Speaker
Description
Comparative research is a social science methodology that entails comparing two or more cases, phenomena, or entities to discern their similarities, differences, and patterns. Comparative research is important for advancing the knowledge for urban sustainability transformations by highlighting diverse practices, policies and challenges for achieving transformations. However, comparative research has been dominated by centring of western paradigms, implicitly positioning other cultures as peripheral or derivative. This methodological dominance has had consequences for what we understand as sustainable and whose knowledge in prioritised in developing future urban pathways. The centring of the western understanding of sustainability has been challenged by postcolonial and decolonial approaches that are conscious of the power asymmetries in comparison. This has led to a second wave of comparative approaches that bring diverse urban contexts and practices in conversation, challenge the universal epistemological and ontological understanding of sustainability and moving towards plural theory building. This paper goes further and points towards a radical and emerging third bold direction in comparative research that involves “reversing the gaze”, shifting the perspective entirely to those traditionally viewed as peripheral, using their experiences and frameworks as the primary lens for comparison. This methodological deviation is based on the current socio-ecological crisis, marked by climate and biodiversity collapse, driven by capitalist and colonial legacies, and the need for alternate and diverse knowledge and practices of sustainability. This paper illustrates the three ways of comparing through examples and discusses their consequences for urban sustainability transformations. It calls on researchers to unsettle power structures and expand the scope of what is compared and how and move towards radically diverse ways of imagining sustainability transformations.
References
Gillespie, T., & Mitlin, D. (2023). Global Development and Urban Studies: Tactics for thinking beyond the North–South binary. Environment and Urbanization, 095624782311720. https://doi.org/10.1177/09562478231172057
Hall, S. (1992). The West and the Rest: Discourse and Power. In D. Morley & S. Hall (Eds.), Essential Essays, Volume 2 (pp. 141–184). Duke University Press. https://doi.org/10.1215/9781478002710-009
Robinson, J. (2023). Comparative urbanism: Tactics for global urban studies. John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
| Keywords | Comparative research; Decolonial; Sustainability transformations; Urban |
|---|---|
| Best Congress Paper Award | Yes |
