Environment

Project

Vehicular housing – the use of motor-vehicles as a residential dwelling – appears to be proliferating. From instagram pictures of people enjoying an apparently care-free #VanLife, to the foot-loose travels of grey and digital ‘nomads’, to concerning rises in car-based homelessness, there is little research charting this proliferation in Aotearoa-New Zealand and abroad.

This leaves us with minimal insights into both the experiences and conditions of those in vehicular housing, as well as the political-economic and socio-cultural shifts underpinning recent trends. This Summer Research project will involve collecting and analysing popular and academic writing relevant to vehicular housing, assisting the supervisors in the development of a strategy for subsequent primary data collection and a potential funding application, and (if applicable) will allow space for the Summer Scholar to develop their own project on this topic for later postgraduate study.

Ideal student

The project would suit a self-directed and motivated person with skills in qualitative analysis and an interest in contemporary social and/or housing issues.

Project

Like many other cities around the world, Auckland has been very much a car-oriented city for decades, with currently a modal share of almost 80% for car travel. If more people were to cycle, rather than travel by car, traffic congestion would be reduced, and noise and air pollutant emissions in urban areas would decrease. Because of the physical activity involved, there are also health related co-benefits associated with increased cycling.

However, cycling may also lead to an increase in exposure to both air pollution and noise. Both are affected by the volume and nature of the traffic and road layout, as well as the urban design features that make up the road corridor, therefore the route chosen is critical to maximising the co-benefits of cycling.

This study will provide a field survey of exposure to air pollution whilst cycling. We'll link movement and pollution data to evaluate spatial and temporal trends in personal multi-exposure to air pollutants and noise levels while commuting along the main cycling paths in Auckland.

Ideal student

To undertake this project, it would be advantageous for an individual to have a genuine interest in both cycling and GIS (Geographic Information System/Science).

Project

Existing literature asserts that poetic writing is a tool for qualitative researchers to examine meaning-making and create space for transformative discourses (Eshun and Madge, 2021; Magrane et al., 2019). In response to this assertion, a growing number of geographers are incorporating poetry-based methodologies into their research.

This project will add to the existing literature by exploring how the act of writing found poems (poems ‘found’ within research transcripts) may be positioned as both a method for data analysis and a strategy for representing people’s place-based meanings and experiences.

Objectives

Drawing on a case study of the lived experience and geography of young-onset Parkinson’s disease, this research will consider four potential benefits of found poetry for geographers and other researchers:

1. Preservation of the voices of research participants
2. Critical researcher reflexivity
3. Increased emotive impact
4. Deeper engagement with participant accounts of their experiences and everyday contexts

Methods

The Summer Research Scholar and supervisors will draft and compare found poems based on transcripts of research encounters that occurred in 2022 with people living with young-onset Parkinson’s. The found poems will then be shared with research participants to elicit their feedback through focus group interviews. The potential strengths and challenges of this dialogical process of writing and scrutinising found poetry will be evaluated using interpretive thematic analysis. The extent to which an emotive and embodied account of the geographies of chronic illness is enabled through found poetry will be considered throughout the research process.

Outputs

The Summer Research Scholar will produce a co-authored methodological paper for publication in the New Zealand Geographer, as well as other materials that will be negotiated with the first supervisor (Tara).

Skills required

The Summer Research Scholar will have strong analytical skills and an interest in art-based qualitative methodologies. They will also be interested in geographies of health and wellbeing, and the social construction of illness and disability.

Skills gained

Through this project the Summer Scholar will develop their analytical and writing skills, and gain experience in focus group interviewing, interpretive thematic data analysis, and research poetry techniques.

References

Eshun, G. and Madge, C. (2021). Poetic methods. In N. von Benzon, S. Wilkinson, C. Wilkinson & M. Holton. (2021). Creative Methods for Human Geographers (pp. 205-223). Sage Publications.

Magrane, E., Russo, L., de Leeuw, S., & Perez, C. S. (2019). Introduction: geopoetics as route-finding. In Geopoetics in Practice (pp. 1-13). Routledge.

Project

This project seeks to understand how eagles in eastern Europe respond to changing patterns of wetland extent and intensity. Working with conservation organisations we have tracked their movement, now we need to extract the environmental parameters that will allow ecologists to model and assess their behaviour as conservation efforts increase wetland extent.

Your task will be to further develop the already written environmental parameter (soil moisture, surface water extent and precipitation levels) extraction routines. In particular, to enable higher spatial resolution by introducing Sentinel 1 data products into the extraction workflow and advancing the analysis that can be carried with Sentinel 1.

Requirements

Must be comfortable working in Python or a similar programming language. Willing to learn or already know how to use GitHub to share and collaborate on code.

Ideal student

Desirable but far from essential: familiarity with remote sensing data products.

Project

This is a petrographic and geochemical based project, examining the textural and compositional variation of hot spring deposits to help understand trace element biosignatures in relation to early life on Earth and Mars. Tools include petrography, electron microprobe analysis and scanning electron microscopy.

Requirement

Must have completed EARTHSCI 203 or a comparable microscopy experience.

Project

Rationale

Over the past three decades, Manila has stirred increasing attention in Original Pilipino Music (OPM). This growing interest for Manila has reflected the changing nature of Philippine society and its hence dominant urban fabric. The music of the 1990s well reflected this evolution and has received some academic attention. However, much less is known of more recent changes and how these have been mirrored in the rapidly changing local music industry.

Objectives

This summer research project aims at documenting and unpacking discourses on Manila through the lens of contemporary OPM. The specific objectives of the summer research are:

1. To assess how Manila is depicted in contemporary OPM (in its diversity)
2. To explore similarities and differences in diverse portraits of Manila across contemporary OPM
3. To appraise how these diverse portraits of Manila reflect changes in the urban fabric

Methods

The research will rely on a desk review and thematic analysis of song lyrics, music videos and CD jackets available from the internet for the period 2000-2020.

Outputs

• A structured data set articulating different themes together
• A 3000-word written summary of findings

Requirements

• Completion of year two of an undergraduate degree in human geography or any other discipline of the social sciences and humanities
• A minimum B+ average grade equivalent to a GPA of 6
• Fluency in Filipino
  

Project

The project will focus on the analysis of data collected and processed by Safeswim NZ for 16 Auckland beaches (eight beaches in the Waitemata region and eight on the North Shore).

The sampling methodology was extremely detailed and resulted in over 3,000 samples. We now want to analyse the data numerically and extract possible patterns in variability. We will then use all information acquired to develop predictors of water quality for each beach.

The findings will enhance our understanding of the environmental conditions at these beaches during the summer season, aiding in the development of effective management strategies for ensuring safe and healthy recreational spaces for the public.

Skills required

• Basic knowledge of statistics

• Data analysis in python or matlab
  

Project

Long-lived and dominant, kauri (Agathis australis) is an iconic and important foundation species of North Island forests.

Interactions occurring at the plant-soil interface drive carbon and nutrient cycling. Understanding these interactions is critical to advancing our knowledge on kauri’s influence at the stand level.

The summer student will contribute to studies investigating plant (e.g. carbon and nutrient content, leaf litter) and soil (e.g., bulk density, moisture, temperature, pH, carbon and nutrient availability, root productivity) characteristics. The work will include field-based measurements, collecting plant and soil samples, preparation of samples for lab analysis, lab work and data analysis.

Requirements

• Basic understanding of ecosystem processes (e.g. completed ENVSCI 101/ENVSCI 201 or equivalent)
• Full driver’s license
• Willingness and ability to travel in the Auckland region
• Willingness and ability to do physical work outdoors
• Interest in lab work
  

Project

We are looking for someone to support detailed structural mapping and analysis of brittle strain around geothermal fields (figure 1). Areas such as Wai-O-Tapu, Waimangu, and Rotokawa are proposed to be initially characterized. We have already surveyed the Rotokawa geothermal area, where open cracks, veins, and small faults have been examined, together with thermal surface anomalies (figure 1).

Figure 1. A. Sulphur + Opaline silica parallel veins cross-cutting Taupo ash succession. B. Set of parallel open cracks with silicified walls, on the straight margin of a collapsed crater (to the right of the picture); the graphical scale varies with the depth of the photo.

At this starting stage of the project, we are focused on gathering critical information about the current state of surface permeable and heat transfer parameters in known and accessible geothermal fields.

Therefore, an opportunity to process structural and thermal data, along with conducting 2-3 weeks of fieldwork in one or more geothermal areas (starting mid-January) is likely. Cabinet work will consist of structural analysis and keeping GIS database tidy and updated. Field activities would involve systematic and detailed structural and temperature measurements, as well as veins and host-rock sampling.

Requirements:

• Basic knowledge of GIS, geology, and rock-forming minerals
• Interest and motivation to conduct a range of activities (computer-based search and structural data analysis, GIS, sample preparation, fieldwork)
• Availability and physical ability to conduct fieldwork for 2-3 weeks. This implies walking uneven terrain carrying, standard geological mapping equipment, and eventually up to 5 Kg of rock/soil samples.
  

Project

Sedimentary rocks on the Martian surface are weak. This is inferred from satellite imagery and has been quantified by rovers when sampling sedimentary rocks on Mars. One way to characterize the weakness (i.e. lithification) of a rock is with seismic waves. NASA’s InSight seismometer on Mars is providing us with a amazing data showing us that sedimentary rocks on the Martian shallow surface could potentially be very weak and thus poorly lithified and this can extent to great depths.

We are looking for someone to measure seismic waves speed and characterize the physical properties of Mars analogue sedimentary rocks. The project task involves estimating different levels of rock lithification by characterizing in the laboratory rock porosity and microstructure (microscope or SEM), grain size and wave speeds.

A python code will be provided for the student to use – no coding skills are required but are helpful.

Requirements:

• Interest and motivation to conduct laboratory activities
• Have a background in earth science or geophysics and in sedimentology.