3.2.2.1 The nature and importance of places

• Location


  where a place is on a map, latitude/longitude
• Placemaking


  - Re-imaging

  - Rebranding

  - Regeneration
• Genus Loci


  - Spirit / atmosphere of a place = unique spirit

  - Influenced by past,
• Locale


  - A place where something happens e.g. a specific event

  - Each place = series of locales .

  - dictate social interactions + attitudes & behaviours

  - naturally behave different in each of these places.
• Sense of place


  The emotional attachment to a place
• What is the message taken away from Victorian explorers such as David Livingstone?

  - (was searching for the source of the Nile in 1866)

  - travelled to far away locations to experience & know a place

  - Able to describe sounds, images (more clearly than if were to be social media) & feelings

  - (Whereas social media doesn't give an individual representation of a sense of place)
• Do places always have to be a fixed location temporarily or spatially? Explain

  - No

  - camper van or cruise ship

  - group of people have shared for specific period of time (spatial)

  = may invoke a sense of belonging in those people
• Space


  an area with no meaning
• Placelessness (less of a place)

  - idea that a particular landscape could = anywhere

  = as it lacks uniqueness e.g. airports, McDonalds

  = globalisation is making distant places look & feel the same (clone towns + link to social media)
• Insiders


  - people feel like belong in a certain place

  - their home could be their, or just feel like it is

  - e.g. immigrants may form enclaves to feel like they fit in society

  - + people may feel more insider during day than night, as night could have high crime rate for e.g.

  - As an insider's age inc = more understanding of place = changed perceptions
• Outsiders


  - people who feel out of place

  - e.g. London Docklands = change of eco function from docks to financial centre during 1980s

  = change in social characteristics + some groups may feel comfortable such as affluent business men
• Insider / Outsider Complex & Approaches

  - when identity relates to place = people can perceive to belong their or not

  - Insider = familiar with place - feels welcome + holds sense of belonging

  - Outsider may feel unwelcome, excluded + feel alienated

  - Locale = effect people have on a place + how they shape what place it is

  - Social constructionist approach = places are a result of people's influence

  - Phenomenological approach = experience of places people have. Topophilia = bond we have to places (links to Yi Fu Tuan)
• The Concept of Place

  - Location

  - Physical features such as topography

  - Human features such as the type of people + built environment

  - Flows of a place - ideas/money

  - 'sense of place' - emotional meanings + attachments people hold to that place

  = changing constantly = over short & long timescales (changing the place)

  = Dif people = may have dif sense of same place

  = people create identity based on places they have attachment to = creates shared identity of groups who live together - locally, regionally, nationally/internat...
• Factors forming place attachment

  -family/friends

  -religion

  -gender

  -age

  -experiences
• Relationship between experience and attachment

  Y axis = attachment

  X axis = Intensity of experience

  = direct relationship

  
• The Tripartite Model of Place Attachment

  Place attachment

  = Person

  = Place

  = Process
• Person


  - attached to an individual in that place

  - indicates that attachment to place can occur both individually and collectively
• Place


  - what is attached

  - social relationship that exists within the realm of an individuals significant place

  - natural and built physical environments can be subjects of person-place bond
• Process


  - describing place attachment= differentiating betweenrootednessandsense of place
• What did sack say in 2004 about places?

  "bounding of rule-making leads to the creation of place at any scale, from a room to a nation-state"
• Process


  how does attachment exist, collective effects of effective cognitive and behavioural aspects
• Place attachment


  the emotional bond between a person and place
• Experienced, Media, Near & Far places

  - Experienced P = place people have visited + spent time in + built personal sense of place to + genius loci

  - Media P = places people have not been to. Instead build a sense of place thru books, art, music & films

  - Person's sense of media place can be very different to lived experience of same place

  = usually due to media presenting places in a particular way for particular processes

  - Near places = geographically close while far ones aren't (media places can make far places feel near)

  = some people feel excluded from their near places & attached to far places - globalisation has changed the impact distance has on people

  = Tech + IT advances are contributing to our 'shrinking world'

  = Global brands & companies make far places similar to near places

  = Placelessness - where places have no indiv character & look the same (clone towns)
• Topophilia


  - Strong sense of place

  - Emotional attachment to certain aspects of a place

  - Can be mixed with the sense of cultural identity among certain people
• Topophobia


  hate/fear of a place
• Media representations


  Slumdog Millionaire vs Exotic Marigold Hotel
• Genius Loci


  the spirit of a place - develop a sense of place, learn more about it
• Information age


  bombarded with images and other forms of representations about the world
• Factors influencing place


  -location

  -built environment

  -physical geography

  -topography

  -land use

  -economic characteristics

  -infrastructure

  -demographic characteristics
• What factors contribute to the character of places (Endogenous & Exogenous factors)

  - All places have unique character = formed by many dif characteristics

  - Endogenous = internal factors that shape a place

  = can be physical/human features

  - Exogenous = external factors that shape character of a place = inc relationship to other places + flows in & out of places

  - Exogenous factors

  - Places influence other places

  - Tourism influences character

  - Investment flows affect places image & character

  - Migration can change how a place is perceived & its

  character
• Endogenous factors - Human

  LAND USE

  - Human activity can directly define a place such as a farming village / industrial town

  - Size + shape + architecture of buildings can add character to a place

  - Land use changes over time = changing a place thru deindustrialisation / the rise of the service's economy

  BUILT ENVIRONMENT & INFRASTRUCTURE

  - Structures for transport + communication + services can impact a place

  = could involve sports team stadiums/high rise buildings /smaller villages with market squares

  DEMOGRAPHIC & ECONOMIC CHARACTERISTICS

  - Demographic factors change a place, such as work/ money/flows/ethnicity

  - Multicultural places are allowing inc diversity which aids development
• Endogenous Factors - Physical

  Location

  - where a place is + features that are present to particular location

  - inc differences between inland and coastal places

  Topography

  - shape of landscape

  - places can be characterised directly by place e.g. mountainous regions

  - or indirectly such as land use as agriculture

  Physical Geography

  - Involves environmental features

  - e.g. rock type: igneous/sedimentary/metamorphic

  - rock type = influence local industries such as mining & smelting

  - Therefore environment = adds up character of place in a multitude of ways
• Migration within the EU

  -new shops, some schools struggle with large numbers of children having English as a second language.

  -Fish processing in Scotland, farm work in East Anglia = benefited from labour
• Changing Demographic Flows (impact of relationships and connections on people and place)

  Can change due to effects of changing external flows:

  -> Flows of people

  - migration = create old/young/religious/ethnic... communities

  - Depends on price of housing/infrastructure/ed/ existing communities

  
  

  -> Flows of money

  - Govs/businesses investment can inc flow of people to a place

  - e.g. Redevelopment + Regeneration

  = improves economy & inc populations

  
  

  -> Flows of ideas & resources

  - birth control can affect pop size

  - UN = trying to imp places by supplying birth control & inc knowledge of using condoms

  = preventing rapid pop growth & spread of STI's
• Changing Cultural Flows (impact of relationships and connections on people and place)

  Can change due to effects of changing external flows (of places):

  -> Flows of people

  - new people visiting/moving to a place transmits dif cultures

  - creating multi-ethnic communities

  = greater mix of languages + ideas + foods

  
  

  -> Flows of money

  - cultural ideas can force changes to society

  - Western influence on Eastern society = changed their food preferences from traditional foods to fast foods

  (glocalisation - link to global systems)

  
  

  -> Flows of ideas & resources

  - Ideas like differing approaches to H.care & nursing

  = brought to UK from countries like Philippians

  = Imp efficiency + working practices in our NHS
• Groups which suffer exclusion

  Ethnic minorities

  LGBT communities

  Homeless

  Gypsies/travellers

  Disabled

  Age

  Immigrants
• Why ethnic minorities suffer exclusion

  feel uncomfortable as they are minority in area, e.g. Marlborough 93% white
• Why LGBT communities suffer exclusion

  people have opposing views and may be unwelcoming/uneducated
• Why homeless people suffer exclusion

  people look down on them and don't want to interact with them
• Why gypsies suffer exclusion

  live in their own communities and have different traditions