Phillips, Christopher (2022) When places change: Impacts of undesirable environmental change on coastal community’s well-being and adaptive capacity. PhD thesis, National University of Ireland Maynooth.
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Abstract
Solastalgia describes distress, grief, powerlessness and inability to achieve solace in one’s
home following disruptive environmental change or place loss. With climate change
likely to increase sea level rise and intensify winter storms, coastal communities are
particularly vulnerable to impacts of disruptive environmental change. Moreover,
transformative adaptation responses to climate change impacts are likely to be
increasingly implemented as adaptation becomes more urgent. Therefore, understanding
solastalgia will be critical for adaptation planning and building adaptive capacity of
coastal communities. This thesis aims to address knowledge gaps related to lived
experiences of solastalgia and disruption of place attachment as a result of chronic and
undesirable environmental change and loss of place. Specifically this thesis examines i)
the extent of solastalgia and place disruption experienced by the communities of
Courtown harbour and Riverchapel and how these experiences influence future
perceptions of place; ii) how solastalgia, place attachment and place disruption influence
community and individual ability to cope with environmental change and loss of place;
iii) how lived experiences of place have been altered by negative environmental change
and loss of place; iv) how communities of Courtown and Riverchapel are reimagining
place, and; iv) how attitudes towards governance and decision-making processes relate to
solastalgia and place attachment.
Employing a mixed methodology of quantitative and qualitative approaches this thesis
finds that a large proportion of residents in Courtown and Riverchapel Co, Wexford
experience solastalgia and place disruption as a result of undesirable place change,
showing that slow and chronic environmental change can cause solastalgia within an Irish
context. Solastalgia is strongly and positively correlated to place attachment and
pessimistic outlooks for the future, it also relates to negative perceptions of place and
place disruption. In some cases, undesirable place change has undermined place
attachment giving rise to a desire to relocate. However, in many cases, despite
experiences of solastalgia people maintain hope for the future. Place is being reimagined
by local residents by shifting place attachment to unchanged locations, increasing
community cohesiveness, and engaging in climate change programmes. Despite such
positive action, solastalgia is related to negative attitudes and perceptions of governance
leading to lack of trust and higher resistance to policies and local developments. Weak
consultation and inclusion in decision-making as well as a perceived indifference of
governance towards undesirable place change has reduced trust and amplified feelings
associated with solastalgia. However, despite experiences of solastalgia and lack of trust
in governance, residents believe there are opportunities for re-imaging the future if their
voice is meaningfully incorporated in decision-making.
Findings of this thesis provide valuable insights for climate related adaptation strategies
concerning the influence that loss of place, solastalgia and governance has on community
adaptive capacity. Firstly, solastalgia is experienced by a coastal community in the
southeast of Ireland reflecting the lived experiences of millions world-wide who are
struggling to cope with coastal erosion. Disruptive place change as a result of climate
change and transformative adaptation responses are likely to intensify solastalgia.
Therefore, adaptation planning must consider the emotional and psychological impacts
of perceived undesirable place change. Secondly, adaptation actions and local authority
policy that fail to consider place-based values and meanings can cause disruption,
intensifying feelings of loss. Therefore, adaptation planning must consider factors that
compound feelings of loss for communities. Finally, collective action, increased
consultation and inclusion in local decision-making can help residents come to terms with
solastalgia and reduce resistance to adaptation actions. Therefore, decision-makers need
to create opportunities that include local voices and co-produce knowledge and local
decisions. This research explores the anatomy of place change, highlighting many
compounding and interconnecting factors leading to feelings of place loss, thereby
increasing understanding of the lived experiences of solastalgia from chronic and
disruptive environmental change. These insights will be critical for helping decision-
makers and coastal communities navigate climate change. If these issues are not
addressed, it is very likely that solastalgia will become a more dominant aspect of lived
experiences of place for millions world-wide as climate change and adaptation actions
intensify disruptive environmental change.
Item Type: | Thesis (PhD) |
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Keywords: | undesirable environmental change; coastal community’s well-being; adaptive capacity; |
Academic Unit: | Faculty of Social Sciences > Geography Faculty of Social Sciences > Research Institutes > Irish Climate Analysis and Research Units, ICARUS |
Item ID: | 16581 |
Depositing User: | IR eTheses |
Date Deposited: | 29 Sep 2022 10:45 |
URI: | https://mural.maynoothuniversity.ie/id/eprint/16581 |
Use Licence: | This item is available under a Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial Share Alike Licence (CC BY-NC-SA). Details of this licence are available here |
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