Building University Capabilities to Respond to Climate Change Through Participatory Action Research: Towards a Comparative Analytical Framework by Rachel Watson https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r en-us 2023-02-05 22:47:15 UTC 2023-02-19 22:20:42 UTC hello@padlet.com Izzy's takeaways ibergema https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2476569267 The article focuses heavily on the injustices of climate change. It highlights PAR as a way for higher education to bridge this "architectonic" system that has continually had a greater impact on indigenous communities. The article calls into question academics' contribution to these discrepancies. As well as the necessity to share research with the public and include them in the questions asked and even the answers found. ]]> 2023-02-10 15:25:20 UTC https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2476569267 Izzy's Pushback ibergema https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2476581055 There is still a clear discrepancy between the way the article addresses academics and indigenous communities. I understand the need to clarify these differences, however, I believe that we have separated these two groups to an extent that perpetuates the expectation that there is only one way to be an academic. Rather than understanding that all forms of learning are important and often what we see as academics, such as college students are isolated to complete a specific set of tasks rather than looking at the bigger picture. They are also given a specified set of information, and when we cross into other disciplines we are able to more critically view the world, which the article does address. There are also indigenous communities in university academia, that the article fails to fully include.]]> 2023-02-10 15:34:01 UTC https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2476581055 USP Case Study- Izzys takeaways ibergema https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2476598208 The University of South Pacific is a school that highlights the urgency of climate justice, but while it claims to be guided by inclusive values of the pacific islander community. They do not actually clearly address the "experiences and aspirations" of those indigenous communities. The case study though extends to say that they have begun to bridge this gap and generated knowledge collaboratively and thoroughly blurred the line between "researcher and researched."]]> 2023-02-10 15:46:17 UTC https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2476598208 Izzy's Confusion ibergema https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2476613013 I found it interesting that USP had such a hard time including the indigenous community, as my friends who are part of the pacific islander indigenous community are extremely invested in their community. Though I think there is continually a gap between academia and indigenous communities. If we look at the history of residential schools for indigenous communities, they weren't really schools but rather places to force assimilation. I think this historical injustice carries through to this day, and I am concerned with how I will be able to bridge this academic divide in my PAR. While I have good intentions, history tells indigenous communities not to trust us, so I wouldn't blame them if they didn't. ]]> 2023-02-10 15:57:14 UTC https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2476613013 Izzy's PAR idea- infrastructure ibergema https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2476632718 I want to start my research by looking at what the indigenous communities want to change about the Owen's Lakebead area. From the article I posted on the previous padlet it seems they want it to be registered to the California Register of Historical Resources and the National Register of Historic Places. Then I want to look into the infrastructure that led to the problem (the aqueduct) and looking forward to how do we help to design the infrastructure (ie, roads, trails, etc) necessary to protect it for if/when it makes it onto the register of historic places.]]> 2023-02-10 16:12:17 UTC https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2476632718 Ali Ceretto https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2480104484 I appreciate that this paper specifically talks about institutional change, considering the idea of "individual change" was coined by corporations trying to prevent laws being put into place that limited their business practices. See history of national bottling corporations and the lie of plastic recycling.

The paper seems to be trying to bridge the gap between social justice and activism in the context of climate change, and institutions like universities which study climate change. I don't think they mention how many universities actively prevent professors and such associated with these institutions from participating in any kind of politics or activism. (Seriously we had that weird thing two years ago where UW sent out a 'if you're doing an interview you must make it explicitly clear you are not associated with UW and your opinions do not reflect UW or you will get in trouble'. So many places have that and it's an extra layer of cobwebs preventing people from becoming active in fighting for these issues.)]]> 2023-02-13 18:51:21 UTC https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2480104484 ali ceretto pushback https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2480140020 "Transformative adaptation thus requires a shift from focusing on resilience (without challenging the status quo), and beyond incremental changes, to holistic understandings of justice that foster changes in social practices and values, and that work at structural and systemic levels " - I disagree with this. You need a combination of incrimental change and institutional change. Focusing on one over the other causes instability in enacting real lasting change, rather than lip service. 

We can see how focusing on grassroots/incremental vs national politics has shifted our political landscape in the last few years, and as social justice is a battle of ideas, I think that political playbooks are a good place to see what strategies may or may not work. It's very Rules for Radicals, in how mob mentality is manipulated.

I think the "agency is ownership" idea they talk about is a grassroots/incremental change movement, which kinda contradicts what they said in the previous paragraph about institutional change (which is larger laws and regulations)? I wish they could better define what they meant by the terms they are using, but maybe that falls into the category of 'every PAR is unique and hard to make a playbook for'. IDK I think you can make a playbook for what levels of change you want to enact, to at least give a common vocabulary.]]> 2023-02-13 19:14:44 UTC https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2480140020 ali ceretto https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2480243138 I thought it was interestering how they compare universities to corporations, in terms of how each effect areas of climate change, fossil fuel usage, etc. It is an apt comparison, considering universities have large control over areas; we even call them 'college towns'. Here in Laramie hazardous waste and power usage revolve around UW. ]]> 2023-02-13 20:34:49 UTC https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2480243138 ceretto par https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2480245556 I'm unsure. I would want to talk to our collaborators before settling on a project. I don't know whether killing a golf course (or 20) is what they want or need. Perhaps I could invest my time in trying to contact people working with the Great Salt Lake, and doing some kind of collaboration? Or comparison as a cuationary tale? Or an art project. IDK]]> 2023-02-13 20:37:09 UTC https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2480245556 Erin https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2480378073 This paper focuses on how PAR interacts with climate change, social justice, and epistemic justice. They relate it to how we can transform systems--from how climate change affects people directly, and how we can change university systems to better address climate related injustices. Some of this conversation reminded me of our visiting speakers work in the Andes, and how he integrated local knowledge in his map making. It speaks a lot about how PAR can increase participation, agency, and ownership in communities affected by climate change. In what appears to be a theme taking center stage lately in my brain, the idea of looking at climate change through different lenses--indigenous, socio-ecological justice, activism, is discussed throughout. ]]> 2023-02-13 23:33:51 UTC https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2480378073 Erin https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2480378697 Adding in some other lenses to the work we have done and the work that remains to do. Reframing and reworking some of the capstone work to reflect the other stakeholders that we were unable to reach the first time around. ]]> 2023-02-13 23:34:50 UTC https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2480378697 Erin https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2480382752 "Such work is thus in complementarity, indeed directly engages with, decolonial arguments that call for pluralised “ecologies of knowledges” (Santos 2014, 2018), and recognise links between the social, epistemic and ecological justice mandates of higher education institutions and systems, calling into fundamen- tal question the elite and neoliberal concerns of the university. Mbembe power- fully calls this planetarity – a consciousness of the unity between human society and the Earth and “of the entanglement of nature and society” (Mbembe 2019). As Santos argues (2018), PAR offers a key pathway by which these structures of elite and siloed knowledge can begin to be disrupted, recognising historical and contemporary forms of epistemic injustice, and actively engaging with some of these “entanglements”. "

This whole paragraph resonated with me. 
1. the discussion of "decolonialism", even briefly, is something I have been thinking about since taking a museum studies class last semester. The idea that this colonialism is inherent and ingrained in a lot of our systems and viewpoints, and that we need to broaden the viewpoints included in much of what we do--from an individual to university level. 
2. Again, this idea of bringing in different viewpoints and lenses to make sure that our answer is as wholistic and impactful as it can be, and that we aren't continuing to perpetuate the violence in 1. 
3. I am always ready and willing to disrupt siloed knowledge. ]]> 2023-02-13 23:41:41 UTC https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2480382752 Erin https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2480384892 I am interested to know more about the set up here-they mention 12 universities had PAR groups, with one lead at each university, but funded and coordinated from a college in London. I guess I am always hesitant when a multi-college effort, bringing in multiple viewpoints, is headed up out of an ancient institution that is inherently linked to colonialism. How does the fact that this project is coordinated in a place so inherently linked to prestige, colonialism, and privilege (rightly or not) color the interaction and the results?]]> 2023-02-13 23:45:09 UTC https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2480384892 Erin--USP https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2480404734 While the Pacific Islands Forum Leaders named climate change as a major concern, and the USP says that its values are driven by "Pacific values" the university itself seems to have little in their policies and commitments to back this up. This has a parallel to our work in Owens, given that the native population, which is not being administratively considered, will bear the brunt of the damage from climate change. The teachers and students at the University have taken steps to engage with indigenous ways of knowing and community, but without administrative support their battle is likely uphill. They plan to host discussions and engage with how some of these practices can be incorporated and promoted in university practices. ]]> 2023-02-14 00:00:14 UTC https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2480404734 Eva https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2482256344 What sat funny with me was that each of the case studies was in a "developing" country that will likely be more impacted by climate change than more wealthy nations. They frame the importance of Universities/Institutions being held accountable to make plans AND take action for the benefit of all within the community, but it feels a little like when oil and gas conglomerates create carbon footprint calculators. The wide-reaching individual and even institutional blame of colonization and colonial ways of being/knowing seems evident, even here. I agree that it is on all of us to make collective change, but will we also be holding the larger, wealthy institutions accountable to make policy changes to the same degree? (i.e. Ivy League schools, etc.)  

]]> 2023-02-14 16:44:14 UTC https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2482256344 Eva https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2482284100 PAR, when used correctly can hold institutions accountable to think of themselves as bad actors with respect to climate change and social justice. Involving other ways of knowing in the cyclical process of PAR can create a new system that equally respects and empowers individuals, groups, and institutions to take action and create meaningful policy and impactful change.]]> 2023-02-14 17:01:33 UTC https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2482284100 Eva https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2482364959 This case study exemplified how many institutions donate money/time/effort towards causes that help local communities affected by climate change, but do not objectively look at how their own policies and actions may be directly detrimental to those same communities. The importance of PAR here is the cyclical nature in which the University can listen to community members, take responsibility, and enact practices for the collective benefit. ]]> 2023-02-14 17:54:49 UTC https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2482364959 Eva https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2482369652 I've been thinking about the place-based art/science done at Owen's Lake, and what sort of art project I could create within that context at Happy Jack. There is potential for integrating some of my master's research (Casper Aquifer recharge from snowmelt in that area) with the art project. I'm still thinking about how this interfaces with PAR.]]> 2023-02-14 17:57:57 UTC https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2482369652 Eva https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2482377819 I think it is fairly normal for large institutions/corporations to put on a good face to be "green," etc. It was interesting to think about Universities in this light (even those that are public/not for profit), and how there is an inherent selfishness in most climate and social justice policy that comes from a top down approach.]]> 2023-02-14 18:03:50 UTC https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2482377819 Sammy https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2483023376 This article largely centers around how universities can use and are using PAR to combat climate change and the injustices surrounding it at an institutional level. It discusses how PAR can be used by universities as a way to recenter indigenous peoples and their ways of knowing in conversations surrounding climate change because their communities are disproportionately affected by it. It also emphasizes the importance for universities to address the injustices that are inherent within their systems by engaging and collaborating with marginalized groups. ]]> 2023-02-15 06:14:46 UTC https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2483023376 Sammy - KU https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2483041777 Kenyatta University focused on connecting PAR students with surrounding indigenous communities to help them address the issues that they were facing as a result of climate change. Many students who participated in PAR through KU felt that the university did not place enough value on collaborating with the local communities and instead that the university focused more on what they assumed would "help" these communities. This case study emphasizes the importance of allowing indigenous communities to participate in conversations about climate change and for universities to learn from the knowledge that these communities contribute. ]]> 2023-02-15 06:36:25 UTC https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2483041777 Sammy https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2484152794 I'm curious to know more about who was a part of the PAR groups and how the participants were chosen. I also feel like the article did not address what sorts of perspectives indigenous communities had about PAR and whether or not they were given the chance to provide feedback about it. ]]> 2023-02-15 21:52:12 UTC https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2484152794 Sammy https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2484157694 I thought that the article did a good job of clearly defining what it means for universities to collaborate with indigenous groups. The fourth paragraph in the discussion section particularly resonated with me because I like how the word “reciprocity” was used to define the collaboration between universities and indigenous groups. This reminded me of Braiding Sweetgrass, and how Robin Wall Kimmerer discusses reciprocity when thinking about our relationship with nature and how we must give back for the gifts that we have received. I like this idea that both groups can play the role of giver and receiver. ]]> 2023-02-15 21:58:46 UTC https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2484157694 Sammy https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2485319578  
I’m still not very sure which direction I would like to go for my PAR. I am interested in exploring human-nature relationships and looking at how skiing can influence these relationships and even what we define as nature. I think I could translate these ideas into an art project and maybe tie in climate change. I would also be interested in exploring Indigenous viewpoints surrounding the Owen's Lakebed area in more depth.
]]> 2023-02-16 17:27:57 UTC https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2485319578 Kaj Taylor https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2485629394 This article gives insight into the use of Participatory Action Research as a tool of driving change. The main goal of the article is to persuade Universities to use PAR to address perceived issues surrounding climate change, belittled communities, and indigenous knowledge.]]> 2023-02-16 22:21:17 UTC https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2485629394 Kaj Taylor https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2485636714 The University of Passo Fundo focused on inluding University Abilities in efforts specifically to tackle the issue of climate change. Beyond that, it was noted that there seemed to be lots of holdups within the University, and that many of the selected PAR groups did not include adequate representations of the local population. Students seemed to be unhappy with the University's lack of progression with their climate PAR project.]]> 2023-02-16 22:32:23 UTC https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2485636714 Kaj Taylor https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2485638493 I wonder how much of the PAR projects and their respective progressions have been held up by administration. I wonder how much of what occurs is the result of administrative selectivity rather than that of the researchers. Would this make for a case for this to occur outside Universities? ]]> 2023-02-16 22:35:03 UTC https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2485638493 Kaj Taylor https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2485642437 I found it odd that wealthier Universities abroad were directing/dictating action happening in Universities in rather poorer places. Instead of allowing for natural social change and occurrence, wealth from abroad was actively trying to sway a local populace into its own doctrine. Seems neo-colonial. ]]> 2023-02-16 22:40:48 UTC https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2485642437 Kaj Taylor https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2485643774 PAR could be utilized to ask specifically about locals perception of the western water crisis in Wyoming specifically. Further, it could be used to inquire people's perspectives on an environmental catastrophe such as the Owens Lakebed]]> 2023-02-16 22:42:43 UTC https://padlet.com/rmimwatson/d82d1u39na5f9k5r/wish/2485643774