Geographies, Volume 4, Issue 2 (June 2024) – 4 articles

Non-Representational Theory (NRT) emphasizes the significance of routine experience in shaping human geography. In doing so, the theory largely eschews traditional approaches that have offered area-based, longitudinal, and synoptic formalisms for geographic inquiry. Instead, NRT prioritizes the roles of individualized and often dynamic lived geographies as they unfold in the moment. To date, NRT has drawn significant inspiration from the synergies that it shares with philosophy, critical geography, and self-referential ethnography. These activities have been tremendous in advancing NRT as a concept, but the theory’s strong ties to encounter and experience invariably call for practical exposition. Alas, applications of NRT to concrete examples at scales beyond small case studies often prove challenging, which we argue artificially constrains further development of the theory. In this paper, we examine some of the thorny problems that present in applying NRT in practical terms. Specifically, we identify ten traps that NRT can fall into when moving from theory to actuality. These traps include conundrums of small geographies, circularity in representation, cognitive traps, issues of mustering and grappling with detail, access issues, limitations with empiricism, problems of subjectivity, methodological challenges, thorny issues of translation, and the unwieldy nature of process dynamics. We briefly demonstrate a novel observational instrument that can sidestep some, but not all, of these traps. Full article

There have been increasing calls in gentrification studies to examine the geography of gentrification in slums, as little is known about the patterns and processes of slum gentrification, especially in sub-Saharan African cities where slums house over 50% of the urban population. This study explored the spatiotemporal changes in slums in Lagos, Nigeria, between 1984 and 20 on the pattern and drivers of gentrification. Data were collected from 42 slums in Lagos through remote sensing (1984–2020) and a field survey (2020–2021). The study integrated geospatial analysis with quantitative and qualitative analysis to investigate the patterns and drivers of gentrification in Lagos slums. The findings show that between 1984 and 2020, all the sampled slums had undergone gentrification processes, apart from those that were completely cleared. However, many slums continue to have deprived areas as they continue to gentrify. Almost all the slum communities have experienced slum clearance in the past. Additionally, the current and new housing developments in the study have favored middle- to high-income groups, which has led to the displacement of previous slum residents. The study identified slum clearance, fires and floodings, the presence of palaces in the community, the proportion of deprived areas in 1984, government interest in the slum, and the size of the church as drivers of slum gentrification processes in Lagos. Finally, the findings show that the vulnerability of slum dwellers increases with slum gentrification. Therefore, this study recommended developing policies and programs, such as sustainable relocation and low-cost housing, to mitigate the negative consequences of slum gentrification, especially in cities with significant shares of low-income groups. Full article

In Japan, rural areas are grappling with population decline and aging, leading to a shortage of labor for farmland maintenance. This has resulted in the abandonment of farmland or its conversion for solar photovoltaic (PV) use. However, this unplanned conversion raises concerns about agricultural productivity decline, landscape degradation, biodiversity loss, water resource maintenance, and disaster prevention. This study focuses on the Kushida watershed, examining (1) accurate farmland classification using remote sensing data, (2) the geographical distribution of farmland converted to PV systems from 2016 to 2021 and concentrated along the river, especially on north-facing slopes, (3) the highest conversion rates in wheat fields, followed by legume fields, tea fields, and paddy fields, and (4) no clear correlation between farmland conversions and changes in the number of farmers, but associations with farmland geography and solar radiation levels. These findings contribute to a nuanced understanding of sustainable rural development in Japan, emphasizing the importance of considering geographical factors in the conversion of farmland to PV. Full article

Wind erosivity has an intermittent character due to complicated interactions between air streams, surface characteristics, and sediment particles. To experimentally investigate the effect of a sudden and local gust on sediment entrainment, a simple setup was installed in a mobile wind tunnel. One, three, and five consecutive gusts were applied and compared with standard test conditions with steady wind. The applied wind was characterized by total test duration (s), duration of gust (s), mean velocity, peak velocity (m s⁻¹), gust factor, and transport capacity based on sediment-specific threshold velocity. The eroded material was collected by sediment containers. The results suggest that 1. the application of gusts inside the mobile wind tunnel setup is feasible but related to uncertainty concerning the applied wind conditions, and 2. the horizontal transport rate increased with the number of applied gusts. While the highest rates were measured during five gusts on sand, the relative effect of gusts was most accentuated in the comparison of one gust to no gust on loam. The findings highlight how temporally and spatially limited gust impact causes extreme particle entrainment. These particles may subsequently either start erosion or enter vertical dust transport. Full article