Digital Commons Network^™

Who’S Cooking Tonight? A Time-Use Study Of Coupled Adults In Toronto, Canada, Bochu Liu, Michael J. Widener, Lindsey G. Smith, Steven Farber, Dionne Gesink, Leia M. Minaker, Zachary Patterson, Kristian Larsen, Jason Gilliland

Geography & Environment Publications

Understanding how coupled adults arrange food-related labor in relation to their daily time allocation is of great importance because different arrangements may have implications for diet-related health and gender equity. Studies from the time-use perspective argue that daily activities such as work, caregiving, and non-food-related housework can potentially compete for time with foodwork. However, studies in this regard are mostly centered on individual-level analyses. They fail to consider cohabiting partners’ time spent on foodwork and non-food-related activities, a factor that could be helpful in explaining how coupled partners decide to allocate time to food activities. Using 108 daily time-use logs …

Intake Of Fruits, Vegetables, And Sugar-Sweetened Beverages Among A Sample Of Children In Rural Northern Ontario, Canada, Brenton L.G. Button, Louise W. Mceachern, Gina Martin, Jason A. Gilliland

Geography & Environment Publications

There is evidence to suggest that dietary intake of children differs by rural/urban place of residence: rural children may have a higher intake of foods high in fat and sugar than those living in urban environments. The aim of this study was to examine the intake of fruits and vegetables (FV) and the frequency of sugar-sweetened beverage (SSB) consumption, among a sample of rural children in Northern Ontario, Canada, in two different seasons. Sociodemographic factors and children’s FV and SSB intake were measured using two repeated cross-sectional surveys, and seasonal information was based on the month of data collection. Logistic …

Junk Food Accessibility After 10 Years Of A Restrictive Food Environment Zoning Policy Around Schools, Lindsey Soon, Jason Gilliland, Leia M. Minaker

Geography & Environment Publications

Zoning has been proposed as a way of reducing unhealthy food access for youth, but little research has evaluated outcomes of proposed or existing junk food bans, and even less research has considered equity implications of such zoning policies. In this simulation study, set in the Region of Waterloo, Ontario (Canada), we examined how secondary student access to fast food restaurants and convenience stores would change under such a policy over 10 years in a mid-sized Canadian municipality. Outcomes are presented by school-level advantage (derived from the proportion of students in equity-deserving subgroups: low income, students who speak English …

Parents’ Attitudes Regarding Their Children’S Play And Sport During Covid-19, Monika B. Szpunar, Leigh M. Vanderloo, Brianne A. Bruijns, Stephanie Truelove, Shauna M. Burke, Jason Gilliland, Jennifer D. Irwin, Patricia Tucker

Geography & Environment Publications

The COVID-19 pandemic and associated public health measures have interrupted the daily routines of parents and children. The purpose of this study was to explore parents’ attitudes regarding their children’s play/sport during COVID-19. A secondary objective was to explore the influence of parent demographics and parent-reported physical activity levels and risk tolerance on these attitudes. Ontario parents of children aged 12 and younger completed an online survey (August—December 2020) that assessed their attitudes (grouped by support, safety and socialization-related attitudes; n = 14 items) regarding their child(ren)’s play/sport, their physical activity levels (n = 2 items), and demographic details …

Comparing Household And Individual Measures Of Access Through A Food Environment Lens: What Household Food Opportunities Are Missed When Measuring Access To Food Retail At The Individual Level?, Lindsey G. Smith, Michael J. Widener, Bochu Liu, Steven Farber, Leia M. Minaker, Zachary Patterson, Kristian Larsen, Jason Gilliland

Geography & Environment Publications

Geographers and public health researchers have long been interested in social, spatial, and economic factors that drive access and exposure to food retail. A growing body of evidence draws on mobility data to capture locations accessed by individuals beyond the home address. Given that food-related activities are shared by household members and often gendered, taking an individual-level approach might limit researchers’ ability to accurately describe access to food retail. Using data that includes Global Positioning System trajectories of forty-six adults from twenty-one households in Toronto, this study compares access to food retailers at the individual and household levels and evaluates …

"Anishinaabe Time": Temporalities And Impact Assessment In Pipeline Reviews, Sakihitowin Awasis

Geography & Environment Publications

Indigenous ways of living that embrace multiple temporalities have been largely supplanted by a single, linear colonial temporality. Drawing on theoretical insights from Indigenous geographies and political ecology, this article considers how pipeline reviews come into being through contested temporalities and how dominant modes of time dispossess Indigenous peoples of self-determination in energy decision-making. In particular, Anishinaabe clan governance – a form of kinship that provides both social identity and function based on relations to animal nations – is undermined in colonial decision-making processes. Through analysis of documents from Canada’s National Energy Board and interviews with Anishinaabe pipeline opponents, I …

Gwaabaw: Applying Anishinaabe Harvesting Protocols To Energy Governance, Sakihitowin Awasis

Geography & Environment Publications

Oil and gas extraction has transformed Anishinaabe society in ways that undermine the consensual, holistic, and egalitarian basis of natural law. To many Indigenous people, framing fossil fuels and other energy sources as “natural resources” does not accurately define energy projects or capture related risks. Some Anishinaabe pipeline opponents have suggested that traditional harvesting protocols–culturally embedded moral precepts that govern the gathering of food and medicinal plants–also be applied to activities that produce energy. This paper explores how this could be done, focusing on tar sands extraction and the Line 3 expansion plan. I begin by discussing Anishinaabe harvesting protocols, …

Soundscaping The Archives: Disrupting Boundaries Through Sensory Research, Kathryn Allyn, Roza Tchoukaleyska

Geography & Environment Publications

Through this paper, we seek to re-imagine and challenge the meaning of archival spaces. While archival spaces are repositories of information, they are also sites where cultural values and public memory are shaped, and forms of power enacted. Drawing on sensory ethnography research in the Le Corbusier archives in Paris, France, we consider how boundaries are disrupted through noise, echo, reverberations, buzzing, and other “sounds.” Our work is presented in two overlapping textures: a soundtrack, with recordings from the Le Corbusier archives; and the text written out below. Alongside tracing archival soundscapes, a secondary function of this paper is to …

Conceptualizing Youth Participation In Children’S Health Research: Insights From A Youth-Driven Process For Developing A Youth Advisory Council, Mohammad El-Bagdady, Krishna Arunkumar, Drew Bowman, Stephanie Coen, Christina Ergler, Jason Gilliland, Ahad Mahmood, Suraj Paul

Geography & Environment Publications

Given the power asymmetries between adults and young people, youth involvement in research is often at risk of tokenism. While many disciplines have seen a shift from conducting research on youth to conducting research with and for youth, engaging children and teens in research remains fraught with conceptual, methodological, and practical challenges. Arnstein’s foundational Ladder of Participation has been adapted in novel ways in youth research, but in this paper, we present a new rendering: a ‘rope ladder.’ This concept came out of our youth-driven planning process to develop a Youth Advisory Council for the Human Environments Analysis Laboratory, an …

Transformative Geomorphic Research Using Laboratory Experimentation, Sean J. Bennett, Peter Ashmore, Cheryl Mckenna Neuman

Geography & Environment Publications

Laboratory experiments in geomorphology is the theme of the 46th annual Binghamton Geomorphology Symposium (BGS). While geomorphic research historically has been dominated by field-based endeavors, laboratory experimentation has emerged as an important methodological approach to study these phenomena, employed primarily to address issues related to scale and the analytical treatment of the geomorphic processes. It is contended here that geomorphic laboratory experiments have resulted in transformative research. Several examples drawn from the fluvial and aeolian research communities are offered as testament to this belief, and these select transformative endeavors often share very similar attributes. The 46th BGS will focus on …

Perceptions And Experiences Of Environmental Health Risks Among New Mothers: A Qualitative Study In Ontario, Canada, Eric Crighton, C Brown, Jamie Baxter, L Lemyre, J R. Masuda, F Ursitti

Geography & Environment Publications

There is a growing awareness and concern in contemporary societies about potential health impacts of environmental contaminants on children. Mothers are traditionally more involved than other family members in managing family health and household decisions and thus targeted by public health campaigns to minimise risks. However little is known about how new mothers perceive and experience environmental health risks to their children. In 2010, we undertook a parallel case study using qualitative, in-depth interviews with new mothers and focus groups with public health key informants in two Public Health Units in Ontario Province, Canada. We found that the concern about …

Obesogenic Neighborhoods: The Impact Of Neighborhood Restaurants And Convenience Stores On Adolescents' Food Consumption Behaviors, Meizi He, Patricia Tucker, Jennifer D. Irwin, Jason Gilliland, Kristian Larsen, Paul Hess

Geography & Environment Publications

To examine the relationship between the neighbourhood food environment and dietary intake among adolescents. Cross-sectional design using: (i) a geographic information system to assess characteristics of the neighbourhood food environment and neighbourhood socio-economic status; (ii) the modified Healthy Eating Index (HEI) to assess participants' overall diet quality; and (iii) generalized linear models to examine associations between HEI and home and school food environmental correlates. Mid-sized Canadian city in Ontario, Canada. Participants Grade 7 and 8 students (n 810) at twenty-one elementary schools. Students living in neighbourhoods with a lower diversity of land-use types, compared with their higher diversity counterparts, had …

The Influence Of Local Food Environments On Adolescents' Food Purchasing Behaviors, Meizi He, Patricia Tucker, Jason Gilliland, Jennifer D. Irwin, Kristian Larsen, Paul Hess

Geography & Environment Publications

This study examined the relationship between the neighborhood food environment and the food purchasing behaviors among adolescents. Grade 7 and 8 students (n = 810) at 21 elementary schools in London, Ontario, Canada completed a questionnaire assessing their food purchasing behaviors. Parents of participants also completed a brief questionnaire providing residential address and demographic information. A Geographic Information System (GIS) was used to assess students' home and school neighborhood food environment and land use characteristics. Logistic regression analysis was conducted to assess the influence of the home neighborhood food environment on students' food purchasing behaviors, while two-level Hierarchical Non-Linear Regression …

An Application Of The Edge Effect In Measuring Accessibility To Multiple Food Retailer Types In Southwestern Ontario, Canada, Richard Casey Sadler, Jason Gilliland, Godwin Arku

Geography & Environment Publications

Trends in food retailing associated with the consolidation of smaller-format retailers into fewer, larger-format supercentres have left some rural areas with fewer sources of nutritious, affordable food. Access to nutritious, affordable food is essential for good dietary habits and combating health issues such as type-2 diabetes, obesity, and cardiovascular disease. Many studies on food environments use inaccurate or incomplete methods for locating food retailers, which may be responsible for mischaracterising food deserts. This study uses databases of every residence in and every food retailer in and around Middlesex County, Ontario, Canada. Residences were geocoded to their precise address, and network …

Making The Inscrutable, Scrutable: Race And Space In Victoria's Chinatown, 1891, Patrick A. Dunae, John S. Lutz, Donald Lafreniere, Jason Gilliland

Geography & Environment Publications

• This article analyzes the racial and social structure of Victoria, British Columbia's capital city, in particular its Chinatown neighbourhood. The authors' methodology combines the use of geographical information systems (gis) with discourse analysis, and devise a theoretical framework derived from the ideas of Henri Lefebvre. The authors come to the view that the community "was extensively but not exclusively Chinese and a Chinese population that was not confined to Chinatown"; and further that "the boundaries of race were not as fixed as they have often been assumed to be.". [IBSSRU - Quotes from original] Reprinted by permission of BC Studies

Linking Health Inequality And Environmental Justice: Articulating A Precautionary Framework For Research And Action, Sarah Wakefield, Jamie Baxter

Geography & Environment Publications

This article draws together three issues—the environment, health, and (in)justice—with the overall purpose of articulating an agenda for policy and research that works towards improved justice and sustainability in the environmental health arena. Considerable research in the United States and elsewhere has shown that both environmental exposures and poor health are more prevalent in populations that are marginalized by race and social class (typically measured as income). The logical next step has been to attempt to establish concrete cause-effect links between health effects and environmental exposures in order to mobilize government action to reduce these disparities. However, we caution against …

Locating Xenophobia: Debate, Discourse, And Everyday Experience In Cape Town, South Africa, Belinda Dodson

Geography & Environment Publications

In May 2008, South Africa experienced an outbreak of violence

against foreign Africans living in the country. Political

leaders expressed shock and surprise, but there has in reality

been long-standing and well-documented hostility toward

African immigrants in South Africa. Several competing explanations

have been put forward, with debate gaining urgency

and polarization since the xenophobic attacks of 2008. After

a selective review of the relevant literature to sketch the

contours of that debate, this paper presents findings from

research conducted with African immigrants living in Cape

Town. Their experiences provide further evidence that antiimmigrant

attitudes and behaviors on the part …

Physical Activity Levels Of Older Community-Dwelling Adults Are Influenced By Summer Weather Variables, Caitlin A. Brandon, Dawn P. Gill, Mark Speechley, Jason Gilliland, Gareth R. Jones

Geography & Environment Publications

Adequate daily physical activity (PA) is important for maintaining functional capacity and independence in older adults. However, most older adults in Canada do not engage in enough PA to sustain fitness and functional independence. Environmental influences, such as warmer daytime temperatures, may influence PA participation; however, few studies have examined the effect of summertime temperatures on PA levels in older adults. This investigation measured the influence of summertime weather variables on PA in 48 community-dwelling older adults who were randomly recruited from a local seniors’ community centre. Each participant wore an accelerometer for a single 7-consecutive-day period (between 30 May …

The Influence Of The Physical Environment And Sociodemographic Characteristics On Children's Mode Of Travel To And From School, Kristian Larsen, Jason Gilliland, Peter Hess, Patricia Tucker, Jennifer Irwin, Meizi He

Geography & Environment Publications

Objectives: We examined whether certain characteristics of the social and physical environment influence a child's mode of travel between home and school.

Methods: Students aged 11 to 13 years from 21 schools throughout London, Ontario, answered questions from a travel behavior survey. A geographic information system linked survey responses for 614 students who lived within 1 mile of school to data on social and physical characteristics of environments around the home and school. Logistic regression analysis was used to test the influence of environmental factors on mode of travel (motorized vs "active") to and from school.

Results: Over 62% of …

Mapping The Evolution Of 'Food Deserts' In A Canadian City: Supermarket Accessibility In London, Ontario, 1961–2005, Kristian Larsen, Jason Gilliland

Geography & Environment Publications

Background: A growing body of research suggests that the suburbanization of food retailers in North America and the United Kingdom in recent decades has contributed to the emergence of urban 'food deserts', or disadvantaged areas of cities with relatively poor access to healthy and affordable food. This paper explores the evolution of food deserts in a mid-sized Canadian city (London, Ontario) by using a geographic information system (GIS) to map the precise locations of supermarkets in 1961 and 2005; multiple techniques of network analysis were used to assess changing levels of supermarket access in relation to neighbourhood location, socioeconomic characteristics, …

Splashpads, Swings, And Shade: Parents' Preferences For Neighbourhood Parks, Patricia Tucker, Jason Gilliland, Jennifer D. Irwin

Geography & Environment Publications

Background

Physical activity is a modifiable behavior that can help curtail the increasing worldwide problem of childhood obesity. Appropriate recreational opportunities, including neighborhood parks, are particularly important for promoting physical activity among children. Because children's use of parks is mainly under the influence of their parents, understanding parents' preferences is essential for creating the most inviting and usable park space to facilitate children's physical activity.

Methods

Eighty-two intercept interviews were conducted with a heterogeneous sample of parents / guardians watching their children at neighborhood parks in London, Ontario. Parents / guardians were asked questions about how often they frequent the …