Norwich: a fine city

Norwich has taken top spot in the Sunday Times' best place to live in the UK list for 2026.

My daughter lives there, and it's one of the places that I am considering with my wife for where to retire to. So don't tell everyone how nice it is... too late...

Here's a BBC article suggesting seven reasons why it's such a good place to live.

Here's a Radio Norfolk clip on BBC Sounds.

One for our Y7 unit explaining what makes places feel like home.... 

Healthy High Streets

This Guardian article explores the changes in the High St, including the increasing numbers of vape shops. These have been joined by a prevalence of bookmakers (betting shops - some students think you mean places that make books) and pawnbrokers (that one might needs some explaining too...)

From the article:

The study, conducted by researchers at Health Equity North, looked at Ordnance Survey data to track how amenities had changed between 2014 and 2024. The amenities were divided into those seen as “health promoting”, such as pharmacies, libraries and supermarkets, and “health reducing” such as vape shops, bookmakers, takeaways and alcohol-only outlets.

They found a stark decline in healthier amenities, with unhealthy alternatives taking their place. Takeaway shops were up by almost a quarter (24%) across England, while the number of banks and building societies decreased by 40%, and supermarkets by 10%.

The report found there were stark regional divides across England regarding high-street amenities, with twice as many vape shops in the north of England. The number of takeaways in the north of England rose by a third (31%), compared with a rise of 18% in the south.

There were three times as many vape shops in deprived areas compared with the least deprived ones. Deprived areas also had 25 times more pawnbrokers and more than three times as many bookmakers.

Dr Eman Zied Abozied, research associate at Newcastle University Population Sciences Institute, said the study showed that high streets were becoming “less healthy and welcoming places to visit”.

We will be refreshing our Year 7 fieldwork for the new academic year.

We will be making use of Chloë Searl's fieldwork sheets.

Pale Blue Dot - taken 35 years ago today

I refer to this picture and the associated quotes quite a lot in my teaching.

It was taken on 14th February 1990 - 35 years ago today.

The picture was remastered in 2020.

The one I often show was taken by the Cassini Spacecraft in 2013 as it approached Saturn.

Here's an animation I show...

NIMBYism and geographies of our home

 

Thanks to Alasdair Monteith for a link to a new resource from the FT's Education support: FT for Schools.

It has an excellent illustration as well by Darrel Rees.

Geography class: Inside the mind of a Nimby https://t.co/Ipfbm3CokH

— FT for Schools (@ft4s) July 8, 2024

It's written by Julian Baggini, who wrote a book which was one of the key inspirations for my EverydayGeographies conference theme with his exploration of life in the "most average postcode" in the UK: S66 where I grew up. 

This would be good for those studying the 'A' level Changing Places topic.

Also good on indigenous connections with landscapes such as rivers in New Zealand and the importance of a sense of place and belonging. I can see myself returning to this one for a number of different topics.

Also (re) introduced me to the late Roger Scruton's idea of oikophilia

Perhaps the most interesting element of Scruton’s brand of conservatism was his emphasis on the love of home, what he called “oikophilia.” Oikos, from which we take our word economy, means the household and names the order and guidance of a home. It is the private world of a family, but by extension also of a village, a people, or an ethnicity. In Scruton’s use, oikophilia is a principle of value for the small, the local, and the private that stands against universalism.

Source: https://hac.bard.edu/amor-mundi/oikophilia-2020-01-29

Home...

An extract from Nicholas Crane's book 'The Making of the British Landscape' on how paths were created in a local area...

Stuff...

 

Barbara Iweins is a photographer who spent years working on a project called Katalog.

This is a visual catalogue of all of her possessions.

She didn't just take a photo of them all - every lego brick, every item of clothing, every book - but also considered their origins and the images can be laid out in different combinations. An example can be seen above.

There's a French edition of the Katalog available as a physical book - I'd quite like to see how the project is portrayed in the printed edition.

I won't attempt something quite on that scale, but I think the actual project is worth looking at for a possible student project on capturing images of their own belongings.

Cynefin

What is the place you call home? Is it in the UK or outside?

“Cynefin” is a Welsh term defined by Curriculum for Wales as 'the place where we feel we belong, where the people and landscape around us are familiar, and the sights and sounds are reassuringly recognisable.’

Although it can be translated to “habitat” in English, “cynefin” is not just the area in which we live; It is often used to describe the relationship between people and the natural world, and how our connection to our surroundings can shape our sense of identity and well-being.

Cynefin is also used in the broader sense of community, culture, heritage and identity. It is a holistic concept that encompasses the physical, social, cultural, spiritual and economic dimensions of a place, and how these dimensions interact with each other. It is seen as the historic, cultural and social space which is shaped and defined by the community that inhabits it.

Earth - the final episode

 This series concluded last night...

Catch it on iPlayer - particularly this final episode.

In 30 mins on @BBCTwo we conclude our #Earth series . 4.5 (ish) million years in 5 (ish) hours . Only the BBC could/would do this & get the support of >200 scientists @OpenUniversity I’d say it has been the greatest story ever told , and I’d say my final PTC is one of the most… https://t.co/yQXUqVZtgi

— Chris Packham (@ChrisGPackham) August 14, 2023

Geographies of Home

Geography starts at home, but what and where is home?

A key project to influence the thinking of this topic has been the Stay Home Stories project involving Alison Blunt from QMUL and part funded by the RGS-IBG.

We will refer to this in our work in the new academic year.

I have been loaned a copy of Alison's new book and it's excellent.

After HOME, we will also be looking at AWAY, with an entry for the Royal Geographical Society's Young Geographer of the Year competition.