1,721,016 research outputs found
Making ‘Good Citizens’ in the Norwegian Outdoors? Friluftsliv as a citizen-making project in refugee integration initiatives
Get PDFEnglish summary
“That’s not how you do it! You don’t go hiking in jeans!”
This quote illustrates the myriads of unwritten rules and expectations that are embedded in the Norwegian outdoors, or friluftsliv. Breaking unwritten rules in friluftsliv can potentially mark you as an outsider in the Norwegian outdoors. These rules and expectations, or normativities, make it difficult for newcomers, such as refugees, to “fit in” in the Norwegian outdoors.
Despite this, though, the outdoors is often used as an arena for the social inclusion of newly arrived refugees. Local community-based initiatives and national, compulsory and government run integration projects and programs often incorporate friluftsliv activities as a tool for both social inclusion and integration. Yet there is little known about how, or indeed whether, friluftsliv is a suitable arena for integration and social inclusion of refugees.
This study unpacks this taken-for-granted assumption that friluftsliv is a suitable arena for social inclusion of newly-arrived refugees. It shines a light on the ways unwritten rules and expectations impact refugees’ experiences of the Norwegian outdoors, and examines whether, and how, inclusion can take place for refugees here.
Findings suggest that friluftsliv is heavily riddled with normativities that can define some as “insiders”, and others as “outsiders”. Following outdoor normativities in efforts to become an “insider” is one of several tactics mobilised by the refugees in this study to create possibilities for inclusion. Other tactics include implementing their own outdoor practices which often break with the normativities embedded in friluftsliv to create familiarity in new Norwegian outdoor environments.
This thesis argues for a more open approach to friluftsliv. Alternative friluftsliv practices should be welcomed, so that refugees can demonstrate their own outdoor practices. This can allow them to create connections with both the Norwegian outdoors and other members of the local community, without being deemed an “outsider”.
Empirical material was collected through participant observations, mobile and place-based interviews in the northern area of Western Norway. These methods allowed for in-depth exploration of refugees’ outdoor experiences. Focus group interviews with initiative organisers brought to the fore normative attitudes and expectations. Analysing the empirical materials generated through these qualitative methods through a lens of moral geography has made it clear that there are mechanisms in friluftsliv can work for, and against inclusion. Understanding how we best can unleash the potential friluftsliv has for creating social inclusion for newly-arrived refugees is critical if we are to continue using friluftsliv in efforts to create inclusive local communities.Norsk sammendrag
«Det er ikke slik man gjør det! Man går ikke på fjelltur i dongeribukser!»
Denne uttalelsen er et av mange eksempler på at det finnes uskrevne regler og sosiale koder i friluftsliv. Bryter du noen av disse er du kanskje i fare for å bli definert som «utenfor». Med andre ord ligger det spenninger og konflikter i friluftsliv som kan både fremme og hemme inkludering.
Til tross for at de blir systematisk introdusert til friluftsliv, vet vi lite om hvordan, eller i det hele tatt om friluftsliv egner seg som inkluderingsarena for nyankomne flyktninger. Denne studien ser nærmere på hvordan uskrevne regler og sosiale koder påvirker nyankomne flyktningers opplevelse av friluftsliv. Den spør også hvilke muligheter og hindringer som faktisk ligger i friluftsliv når det gjelder inkludering av nyankomne flyktninger.
Blant flyktningene som var med i studien er det å følge disse sosiale kodene en flittig brukt strategi for å oppnå inkludering. På den andre siden kan strategier som går ut på å følge sine egne normer og regler for opphold i naturen også fremme inkludering. Flyktningene i studien bygger kjennskap og selvtillit i friluftsliv ved å være ute i naturen på måter definert av kjente normer fra hjemlandet.
Avhandlingen argumenterer for et friluftsliv med rom for andre praksiser enn det tradisjonelle friluftslivet og de påfølgende normene som forvaltes i dag. Det bør oppfordres til andre typer aktiviteter slik at flyktninger og andre migranter kan praktisere friluftsliv på sin måte og ta med sine tradisjoner inn i det norske friluftslivet, uten at de blir definert som «utenfor».
Empirisk sett baserer denne studien seg på deltakende observasjon og såkalte «walking interviews» med to flyktninggrupper på Nord-Vestlandet, samt fokusgruppeintervju med arrangørene av friluftslivsaktiviteter rettet mot nyankomne flyktninger. Analytisk bygger studien på moralgeografi. Dette perspektivet tydeliggjør hvordan mekanismer i friluftsliv jobber for og imot inkludering. For å lykkes med å skape inkluderende samfunn trenger vi derfor forståelse for hvordan vi best kan bruke inkluderingspotensialet som ligger i friluftsliv
Developing global awareness among young students: A study of students’ experiences with the museum exhibition A World at stake
Get PDFAbstract
The dissertation presents a case study of A World at Stake, a museum exhibition inspired by the United Nations’ Millennium Development Goals. A World at Stake was displayed at Glomdalsmuseet in Elverum, Norway, during 2013¬–2014. The large majority of fieldwork was undertaken from January to June 2014.
Unlike many other museum exhibits, A World at Stake invited classes of young students to participate in and solve hands-on tasks related to global poverty and inequality, on a game board surface spread out over 250 square metres. The exhibition itself offered a particular and, in many ways, stereotypical representation of inequality and an unjust world. Rather than critiquing A World at Stake as such, the dissertation focuses on how young students’ engagements, particularly while ‘playing’, were fundamental to the ways the tasks were experienced and, crucially, to the potential of these experiences to develop the students’ sense of global awareness. Against this background, the main research question emphasizes the perspective of the participants in A World at Stake:
What characterises young students’ experiences with A World at Stake, and how can these experiences be related to students’ global awareness?
The dissertation responds to this overall research question through four sub-questions, addressed in four publications. These questions are:
1. How are issues of global poverty, social justice and global citizenship addressed and promoted through A World at Stake?
2. How are students’ curiosity-evoking capacities regarding global poverty and inequality as addressed in A World at Stake associated with their participation and mastery experiences in the exhibition?
3. What is the role of affect and emotion in students’ experiences of A World at Stake, and in what ways does the exhibition affect students’ understandings of ‘poor others’?
4. How do young students engage in images of social inequality in A World at Stake, and in what ways do these engagements demonstrate how they negotiate their own lives and develop a sense of global awareness?
Together, these publications analyse different parts of the exhibition and how they mobilize different types of experiences. The dissertation applies both quantitative and qualitative methodologies and concludes that A World at Stake contributes to developing students’ sense of global awareness to some degree. The conclusion rests on the argument that students’ experiences of mastery, their affective and emotional engagement and their negotiation of identity in A World at Stake in different ways can be related to the three following dimensions of global awareness: ‘multiple perspectives on the world’, ‘knowledge of global issues’, and ‘the world as interrelated systems’. The following book chapter and journal articles are included in the dissertation:
Nielsen, S. & Klein, J. 2015. A World at Stake – Global citizenship, justice, and the role of museums. Thoresen, V.W., Robert, D., Klein, J. & Declan, D. (eds.). Responsible living - Concepts, Education and Future Perspectives, 217–232. London: Springer.
Nielsen, S.S. 2016. Stimulating curiosity for global poverty and inequality - An explorative study of students’ experiences with the exhibition A World at Stake. Nordisk Museologi 2, 41–59.
Nielsen, S.S. & Aitken, S.C. (Pending editor’s decision). Affect and emotion with ‘A World at Stake’. GeoHumanities.
Nielsen, S.S., Setten, G. & Klein, J. (Under review). Producing global awareness? A visual analysis of young students’ negotiations of images in a museum exhibition. Children’s Geographies.Sammendrag
Denne avhandlingen presenterer en case studie av En verden på spill, en museumsutstilling inspirert av FNs tusenårsmål. En verden på spill ble vist ved Glomdalsmuseet i Elverum i perioden 2013-2014. Feltarbeidet ble i all hovedsak utført fra januar til juni 2014.
En verden på spill inviterte skoleelever til å løse praktiske oppgaver relatert til fattigdom og ulikhet. I motsetning til mange andre museumsutstillinger deltok elevene i aktiviteter fordelt over en 250 kvadratmeter spilleflate. Utstillingen fremstilte ulikhet og en urettferdig verden på en distinkt og potensielt stereotyp måte. I stedet for å kritisere fremstillingen i En verden på spill, fokuserer avhandlingen på hvordan elevenes engasjement, særlig under spillforløpet, påvirket deres erfaringer med innholdet, og hvorvidt disse erfaringene har potensiale til å utvikle global bevissthet hos elevene. Den overordnede problemstillingen vektlegger derfor deltagernes perspektiv i En verden på spill:
Hva karakteriserer elevenes erfaringer med En verden på spill, og hvordan kan disse erfaringene relateres til utvikling av elevenes globale bevissthet?
Avhandlingen svarer på problemstillingen gjennom fire underproblemstillinger i fire publikasjoner. Problemstillingene er:
1. Hvordan adresseres og promoteres tema om global fattigdom, sosial rettferdighet, og globalt medborgerskap i En verden på spill?
2. På hvilke måter er elevenes nysgjerrighet for global fattigdom og ulikhet slik det fremstilles i En verden på spill relatert til deres deltagelse i og mestringserfaringer med utstillingen?
3. Hvilken rolle spiller affekt og følelser for elevenes erfaringer med En verden på spill, og på hvilke måter påvirker utstillingen studentenes forståelser av de ‘fattige andre’?
4. På hvilke måter engasjerer elever seg i representasjoner av sosial ulikhet i En verden på spill, og på hvilke måter viser deres engasjement en forhandling av elevenes egne liv og utvikling av global bevissthet?
Til sammen analyserer artiklene hvordan ulike deler av utstillingen mobiliserer ulike typer erfaringer hos elevene. Avhandlingen anvender både kvantitative og kvalitative metodologier, og konkluderer med at utstillingen til en viss grad bidrar til å utvikle elevenes global bevissthet. Konklusjonen bygger på at elevenes mestringserfaringer, deres affektive og følelsesmessige engasjement, og forhandling av identitet i En verden på spill på ulike måter kan relateres til tre dimensjoner ved global bevissthet: “multiple perspektiv på verden”, “kunnskap om globale tema”, og “verden som sammenvevede systemer”. Avhandlingen inneholder følgende bokkapittel og artikler:
Nielsen, S. & Klein, J. 2015. A World at Stake – Global citizenship, justice, and the role of museums. Thoresen, V.W., Robert, D., Klein, J. & Declan, D. (eds.). Responsible living - Concepts, Education and Future Perspectives, 217–232. London: Springer.
Nielsen, S.S. (2016). Stimulating curiosity for global poverty and inequality - An explorative study of students’ experiences with the exhibition A World at Stake. Nordisk Museologi (2), 41-59.
Nielsen, S.S. & Aitken, S.C. (Avventer redaktørens beslutning). Affect and emotion with ‘A World at Stake’. GeoHumanities.
Nielsen, S. S., Setten, G. & Klein, J. (Til vurdering). Producing global awareness? A visual analysis of young students’ negotiations of images in a museum exhibition. Children’s Geographies
‘Det kan jo hende at andre generasjoner ønsker en potensiell utvikling også?' : en studie av landskapsverdier, bærekraft og deltagelse i en planprosess i Synnfjell Øst-‐Synndalen, Nordre Land kommune
Get PDFThis thesis addresses questions and links between landscape values and implementation of three different dimensions of sustainable development in a local planning process of a mountain area in South Eastern Norway. This is a qualitative study based on semi-structured interviews, analysis of public documents and consultative statements, and participatory observation. The theoretical foundation of the project has its point of departure in the concept of landscape, and how people understand landscape differently. Landscape, planning and sustainability are therefore both the theoretical and thematic pillars of the project. I found that there are ranges of different value assessments linked to the area of study, whereas economic and non-economic value assessments are especially emphasized in the data material. The link between the social, economic and environmental dimension of sustainable development and value assessments is illustrated in the analysis. I found that economic value assessments could be linked to the concept of economic sustainability whereas non-economic value assessments can be linked to the concept of environmental sustainability. Social sustainability is mainly linked to the participants’ views on participation and involvement in the local planning process. The study shows that public involvement, to a certain degree is taken care of in the process. Nevertheless, tendencies towards an asymmetrical degree of influence on the process between economic and non-economic value assessments seem to be present. According to a selection of critical objectives of sustainable development within the three dimensions of sustainability, it appears that the concept of sustainability, to a certain degree, is implemented in the planning process through public participation and involvement. Value assessments therefore seem to be a limited, but nonetheless, capable and useful tool of identifying sustainable development within the environmental and economic dimension of sustainable development
Naturgoder, landskap og sauebeite : om hytteeieres landskapspreferanser i Gjevilvassdalen i Oppdal kommune
No full textThis master thesis is concerned with ecosystem services, mountain landscapes and sheep grazing. Ecosystem services are benefits that human beings gets from nature. Ecosystem services are sorted into four main categories; provisioning services, regulating services, cultural services and supporting services. This thesis focuses on the cultural services and supporting services, i.e. outdoor recreation, place identity and natural and cultural heritage.
In human geography, landscape has a long tradition as an analytic tool. Landscape is a complex concept; it denotes something physical and visual which can be described. It also denotes something to be perceived and hence is a social construct. By examining people’s landscape preferences, it is possible to learn more about their value judgements related to landscape, which is the focus of this thesis. This thesis draws on both landscape and ecosystem services as analytical tools. They are both the result of different factors, natural and human.
This thesis presents results from ten qualitative interviews among cabin owners. The empirical material is collected through field work in Gjevilvassdalen in Oppdal (Norway). Oppdal has the largest density of sheep in the country, and is hence well suited to study landscapes, ecosystem services and effects of sheep grazing. Fieldwork was undertaken in the autumn of 2013. Gjevilvassdalen is a low alpine area, with both sheep grazing and a large number of cabins. Cabin owners are an interesting group of stakeholders because they use and perceive the landscape in ways which are set within ideas of cultural services.
The interviewees talked about the landscape of the valley in two ways. First, they described it from an outsider perspective as scenery, i.e. something to look at and enjoy. Second, they situated themselves as insiders as users of the landscape, i.e. through various recreational activities. Both natural and human landscape changes were topics during the interviews. The grazing of sheep is hightly valued, and the interviewees state that sheep belong in the landscape in Gjevilvasdalen because sheeps are also active users of the landscape as grazers. Hence they keep the landscape open.
This study illustrates that it is possible to link landscape and ecosystem services in order to bring out the values of the environment. The thesis is, however, questioning whether the framework is a useful analytic tool in research, or if more traditional qualitative landscape perspective would have brought the same results
Naturgoder i et landskap i endring : en studie av sauebønders verdivurderinger av beite, landskap og natur i Oppdal
Get PDFNorwegian mountain landscapes haves changed during the last decades, mainly due to human impact. These changes may reflect different social needs, commercial interests and political priorities. Sheep grazing, both as farming operation and land use, haves crucial influences on the tree line in alpine and subalpine areas in southern Norway. Today 75% of all sheep grazing takes place within alpine and subalpine landscapes. Given that sheep grazing has a long history and is of great biological and aesthetic importance to the Norwegian mountain landscape, grazing as land-use is crucial for how this landscape will develop in the future.
Through different qualitative methods, including interviews, observation and document analysis, this study aims to be a qualitative contribution to social science investigations into the ecosystem services framework. This thesis draws on the category of 'social and cultural services' as it is presented in the Norwegian White paper titled Naturens goder – om verdier av økosystemtjenester [Nature goods – on the values of ecosystem services] (NOU 2013:10). This report concerns the importance of ecosystem services, including cultural services, within a Norwegian context. In addition to drawing on the framework, the concept of landscape will be used as a perspective on how a group of sheep farmers in Oppdal municipality assess values associated with the mountain scenery, and what kind of benefits sheep grazing produces in this alpine and subalpine landscape. The landscape approach can be a useful perspective for understanding how the different social and cultural services occur in the interaction between nature and culture. The relevance of this study is to increase an understanding about the relationship between humans and nature and what kind of values sheep farmers attribute to the landscape
Klimatilpasning, brann og beredskap : en studie av lyngbrannen på Frøya, Januar 2014
Get PDFIt is expected among researchers that we will experience climate change both in present time and in the future, resulting in an increasing number of extreme weather events. Longer periods of droughts combined with windy conditions is expected to increase the risk of bush fire. In recent years, the island municipality of Frøya in Sør-Trøndelag has experienced an increase in the number of labour migrants. Most of the migrants come from the eastern parts of Europe i.e. Poland, Lithuania and Estonia. As a result of the labour migration Frøya has inhabitants with different native languages, creating a challenge regarding crisis communication. In January 2014 a fire broke out on the island of Frøya, close to the administrative centre of Sistranda. The combination of an unusually dry winter and careless human activity resulted in a large bush fire. Luckily the wind direction was favourable and the fire was put out before it reached any settlements. Only an uninhabited cabin was consumed during the fire. Before the fire was put out there were considerable concerns as to how far the fire would spread. If the fire had continued in the direction it was heading it would have affected a part of Frøya where many of the migrants live. The challenge for the authorities during this crisis was to get information out to all affected inhabitants in a way that they could understand. In this study I have used qualitative methods i.e. interviews and document analysis in order to investigate challenges related to a multicultural population sees from a contingency perspective on Frøya. Through interviews with key persons in the administration at Frøya, as well as document analysis, I have conveyed the importance of risk communication and a clear definition of roles among the responsible staff during a crisis. The municipality of Frøya experienced that it was challenging to communicate with some of its inhabitants, and as a result of this and following the fire, they have focused on how to improve their crisis communication in case of future incidents
Når pryd blir plage : en studie av håndteringen av fremmede arter i norsk miljøforvaltning konkretisert gjennom prosjektet Fremmede arter langs E6, E14 og fylkesvegene i Nord-Trøndelag
No full textDa Norge i 1993 signerte Konvensjonen om biologisk mangfold, forpliktet dette norske myndigheter til å bidra til å forhindre tap av biologisk mangfold. I årene som fulgte er det utarbeidet en rekke stortingsmeldinger med det formål å følge opp forpliktelsene som lå i ratifiseringen. Fremmede arter utgjør i dag den nest største trusselen mot biologisk mangfold, og det iverksettes derfor en rekke tiltak for å forhindre at fremmede arter spres og etableres i norsk natur. Håndteringen av disse artene er forankret i norsk miljøforvaltning gjennom argumenter for vern og beskyttelse av biologisk mangfold. Håndteringen av fremmede arter skal foregå gjennom kunnskapsbasert forvaltning og tverrsektorielt samarbeid. Med utgangspunkt i nettopp disse argumentene, ble prosjektet Fremmede arter langs E6, E14 og fylkesvegene i Nord-Trøndelag etablert. Nærmere studier av dette prosjektet avdekker en rekke verdivurderinger og -debatter. Denne masteravhandlingen viser at kunnskap spiller en sentral rolle med hensyn til hvorvidt vi oppfatter fremmede artene som et problem. Fremmedartprosjektet i Nord-Trøndelag illustrerer at biologisk mangfold kan oppfattes på ulike måter, og at dette får konsekvenser for hvordan naturen forvaltes.
Stikkord: Fremmede arter, biologisk mangfold, sosial natur, naturforvaltnin
Betydningen av lokalkunnskap for beredskap og krisehåndtering : en studie av brannen på Sørneshalvøya i Flatanger vinteren 2014
Get PDFClimate change result in changed risks considering natural hazards. There is great uncertainty associated with climate change, and what consequences these changes might have in the future. This thesis examines the importance of local knowledge in contingency and risk management related to handling a natural hazard, more specific the bushfire that hit Flatanger in Nord- Trøndelag county, the winter of 2014. After this bushfire Flatanger received lot of attention in the media, and the discussion in the aftermath of the fire revolves around the importance of contingency on a local level, and the organization of the fire service all around rural parts of Norway. The aim of this study has been to establish an understanding of how local knowledge may contribute to risk management, and how local knowledge was used as a contribution during the bushfire in Flatanger. The study is qualitative with application of interview and document analysis. The main focus is how local stakeholders in the municipality assess the handling of the bushfire, and the contribution of local knowledge during this operation. In addition to interviewing local stakeholders I have included document analysis of reports where the handling of the fire has been evaluated, and also the main discussion in different newspapers regarding the fire. Local knowledge is considered as an important part of contingency and risk management by the local actors from the municipality and local fire department, and have also received a lot of attention in newspapers. In contrast the reports evaluating the bushfire do not focus on the importance of local knowledge. There are several examples of local knowledge which played an important role during the handling of the bushfire in Flatanger. Use of local knowledge in contingency planning and risk management might contribute to a more resilient society
Naturgoder i et landskap i endring : en studie av sauebønders verdivurderinger av beite, landskap og natur i Oppdal
No full textNorwegian mountain landscapes haves changed during the last decades, mainly due to human impact. These changes may reflect different social needs, commercial interests and political priorities. Sheep grazing, both as farming operation and land use, haves crucial influences on the tree line in alpine and subalpine areas in southern Norway. Today 75% of all sheep grazing takes place within alpine and subalpine landscapes. Given that sheep grazing has a long history and is of great biological and aesthetic importance to the Norwegian mountain landscape, grazing as land-use is crucial for how this landscape will develop in the future.
Through different qualitative methods, including interviews, observation and document analysis, this study aims to be a qualitative contribution to social science investigations into the ecosystem services framework. This thesis draws on the category of 'social and cultural services' as it is presented in the Norwegian White paper titled Naturens goder – om verdier av økosystemtjenester [Nature goods – on the values of ecosystem services] (NOU 2013:10). This report concerns the importance of ecosystem services, including cultural services, within a Norwegian context. In addition to drawing on the framework, the concept of landscape will be used as a perspective on how a group of sheep farmers in Oppdal municipality assess values associated with the mountain scenery, and what kind of benefits sheep grazing produces in this alpine and subalpine landscape. The landscape approach can be a useful perspective for understanding how the different social and cultural services occur in the interaction between nature and culture. The relevance of this study is to increase an understanding about the relationship between humans and nature and what kind of values sheep farmers attribute to the landscape
Betydningen av lokalkunnskap for beredskap og krisehåndtering : en studie av brannen på Sørneshalvøya i Flatanger vinteren 2014
No full textClimate change result in changed risks considering natural hazards. There is great uncertainty associated with climate change, and what consequences these changes might have in the future. This thesis examines the importance of local knowledge in contingency and risk management related to handling a natural hazard, more specific the bushfire that hit Flatanger in Nord- Trøndelag county, the winter of 2014. After this bushfire Flatanger received lot of attention in the media, and the discussion in the aftermath of the fire revolves around the importance of contingency on a local level, and the organization of the fire service all around rural parts of Norway. The aim of this study has been to establish an understanding of how local knowledge may contribute to risk management, and how local knowledge was used as a contribution during the bushfire in Flatanger. The study is qualitative with application of interview and document analysis. The main focus is how local stakeholders in the municipality assess the handling of the bushfire, and the contribution of local knowledge during this operation. In addition to interviewing local stakeholders I have included document analysis of reports where the handling of the fire has been evaluated, and also the main discussion in different newspapers regarding the fire. Local knowledge is considered as an important part of contingency and risk management by the local actors from the municipality and local fire department, and have also received a lot of attention in newspapers. In contrast the reports evaluating the bushfire do not focus on the importance of local knowledge. There are several examples of local knowledge which played an important role during the handling of the bushfire in Flatanger. Use of local knowledge in contingency planning and risk management might contribute to a more resilient society
- …
