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- Convenors:
-
Cornelia Guell
(University of Exeter)
Tessa Pollard (Durham University)
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- Stream:
- Health
- Sessions:
- Thursday 17 September, -
Time zone: Europe/London
Short Abstract:
Geography and anthropology increasingly recognise the role of human and more-than-human mobile entities in coproducing everyday environments of health. In this session, we will explore how cross-disciplinary dialogue can encourage transformative approaches to the study of therapeutic mobilities.
Long Abstract:
Geographies and anthropologies of health and illness are increasingly sharing valuable theoretical insights, methods and analytical lenses to understand how people's endeavours to "live well" are shaped by the dynamic places through which daily mobilities are enacted, adapted or resisted. Cross-disciplinary dialogues are encouraging novel (re-)imaginings of the concepts of "therapeutic landscapes" and "therapeutic mobilities", integrating important conceptual insights from, for example, actor-network theory, social practice theories and biopolitics, which place varied emphasis on self-hood, bodies, objects, places and structures. One line of enquiry has been a growing interest in the role of more-than-human entities in co-producing the everyday environments in which we all live and move. These range, for example, from the bicycle lanes or parts that speed up our active bodies, the calls of resident birdlife that inspire us to pause and slow down our daily commute, to global systems and trade agreements that designate local healthy foods in the Global South for export markets, exchanged for processed, low quality brands from the Global North.
We present papers that bring geography and anthropology into productive conversation to explore how the mobility of ideas, norms, objects, people and other living entities support the performance and growth of "therapeutic mobilities". We ask how such flows can promote opportunities to experience a sense of health and wellbeing for some, while perhaps foreclosing such opportunities for others.
Accepted papers:
Session 1 Thursday 17 September, 2020, -Paper short abstract:
This paper explores running as a form of green exercise - that is exercise in green spaces - by engaging with bodily and experiential elements of runners' practice. The paper poses the question, how does running in green spaces as a form of mobility contribute to the wellbeing of runners?
Paper long abstract:
This paper explores running as a form of green exercise - that is exercise in green spaces - by engaging with the corporeal and haptic elements of runners' practice. Existing research, much of it from environmental psychology and health sciences, tells us that green exercise can offer additional benefits beyond those offered by indoor exercise or exercise in urban environments. However, many urban green spaces blur urban/non-urban boundaries, offer escape from otherwise urban landscapes and provide opportunities to connect with nature in or close to cities. Therefore, understanding how these urban green spaces, which often feature in everyday running practice, can also contribute to health and wellbeing benefits can help to broaden the our understanding of green exercise. This research engages with phenomenological approaches and Lefebvrian rhythmanalysis, to respond to calls from scholars to include and consider experiential, human and more-than-human elements of green exercise. The paper poses the question, how does running in and through green spaces as a form of mobility contribute to the wellbeing of runners? Run-along interviews are used to gather in-depth and rich qualitative data about running practice, place dynamics - including human and more-than-human - and perceived wellbeing benefits. This work aims to reimagine what can be seen as a sporting or "healthy" practice by specifically considering the green spaces which feature in running routes and ultimately to locate them as part of a therapeutic landscape of running.
Paper short abstract:
We conducted a meta-ethnography of research on experiences of group walking. We show that walkers' initial disciplinary focus on health is transformed through the experience of walking together into a shared meaningful and enjoyable practice; an emergent communal therapeutic mobility.
Paper long abstract:
Increased attention to links between walking and health have prompted the development of 'walking for health' groups, convened on a regular basis to offer short, social walks. A number of studies have sought to interrogate understandings and experiences of group walking in a variety of contexts, both outdoors and indoors, using qualitative methods. We used meta-ethnography to synthesise 21 such studies. From the original constructs identified in the papers we identified five higher order constructs: seeking and enjoying health and fitness, attachment to walking, providing purpose and confidence, mobile companionship and a peaceful and contemplative shared respite from everyday life. We constructed a line of argument analysis based on these constructs and also drawing from the largely geographical literature on therapeutic mobilities and the largely anthropological literature on pilgrimage. We argue that participating in a walking group provides a set of experiences that together constitute a specific form of shared or communal therapeutic mobility that is not simply the accumulation of the constructs we have outlined. Rather, we suggest that an initial instrumental and disciplinary focus on health and fitness is transformed through the experience of group walking into a shared meaningful and enjoyable practice; an emergent communal therapeutic mobility. We see a direct parallel with pilgrimage, a journey with sacred and religious intent, that can, consistently with the Turners' concepts of communitas and liminoidity, become a transformative experience of the self.
Paper short abstract:
Can the pilgrimage phenomenon be considered as a path towards wellbeing? This paper seeks to explore pilgrimage from both the travellers and their hosts points of view. It focusses on the introspective journey in relation to the history and landscape along the way, personal emotions and motivations.
Paper long abstract:
This paper develops from my PhD thesis in Human Geography that explores the cultural geography of pilgrimage routes, with particular reference to the Via Francigena. The focus is both on the historical geographical background and on the rediscovery of pilgrimage through slow tourism, a phenomenon that has become increasingly popular over the last two decades.
This paper considers the experience of the Via Francigena tourist route from the point of view of the insiders (inhabitants of the communities) and the outsiders (modern pilgrims). The purpose is to comprehend the individual relationships established through the slow mobilities with the landscapes, with the local communes, and between dwellers and pilgrims.
The methodology is based on qualitative and quantitive approaches. Qualitative interviews provide insights about the introspective journey along Via Francigena while questionnaires allow comparisons of the relative importance of specific aspects of the journey.
The results provide a context for a discussion about what the Francigena experience means to pilgrims and inhabitants. One key aspect that emerges is the link between wellbeing and slow mobility, the physical effort, and the crossing of various types of landscape. Many travellers find an inner healing place in pilgrimage routes. At the same time, the route generates a "therapeutic flow" that affects the local inhabitants involved.
Paper short abstract:
Small Island Developing States increasingly address high obesity rates by (re-)localising food production for greater food sovereignty. Two local narratives of global movement of food and health messages illustrate complex experiences of food production and consumption in Fiji and Saint Vincent.
Paper long abstract:
Small Island Developing States (SIDS) increasingly seek alliances to address shared vulnerabilities, which include lacking food sovereignty due to local agriculture historically geared towards food export of fruit and vegetable produce and imports of cheap, nutrient-poor ultra-processed food. SIDS have among the highest rates of obesity, chronic diseases and resulting disability and early death in relatively young populations. Concerted state and civil society efforts to address these health challenges involve (re-)localising food production. We explored current practices of local food production and consumption, and impacts on health and socio-economic wellbeing in Fiji in the South Pacific and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) in the Caribbean. We present two local narratives of global mobilities of food and health messages that illustrate the complex experiences and valuations of food as health promoting or damaging. In Fiji, the focus group discussions reflected confusion and contestations around healthy eating advice provided by practitioners that warned against eating local root crops despite their health value; these erroneous recommendations were likely poor adaptation of international nutritional guidelines. Updated Fijian nutrition guidance explicitly encourages consumption of local root crops and planting backyard gardens, but outdated health advice persists. In SVG, social media discourse around "plastic foods" from China reflected uncertainties around food from new global markets (despite more readily available North and South American produce that outprice local foods). Both examples demonstrate tensions in how global movements of foods and health messaging are made sense of, reinforced and contested in local experiences.