Methods of Sustainability Research in the Social Sciences

Sustainability is a key word in the environmental vocabulary informing how research projects in the social sciences are framed. This book provides a systematic and critical review of the key research methods used when studying sustainable strategies and outcomes.

Author: Frances Fahy
Publisher: Sage Publications Ltd
Published: 03/06/2013
Pages: 232
Binding Type: Paperback
Weight: 0.80lbs
Size: 9.10h x 6.10w x 0.60d
ISBN: 9780857025227

About the Author
Dr Frances Fahy is a lecturer in Environmental Geography at the National University of Ireland, Galwway. Her primary research interests are in the field of environmental planning and sustainability, specifically the social and cultural consequences of environmental change.

She has published widely in the field of sustainability and has led a number of research projects exploring innovative methods for public participation in planning and developing sustainable planning tools (in particular quality of life indicators and community mapping) for progressing local processes for sustainable development in local authorities. She is the current Chair of the Planning and Environment Research Group of the Royal Geographical Society.

Dr Henrike Rau is a lecturer in Political Science and Sociology at the National University of Ireland, Galway. Her research focuses on socio-cultural and political aspects of consumption, especially with regard to (un)sustainable transport patterns. She currently leads research on transport, mobilities and the ′consumption of distance′ as part of ConsEnSus, an EPA Ireland-funded collaborative project between Trinity College Dublin and NUI, Galway on consumption, environment and sustainability (www.consensus.ie).

Her other areas of expertise include environmental sociology, social-scientific and interdisciplinary sustainability research and cross-cultural studies. She is particularly interested in the implications of human time use for sustainability, which enables her to link her previous PhD research on time cultures and temporal practices in Germany and Ireland to her current interests in sustainability.