Trent Brown - Academia.edu (original) (raw)
Papers by Trent Brown
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... Trent Watts. ... As in the beginning, assertions of an undifferentiated, democratic white com... more ... Trent Watts. ... As in the beginning, assertions of an undifferentiated, democratic white community prevail today: "no where on God's green earth," wrote ... their 1918 bid for the Democratic nomination for the US Senate, for example, or by governors Vardaman, Theodore Bilbo (1916 ...
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Asian Studies Review
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South Asia: Journal of South Asian Studies
After four and a half decades of Green Revolution agrarian development, the state of Punjab is no... more After four and a half decades of Green Revolution agrarian development, the state of Punjab is now, according to many commentators, in a state of social, economic and ecological crisis. In this paper, I interpret this crisis through a Gramscian lens as a ‘crisis of authority’, in the sense that while the dominant paradigm (the Green Revolution) can no longer provide solutions to the state's most pressing social problems, there is no clear single alternative either. This situation provides a political opportunity for non-hegemonic groups to articulate various other possibilities that address fundamental questions. This paper focuses on the work of one such group, the Kheti Virasat Mission (KVM). KVM is a civil society organisation that promotes ‘natural farming’ as a solution to the crisis in Punjab: natural farming is a chemical-free method of farming, which relies exclusively on materials available at the local level. This paper looks at KVM's methods of intervening in the crisis situation and examines the difficulties faced at the level of implementation. It argues that KVM's successes and failures highlight the uneven capacities of different classes and social groups to effectively respond to a ‘crisis of authority’.
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Social Transformations: Journal of the Global South
Participatory development models remain influential within mainstream development institutions, d... more Participatory development models remain influential within mainstream development institutions, despite substantial scholarly critique. This paper examines one case study of a rural development facilitator from Tamil Nadu, India, who adopted participatory strategies to promote transitions to ecological agriculture. It considers the challenges and frustrations she faced in adopting these strategies and their shortcomings in promoting meaningful, long-term transformations within communities. In particular, local power structures and neoliberal institutions that made up the local context made it difficult to achieve participatory development’s stated objectives. The case illustrates potential pathways forward beyond the current participatory development impasse, suggesting a modified participatory development model, with a stronger emphasis on fostering cooperative economic relations.
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Journal of Southern History
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Int Rev Sociol Sport, 2007
This study examines participation in an emerging, non-conventional sporting form that retains a s... more This study examines participation in an emerging, non-conventional sporting form that retains a self generated and mediated structure, providing an attractive alternative not fully explained by a shift to individualism. Based on ethnography and interviews, the study presents a cohort of capable sporting cyclists who develop a sense of belonging and self-identity through `buying' into the social, semi-competitive, adrenaline-charged atmosphere of the weekend bunch ride. In contrast to traditional sports, participants go some way to distance themselves from serious competition and its associated layers of formality. These practitioners range in ability and the extent to which the battle for victory is replaced by Maffesolian ideas of an emotional commonality and shared participation. Competition without consequence, excitement, sociability and multiple points for personal challenge (or not), combine with a sustained sense of control that diminishes the need for capable cyclists to seek out a formal structure and yet retains characteristics that fulfil the competitive urge.
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Register of the Kentucky Historical Society, 2015
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Pacific Affairs, 2015
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Antipode, 2015
Until recently, the concept of “sustainability” appeared to occupy a central position in the poli... more Until recently, the concept of “sustainability” appeared to occupy a central position in the politics of many Western democracies. Following the 2008 financial crisis, however, sustainability has been relegated to a position of secondary or tertiary significance. This article considers the rise and fall of sustainability through the theoretical lens of Ernesto Laclau, considering whether it may be seen as an example of an “empty signifier”. Through detailed engagement with Laclau's work, as well as both theoretical and empirical studies of the concept of sustainability, I argue that sustainability signifies the multiple failures of dominant discourses to recognise “the future” as a meaningful category. After examining the historical conditions under which sustainability was able to operate in this way, I go on to argue that the global financial crisis and neoliberalism more broadly have interrupted our capacity to think about the future, undermining the significance of sustainability, at least temporarily.
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South Asia: Journal of South Asian Studies, 2015
Abstract Globalisation has introduced new sources of mobility for India's youth, yet not all ... more Abstract Globalisation has introduced new sources of mobility for India's youth, yet not all youth experience mobility in the same way. The unevenness of mobility trajectories is especially visible in regional towns, where poor rural migrants and more globally connected middle-class youth occupy the same social space. To illustrate these mobility trends, this paper presents the stories of youths from various backgrounds in the town of Darjeeling, exploring different sources of mobility for rural and urban youth. While rural youth experience some forms of upward mobility as they migrate into the town, urban youth are confronted with downward mobility and are frustrated in their aspirations for professional careers and ‘modern’ lifestyles. For aspiring urban youth, upwardly-mobile rural people are seen as a threat to their privilege, blocking their mobility aspirations. This is contributing towards emerging tensions between rural and urban populations within the town.
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The Socioecological Educator, 2013
In this first chapter we felt it important to introduce the editors of the book via a series of s... more In this first chapter we felt it important to introduce the editors of the book via a series of short autobiographical stories. In each case the author has chosen a few influential experiences that they believe have been crucial in shaping the development of their socio-ecological outlook as educators and researchers. In other words, in this first section of the book we are putting practical, lived experience prior to the theoretical explanation of what it means to be a socio-ecological educator. In this first chapter of Part I we want to lead with example and narrative. We then explore and reinforce the message with sound theoretical discussion of the crucial concepts that make up this unique perspective on educational philosophy and practice. In Part II of the book, different authors from a variety of backgrounds and work contexts explore socio-ecological ideas and practices via a range of case studies. Finally, in the conclusion chapter we summarise the book and reflect on the incorporation of a socio-ecological approach into educational and research settings.
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The Socioecological Educator, 2013
At the heart of this book has been the acknowledgment that there exist different ways of seeing a... more At the heart of this book has been the acknowledgment that there exist different ways of seeing and, consequently, different ways of knowing the world. The rich and diverse case studies that make up Part II of the book have seen respected authors from the varied disciplines of physical, sport and health education, outdoor and environmental education and early childhood education come together, utilising the multi-disciplinary framework of socio-ecological education. They have done so because of their belief that a socio-ecological theory and requisite methodological approaches offer the opportunity for renewal for researchers and practitioners in their fields. A significant part of this renewal involves reaching beyond disciplinary boundaries, or silos as we called them in the introduction chapter, to forge new connections. Overcoming these ‘invisible’ structures that can govern how we see, think and act is central to the work of the socio-ecological educator and is evident in many of the case studies. To that end we want to spend a little time here, in the conclusion, discussing this issue.
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... Trent Watts. ... As in the beginning, assertions of an undifferentiated, democratic white com... more ... Trent Watts. ... As in the beginning, assertions of an undifferentiated, democratic white community prevail today: "no where on God's green earth," wrote ... their 1918 bid for the Democratic nomination for the US Senate, for example, or by governors Vardaman, Theodore Bilbo (1916 ...
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Asian Studies Review
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
South Asia: Journal of South Asian Studies
After four and a half decades of Green Revolution agrarian development, the state of Punjab is no... more After four and a half decades of Green Revolution agrarian development, the state of Punjab is now, according to many commentators, in a state of social, economic and ecological crisis. In this paper, I interpret this crisis through a Gramscian lens as a ‘crisis of authority’, in the sense that while the dominant paradigm (the Green Revolution) can no longer provide solutions to the state's most pressing social problems, there is no clear single alternative either. This situation provides a political opportunity for non-hegemonic groups to articulate various other possibilities that address fundamental questions. This paper focuses on the work of one such group, the Kheti Virasat Mission (KVM). KVM is a civil society organisation that promotes ‘natural farming’ as a solution to the crisis in Punjab: natural farming is a chemical-free method of farming, which relies exclusively on materials available at the local level. This paper looks at KVM's methods of intervening in the crisis situation and examines the difficulties faced at the level of implementation. It argues that KVM's successes and failures highlight the uneven capacities of different classes and social groups to effectively respond to a ‘crisis of authority’.
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Social Transformations: Journal of the Global South
Participatory development models remain influential within mainstream development institutions, d... more Participatory development models remain influential within mainstream development institutions, despite substantial scholarly critique. This paper examines one case study of a rural development facilitator from Tamil Nadu, India, who adopted participatory strategies to promote transitions to ecological agriculture. It considers the challenges and frustrations she faced in adopting these strategies and their shortcomings in promoting meaningful, long-term transformations within communities. In particular, local power structures and neoliberal institutions that made up the local context made it difficult to achieve participatory development’s stated objectives. The case illustrates potential pathways forward beyond the current participatory development impasse, suggesting a modified participatory development model, with a stronger emphasis on fostering cooperative economic relations.
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Journal of Southern History
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Int Rev Sociol Sport, 2007
This study examines participation in an emerging, non-conventional sporting form that retains a s... more This study examines participation in an emerging, non-conventional sporting form that retains a self generated and mediated structure, providing an attractive alternative not fully explained by a shift to individualism. Based on ethnography and interviews, the study presents a cohort of capable sporting cyclists who develop a sense of belonging and self-identity through `buying' into the social, semi-competitive, adrenaline-charged atmosphere of the weekend bunch ride. In contrast to traditional sports, participants go some way to distance themselves from serious competition and its associated layers of formality. These practitioners range in ability and the extent to which the battle for victory is replaced by Maffesolian ideas of an emotional commonality and shared participation. Competition without consequence, excitement, sociability and multiple points for personal challenge (or not), combine with a sustained sense of control that diminishes the need for capable cyclists to seek out a formal structure and yet retains characteristics that fulfil the competitive urge.
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Register of the Kentucky Historical Society, 2015
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Pacific Affairs, 2015
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Antipode, 2015
Until recently, the concept of “sustainability” appeared to occupy a central position in the poli... more Until recently, the concept of “sustainability” appeared to occupy a central position in the politics of many Western democracies. Following the 2008 financial crisis, however, sustainability has been relegated to a position of secondary or tertiary significance. This article considers the rise and fall of sustainability through the theoretical lens of Ernesto Laclau, considering whether it may be seen as an example of an “empty signifier”. Through detailed engagement with Laclau's work, as well as both theoretical and empirical studies of the concept of sustainability, I argue that sustainability signifies the multiple failures of dominant discourses to recognise “the future” as a meaningful category. After examining the historical conditions under which sustainability was able to operate in this way, I go on to argue that the global financial crisis and neoliberalism more broadly have interrupted our capacity to think about the future, undermining the significance of sustainability, at least temporarily.
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
South Asia: Journal of South Asian Studies, 2015
Abstract Globalisation has introduced new sources of mobility for India's youth, yet not all ... more Abstract Globalisation has introduced new sources of mobility for India's youth, yet not all youth experience mobility in the same way. The unevenness of mobility trajectories is especially visible in regional towns, where poor rural migrants and more globally connected middle-class youth occupy the same social space. To illustrate these mobility trends, this paper presents the stories of youths from various backgrounds in the town of Darjeeling, exploring different sources of mobility for rural and urban youth. While rural youth experience some forms of upward mobility as they migrate into the town, urban youth are confronted with downward mobility and are frustrated in their aspirations for professional careers and ‘modern’ lifestyles. For aspiring urban youth, upwardly-mobile rural people are seen as a threat to their privilege, blocking their mobility aspirations. This is contributing towards emerging tensions between rural and urban populations within the town.
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
The Socioecological Educator, 2013
In this first chapter we felt it important to introduce the editors of the book via a series of s... more In this first chapter we felt it important to introduce the editors of the book via a series of short autobiographical stories. In each case the author has chosen a few influential experiences that they believe have been crucial in shaping the development of their socio-ecological outlook as educators and researchers. In other words, in this first section of the book we are putting practical, lived experience prior to the theoretical explanation of what it means to be a socio-ecological educator. In this first chapter of Part I we want to lead with example and narrative. We then explore and reinforce the message with sound theoretical discussion of the crucial concepts that make up this unique perspective on educational philosophy and practice. In Part II of the book, different authors from a variety of backgrounds and work contexts explore socio-ecological ideas and practices via a range of case studies. Finally, in the conclusion chapter we summarise the book and reflect on the incorporation of a socio-ecological approach into educational and research settings.
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
The Socioecological Educator, 2013
At the heart of this book has been the acknowledgment that there exist different ways of seeing a... more At the heart of this book has been the acknowledgment that there exist different ways of seeing and, consequently, different ways of knowing the world. The rich and diverse case studies that make up Part II of the book have seen respected authors from the varied disciplines of physical, sport and health education, outdoor and environmental education and early childhood education come together, utilising the multi-disciplinary framework of socio-ecological education. They have done so because of their belief that a socio-ecological theory and requisite methodological approaches offer the opportunity for renewal for researchers and practitioners in their fields. A significant part of this renewal involves reaching beyond disciplinary boundaries, or silos as we called them in the introduction chapter, to forge new connections. Overcoming these ‘invisible’ structures that can govern how we see, think and act is central to the work of the socio-ecological educator and is evident in many of the case studies. To that end we want to spend a little time here, in the conclusion, discussing this issue.
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact