The Level of Knowledge About the University Building Among the Academic Community in the Context of Place Attachment

This paper presents the issues of place and attachment to place. The aim of the article is to determine the level of knowledge among the academic community of the university building in which they study or work and its surrounding area, in the context of place attachment. The cognitive component – one of many aspects of identifying with a place – was examined. With limited knowledge about the building in which the study population spends time, calculated in months or years, it is difficult to determine place attachment, identification, or experience. The research method applied was a diagnostic survey, a questionnaire consisting of questions designed by the author. Both students and academics were surveyed. The results showed that students have limited knowledge of the building where they attend classes. The university building appears to be more of an anonymous non-place, without deeper symbolic or social meanings, than a place with which the academic community identifies itself.

The Early Modern Period, 1530–1650

The final main chapter looks at the early modern period, assessing how far it saw a ‘Reformation of the landscape’ and a secularization and commodification of the way land was valued as a resource. It is argued that, as earlier, a group sense of attachment to place was strongest in vibrant, socially ‘open’ settlements with considerable shared spaces, the kind of settlements found mainly in the vale part of the hundred. Village social space is examined in detail through an archaeological analysis of standing buildings and their relationship to the wider streetscape. Court depositions supply data about inhabitants’ attitudes to different social spaces and the ways in which they were used.

Sahelian Transnational Networks and Diasporas

This chapter examines the establishment of Sahelian diasporas in Europe and the United States, their remittances, and the return patterns that have become so important for sending households and communities. Large sums of money are sent by Sahelian migrants to support household budgets that have often come to depend on these remittances. The chapter also addresses the development interventions of hometown associations and other migrant networks that fund community projects and provide social services to their sending communities, and the importance of return migration and its effects on local economies. It examines the sustainability of these vital connections between Sahelian diasporas and their home communities in a context where migration out of the Sahel is increasingly restricted. It concludes with questions about the sustainability of these patterns, given the declining commitment and attachment to place of second- and third-generation migrants.

Guest Editorial Territorial Identities and Heritage. A Constructivist Approach

Territorial identity is defined by tangible and intangible features and involves both place attachment and belonging and the politics of territorial planning. When considered as an expression of historical heritage and characteristics, shared by settled collectivities, territorial identity in all its declinations (urban, local, regional, national) can be considered a tool against the current and stronger homogenising effects of globalisation. At the same time, local identity harbours the emotional and symbolic meanings people ascribe to a sense of self and attachment to place. We advocate for a relational, dynamic, and participatory notion of territorial identity, constituted both spatially and socially, challenging the notion of identity as fixed, natural, ahistorical, or rooted in a certain essence. Besides territorial identity, another key concept discussed is landscape, conceived as a social construct and signifying system, in its morphological (i.e. material form) and/or in its ideological or represented aspects. In a certain sense, the following articles can be considered a contribution both to territorial identity and landscape studies, through the lenses of New Cultural Geography, showing how territorial identities are constructed at the intersection of spatial and social relations, embedded in various networks of power. Understanding territorial identities as dynamic products and processes, historically and geographically contingent, formed and enacted, is part of our making sense of the world and planning for a better future.

Space for Place

<p><b>The consequence of homogenised place is becoming a growing concern across New Zealand’s built environment (Najafi, 2011). In a time where placelessness, sameness and architectural standardization threaten the concept of spatial identity, there is an opportunity to research further into how we can design to maintain cultural and spatial differentiation within New Zealand’s cities.</b></p> <p>Wellington City is New Zealand’s capital, it is an old city with copious layers of topographic and environmental depth. With the harbour water and undulating terrain greatly contributing to the city’s identity, the somewhat disenfranchised population that occupy Wellingtons Streets are lacking this connection to place. This research is looking to defend the notion of a bounded place through reinterpreting our architectural identity. This research searches for continuity in the face of change, where takings from the environment’s past and present will come together to create one unified future identity.</p> <p>This thesis investigates design opportunities within Wellington’s Civic square, design explorations and interventions seek to encourage and foster a rich sense of attachment to place. Architectural qualities are used as tools, with which to think through and create connections around which people actively create identities. The final design outcome aims to facilitate discussion of those qualities of public space that encourage and sustain concern for Wellington’s social identity and its contribution to a sense of place.</p>

Space for Place

<p><b>The consequence of homogenised place is becoming a growing concern across New Zealand’s built environment (Najafi, 2011). In a time where placelessness, sameness and architectural standardization threaten the concept of spatial identity, there is an opportunity to research further into how we can design to maintain cultural and spatial differentiation within New Zealand’s cities.</b></p> <p>Wellington City is New Zealand’s capital, it is an old city with copious layers of topographic and environmental depth. With the harbour water and undulating terrain greatly contributing to the city’s identity, the somewhat disenfranchised population that occupy Wellingtons Streets are lacking this connection to place. This research is looking to defend the notion of a bounded place through reinterpreting our architectural identity. This research searches for continuity in the face of change, where takings from the environment’s past and present will come together to create one unified future identity.</p> <p>This thesis investigates design opportunities within Wellington’s Civic square, design explorations and interventions seek to encourage and foster a rich sense of attachment to place. Architectural qualities are used as tools, with which to think through and create connections around which people actively create identities. The final design outcome aims to facilitate discussion of those qualities of public space that encourage and sustain concern for Wellington’s social identity and its contribution to a sense of place.</p>

Fishing Industry Perspectives on Sea-Level Rise Risk and Adaptation

Sea-level rise, already occurring over Florida’s coast, stands to generate a significant impact on the state’s fishing industry and coastal communities, exposing vulnerable areas and populations to extreme events and disrupting established patterns of fishery and marine resource use. Using a semi-structured interview approach, this study evaluated fishing industry perspectives on sea-level rise risk and adaptation in three Florida coastal communities. The results showed that adaptation responses vary across industry sectors and communities and are strongly influenced by experience, community dynamics, and age. Generally, older fishers are less willing to relocate due to social factors, such as strong place attachment, compared to younger fishers, who are more likely to retreat and/or work from a less vulnerable location. These findings suggest that adaptation responses, while influenced by experience, are mediated by age, attachment to place, and worldviews, and that these factors need to be accounted for when crafting adaptation strategies across coastal communities.

The role of accommodation environments in student mental health and wellbeing

Background Due to the increasing concern over student mental health and wellbeing, attention has turned to the matter of creating environments, communities, and institutions which enable students to flourish. Methods To explore the role of accommodation environments in first year student mental health and wellbeing, eight focus groups were conducted in two universities in North West England and analysed using thematic analysis. Results Three overarching themes were identified: ‘The betwixt space’; ‘Accommodations as vessels to cultivate friendships and communities’; and ‘The importance of accommodation-based pastoral staff’. As attachment to place and relationships with significant others are disrupted by the transition, this leaves young people vulnerable whilst they go through a process to re-attach to new people and a new environment, and loneliness and social isolation were keenly felt during this period. Physical attributes of place that prevent social cohesion further exacerbated feelings of loneliness. Conclusions As it is common for students to withdraw physically and psychologically when they do not form friendships within their flat, accommodation-based pastoral staff have an important role to fulfil. Although these findings demonstrate the importance of the human element within accommodation, designing places that facilitate community, a sense of we-ness, and belonging is crucial.