- Title
- The Latrobe valley: The politics of loss and hope in a region of transition
- Creator
- Duffy, Michelle; Whyte, Sue
- Relation
- Australasian Journal of Regional Studies Vol. 23, Issue 3, p. 421-446
- Relation
- https://www.anzrsai.org/publications/ajrs/2017-Volume-23/Issue-3/
- Publisher
- Australian New Zealand Regional Science Association International (ANZRSAI)
- Resource Type
- journal article
- Date
- 2017
- Description
- This paper suggests that in places like the Latrobe Valley in south-eastern Victoria, Australia, that are undergoing significant change and transition, the narratives describing historical and contemporary feelings about such change are integral to a better understanding of how certain politics of emotion and affect are mobilised. Subsequently implications of this for regional futures are explored. The article traces the origins of the Latrobe Valley’s coal industry and the establishment of its mining communities, with specific attention paid to narratives of communal belonging and loss as government involvement in the region shifted from a somewhat benign paternalism to the neoliberalist ideologies of the 1980s. This history is integral to current narratives about a perceived ongoing ignorance or lack of consideration on the impact of economic and social decisions made for this region. This paper focuses specifically on interview material that arises out of the work undertaken by the Community Wellbeing Stream of the Hazelwood Health Study. This interview material offers a means to examine participants’ emotional connections and responses to change. Through an analysis of this material the aim was to uncover the role such narratives may play in mobilising responses to the region’s current contexts and what this might tell us about future pathways.
- Subject
- emotions; transition; Latrobe Valley; coal; hope
- Identifier
- http://hdl.handle.net/1959.13/1451505
- Identifier
- uon:44204
- Identifier
- ISSN:1030-7923
- Language
- eng
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