Invitation to "Doing Participatory Research" event in London, 26 Feb 2015

[Sam Halvorsen]

Hi all

Some of you may be interested in attending this event in London next year, organised by the participatory geographies research group, who share much of the aims and politics of ORC. There is a similar event taking place in Sheffield that week, which I will forward on as well

Thanks

Sam

.........

Doing Participatory Research – An evening with the Participatory Geographies Research Group and Michael Edwards (Bartlett School of Planning, UCL)

 

Thursday 26th February, 2015, 5-7pm, UCL, London

Room G07, Pearson Building, Gower Street, London, WC1E 6BT

 

This event will provide an introduction to doing participatory research, and an overview of the current activities of the Participatory Geographies Research Group (of the Royal Geographic Society). It is open to anyone interested in finding out more about this ever-popular methodology, and is opportunity to get involved in the Research Group. All welcome.

 

Timetable for evening:

 

5-5.30pm: Arrivals and welcome.

5.30-6.30pm: Keynote talk by Michael Edwards on “Reflecting on a Participatory Career”, followed by discussion.

6.30-7pm: Introduction to Participatory Geographies Research Group: what we do and how to get involved.

7pm: relocate to bar to continue informal discussion.

 

In order to help with numbers, please could you register by emailing Sam Halvorsen (sam.halv...@ucl.ac.uk) by February 12th, 2015. The event is free to attend and all are welcome. The venue is wheelchair accessible.

 

The Participatory Geographies Research Group is a collective whose members aim to raise the profile and perceived value, and further the understanding and use of participatory approaches, methods, tools and principles within academic geography and beyond:

 

• The participatory geographies research group is a broad and inclusive collective of academics and non-academics who value and practice participatory approaches, principles and methods.

• These participatory methods include a broad variety of tools alongside critical analysis of their utility, limitations and development.

• A participatory approach in academic geography includes collaborating with others as partners in improving equality, justice, and other progressive social change causes.

• We aim to work across all spaces and places, alongside attempts to widen participation in higher education geography.

• We support work that results in social change outside the academy and thus seek to widen the range of what are considered to be legitimate geographical knowledge and research activities.

• We aim to provide a space for mutual support orientated towards those engaging in participatory approaches, especially for those working within the increasingly pressured and competitive higher education con

 

Michael Edwards has spent much of his career challenging the dominance in London planning of capital and landownership. This has involved bringing together different groups across London - from students and academics, to community groups, social movements, urban planners and policy makers - making participation an integral part of his work. He has published widely on issues such as property markets and planning, regeneration and (recently) the role of community groups in urban planning. He’s active in JustSpace, PNUK and INURA.org