Family Lives and Environments

Cross-national perspectives on habitual practices 

Family Lives and the Environment is an international study, which aims to improve understanding of how environment is related to families' experiences in varied everyday lives. The researchers are interested in learning about the variety of families' lives in different contexts, so they are studying families with children in Year 7 (usually 11-12 years old) who live in cities and in non-urban areas in India and the UK. 

The project examines the positioning and understanding of environment and environmental concerns within family members' individual and collectively negotiated narratives of everyday lives and practices. The research aims to get a better understanding of the complexity of daily life - the things we have to get done, the juggling of work and home and school, and our concerns about what's best for everyone in the family. We hope that by understanding that bigger picture of everyday lives and practices, and learning from families' views and experiences, the research will help to inform policy and environmental education.

The research involves collaboration with the Young Lives study to re-analyse Young Lives qualitative data from interviews with families in Andhra Pradesh, followed by multi-method fieldwork with a new sample of families in Andhra Pradesh and the UK. In encompassing India (Andhra Pradesh) and the UK, the research sets out to identify potential for mutual learning between countries which differ markedly in demography and societal resources. This three year project is due for completion in autumn 2014.

Family Lives and the Environment: NOVELLA (University of Sussex).

Family lives and the environment: narratives across countries (NCRM newsletter).

Read a summary of research findings for children who participated in Family Lives and the Enviornment.

Read the initial project Information Sheet for families (UK).
Read the initial project Information Sheet for families (India).