Racism Divides, and Positive Futures, that explore the benefits and challenges associated with this approach in practical, real-world contexts. As such, this chapter will not be intended to provide the reader with another set of managerial procedures, but rather a tool-kit of ideas that can be used, where necessary, to accomplish specific strategies of action

Spectres of nature in the trail building assemblage

Through research that was conducted with mountain bike trail builders, this article explores the processes by which socio-natures or ‘emergent ecologies’ are formed through the assemblage of trail building, mountain bike riding and matter. In moving conversations about ‘Nature’ beyond essentialist readings and dualistic thinking, we consider how ecological sensibilities are reflected in the complex, lived realities of the trail building community. Specifically, we draw on Morton’s (2017) notion of the ‘symbiotic real’ to examine how participants connect with a range of objects and non-humans, revealing a ‘spectral’ existence in which they take pleasure in building material features that are only partially of their creation. Such ‘tuning’ to the symbiotic real was manifest in the ongoing battle that the trail builders maintained with water. This battle not only emphasized the fragility of their trail construction but also the temporal significance of the environments that these creations were rendered in/with. In conclusion, we argue that these findings present an ecological awareness that views nature as neither static, inert or fixed, but instead, as a temporal ‘nowness’, formed from the ambiguity of being in and with nature. Ecologically, this provides a unique form of orientation that re-establishes the ambiguity between humans and nature, without privileging the former. It is set against this ecological (un)awareness that we believe a re-orientation can be made to our understandings of leisure, the Anthropocene and the nature-culture dyad

The Ontopolitics of Mountain Bike Trail Building: Addressing Issues of Access and Conflict in the More-than-Human English Countryside.

In recent years there have been calls for scholars working within sport and physical culture to recognise the (increasing) confluence of nature and culture. Situated within an emerging body of new materialist research, such accounts have shown how various activities are polluted by, fused to, and assembled with nonhuman entities. However, more work is needed on the political possibilities afforded by nonhuman agency, and by extension, the stakes that such flat ontological arrangements might raise for the management and governance of physical culture. Building on research conducted with mountain bike trail builders, this paper seeks to explore what it means to know, to be and to govern a human subject in the Anthropocene. Specifically, I draw on Ash's (2019) post-phenomenological theory of space and Chandler's (2018) notion of onto- political hacking to show how the playful, contingent and transformative practices of the mountain bike assemblage confront the linear and calculated governance of the English countryside. In doing so, mountain bike trails are positioned as objects of hope that allows for a collective re-imagining of political democracy in a more-than-human landscape

Running away from the taskscape : ultramarathon as ‘dark ecology’

Drawing on reflections from a collaborative autoethnography, this article argues that ultramarathon running is defied by a 'dark' ecological sensibility (Morton 2007, 2010, 2016), characterised by moments of pain, disgust, and the macabre. In contrast to existing accounts, we problematise the notion that runners 'use' nature for escape and/or competition, while questioning the aesthetic-causal relationships often evinced within these accounts. With specific reference to the discursive, embodied, spatial and temporal aspects of the sport, we explore the way in which participants begin to appreciate the immense power of nature, while being humbled by the fragile and unstable foundations of human experience. Accordingly this article contributes novel insights into the human-nature complex that seek to move beyond Romantic analyses towards a more sophisticated understanding of the relationships between (nature) sport, people and place

Te Ara Whānau Ora (A pathway to whānau wellbeing) : exploring the practice of Kaiwhakaaraara/Whānau Ora navigators : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Social Work at Te Kunenga ki Pūrehuroa (Massey University, Manawatū), Aotearoa (New Zealand)

This thesis is about Whānau Ora, whānau-centred practice and an aspirational strengths-based whānau-centred practice framework called Te Ara Whānau Ora (a pathway to whānau wellbeing), it explores the practice of Kaiwhakaaraara/Whānau Ora Navigators who work in the Te Tihi O Ruahine Whānau Ora Alliance.This insider research explores and illustrates the unique combination of knowledge from Te Ao Māori and Te Ao Pākehā that Kaiwhakaaraara/Whānau Ora Navigators at Te Tihi O Ruahine Whānau Ora Alliance use in their practice. It explores how this skilled workforce is able to go beyond crisis intervention and empower whānau to dream and achieve their moemoeā (dreams and aspirations).Six Kaiwhakaaraara/Whānau Ora Navigators were interviewed to find out how they define whānau-centred practice and how they use it to generate social and transformative change for the whānau they walk alongside. A qualitative research method that utilises a Māori-centred approach and is underpinned by the principles of Kaupapa Māori research was used to explore the practice of Kaiwhakaaraara/Whānau Ora Navigators.Kanohi ki te kanohi (face to face) interviews were used to explore the knowledge, wisdom and experience of Kaiwhakaaraara/Whānau Ora Navigators.Thematic analysis was used to analyse the rich data generated from the interviews. A Te Ara Whānau Ora framework was then used to confirm the applicability of the themes generated by this analysis. The findings of this research indicate that Kaiwhakaaraara/Whānau Ora Navigators define whānau-centred practice as: whānau led, whānau determined, whānau controlled, promoting whānau leadership and building whānau capabilities. Kaiwhakaaraara/Whānau Ora Navigators entered their profession with the cultural capital necessary to operationalise ‘Te Korowai O Te Ao Māori’ (the protective cloak of the world of Māori). Te Ara Whānau Ora is a transformational process that focusses on the moemoeā (dreams and aspirations) of whānau, what whānau want. It is the focus on whānau moemoeā that enables Kaiwhakaaraara/Whānau Ora Navigators to work in a way that is not deficit, challenge or issue focussed. When you focus on the moemoeā of whānau the crises solve themselves and whānau achieve sustainable change

The Value of Transportation for Improving the Quality of Life of the Rural Elderly

When an elderly individual living in a rural community is no longer able to drive, issues that come with living in an isolated area (i.e. limited access to health and personal services, distance between home and town centers) are exaggerated and the individual may experience a decrease in their quality of life. Public transportation that supports elderly individuals may be an important issue for rural communities to consider in creating an aging-friendly community and maintaining quality of life for residents who are no longer able to drive. The purpose of this research is to obtain an understanding of opinions about public transportation for the elderly held by rural county residents and their WTP for transportation options through an additional vehicle registration fee. To achieve this objective, a survey with choice experiments was distributed to residents in Atascosa and Polk County, Texas in September 2011. Researchers employed a conditional logit model to analyze the choice survey data and examine county residents’ WTP for various transportation options. The results of this study provide public transportation managers insights into the attributes taxpayers expect in transportation routes and programs.Elderly Transportation, Rural Transportation, Rural Elderly, Rural Quality of Life, Community/Rural/Urban Development,

Mountain bike trail building, ‘dirty’ work and a new terrestrial politics

Dirt is evoked to signify many important facets of mountain bike culture including its emergence, history and everyday forms of practice and affect. These significations are also drawn upon to frame the sport's (sub)cultural and counter-ideological affiliations. In this article we examine how both the practice of mountain biking and, specifically, mountain bike trail building, raises questions over the object and latent function of dirt, hinting at the way that abjection can, under certain circumstances, be a source of intrigue and pleasure. In doing so, we suggest a re-symbolization of our relationship with dirt via a consideration of the terrestrial