Sociology Field Trip Report: Analysis of Regional Resilience

This sociology field trip report examines the resilience of a region, drawing on observations and case studies from a field trip. The report explores the concepts of bioregionalism, analyzing the interplay of ecological, social, and cultural factors. The author visited various sites, including Bibra Lake, Pinakkari, Replants, White Gum Valley, and Booyembarra Park, to assess how these locations demonstrate resilience and adhere to bioregional principles. The report discusses the importance of sustainable practices, cultural heritage preservation, and community involvement in fostering regional resilience. It also highlights challenges and opportunities for development, emphasizing the need for integrating ecological and social considerations for long-term sustainability. The report concludes with an evaluation of the region's overall resilience and its alignment with bioregionalism, based on the evidence gathered during the field trip and relevant research.

RUNNING HEAD: SOCIOLOGY
SOCIOLOGY
Name of Student
Name of University
Author note

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FIELD TRIP REPORT
Introduction
Ecology is both important to biodiversity and to the cultural heritage of the place and
it is very vital that the resources are protected properly in order to help the population and the
diverse life forms of the area survive over a long period of time1. It is highly critical that the
ecological diversity of the area is preserved over a period of time and the resources are
recycled too, in order to prevent misuse and disuse of the natural resources. While
bioregionalism deals with concrete regional, social and environmental facets of diversity and
struggles – the biodiversity leads to more complex in the bioregionalism context leads to
more detailed and contextual analysis of the resources such as crops and the soil in relation to
water and the forest resources such as wood, timber and herbal elements plus the animals and
even the rocks in the presentation of the complete, holistic bioregionalism of the related
geographical areas. Bioregionalism also refers to the cultural heritage that represents the
histories and the political elements of the place as represented by the museums and other
heritage places of the city. The very important aspects of the regions such as the social
systems, the cultural systems and how it encompasses the geographical, biodiversity and the
ecological systems in the concerned region, forms the main context of a bioregionalism
study. Nature and the living life forms or rather the elements of the nature 2– both living plus
non-living, overt and covert, tangible and intangible, ideas and ideologies, realism and
politics, the psychological and psychosocial elements, food and lifestyle, values and beliefs
are run in the same circulating course in order to play a very important role in the
development of political and sociocultural changes in the society as well as bring new
1 Evanoff, Richard M. "Bioregionalism." In Companion to Environmental Studies, vol. 13, no. 16, pp. 13-16.
ROUTLEDGE in association with GSE Research, 2018.
2 Cook, H., Benson, D., & Couldrick, L. (2016). Partnering for bioregionalism in England: a case study of the
Westcountry Rivers Trust. Ecology and Society-A journal of integrative science for resilience and sustainability
(Formerly Conservation Ecology), 21(2), 38.

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alterations in the survival strategies and the very complex over – age- transformation or
continuation of the cultural and social norms that forms and reforms the underpinnings of
societal changes in the given era and place. The above elements of the nature and the
elements of the society interacts in the very intricate manner in order to maintain both a
balance and a system that carries both the culture and the survival process in a certain
environmental and ecological area – a perpetual process, thus contributing to the both stable,
unstable, fluid and crystal elements of the bioregionalism3. Taking up advocacy of the
concerned areas where a person as an individual or a collection of community people residing
as a community in particular area, attributes to the value and the sociopolitical variations of
the area – causes the intrinsic and extrinsic alterations in the context of the bioregionalism
underpinnings. As an advocate and facilitator, the aim of a bioregionalism project is to ensure
that the political boundaries are tallied and measured in terms with the ecological boundaries.
Moreover, highlighting the unique main ecology plus the bioregional biodiversity adds to
diversity of the survival and culture of the concerned area. Encouraging processes in the
consumption and usage of local foods and the locally made dresses in the culturally active
manner also saves the economy and the financial disuse of the society. Moreover, the cost
effective processes by using the nature of the particular area pertinently also helps the
survival process in a very sustainable manner and this all comes under the acts of
bioregionalism4. As an advocate and facilitator of bioregionalism, the local materials use and
application must be encouraged plus the cultivation of the indigenous flora and fauna is
encouraged as well5. The encouragement to and towards a sustainable development forms the
main facet of the bioregionalism concept. The bioregionalism concept and systems that
3 Sarkar, Ipsita, and Ajit Behura. "Bioregionalism: Practical Environmental Ethics with an Underlying
Pragmatic Ideal." Problemy Ekorozwoju 13, no. 2 (2018).
4 Joseph, Mathew P., and RIYA SUSAN Scariah. "Bioregionalism and Eco-consciousness in Amitav Ghosh’s
novel The Hungry Tide." Research Journal Of English Language And Literature (RJELAL) A Peer Reviewed
(Refereed) International Journal 5, no. 2 (2017): 239-242.
5 Jerome, Jenitha. "Urban Ecological Balance and Planning by Applying the Methods of
Bioregionalism." International Journal of Advanced Remote Sensing and GIS 6, no. 1 (2017): 2001-2005.

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relates to the underpinnings of the various theories that forms the pillars of the bioregionalism
concept and these are diversity in form of bioregions, bioregionalism as a method of
encouraging indigenous ways of living and that ‘culture begins’ from a place. As a
postgraduate student, I away learned many things from the field trips that I have been to and
recently, I have been on a very interesting and adventurous field trip that empowered me with
the knowledge of resilient regions, people and practice. The resilient regions involved in my
postgraduate tour was Fremantle that we visited last December.
Day 1
On first day that is on 9th December, we met at the part that was located opposite to
the Fremantle train station and from there, we began our trip. It was a bus tour and the first
place we visited was the Bibra Lake, in the city of Cockburn. The sight was wonderful and it
was place with a lot to do with the history and culture of the city of Cockburn. The lakeshore
was bordered and inhabited by trees with dense canopies. The history suggests the presence
of aboriginal life which used the lake and the water resources to a great extent, thus helping
the survival process and the cultivation of the area. There were still the semi-permanent
camps till the 1960s and area is lined by red mahogany tress. The bioregion with all its
natural diversity is resilient and as also because the bioregion around the Bibra lake as well as
the Bibra lake itself provides the correct balance of the terrestrial and the aquatic life – the
environmental or rather the ecological use can be greatly attributed and integrated within the
use and application such as in form of sustainable development of the local society so that
indigenous food and crop plantations can be promoted. A counselling of the local people to
make the full use of the indigenous natural and cultural resources is very important and thus
the counselling process is very much required to support and guide the crop plantation plus
the fruit production through the development of orchards, has to be encouraged as well. A
respectful relationship with the community has to be developed and the cultural competence

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has to be integrated within the dynamics of sustainable development. This is very much vital
and important for the counselling process based on bioregionalism and empowerment. The
next place we visited was the Pinakkari which is of various importance in context to
bioregion, the diversity of resources and the proper usage of history and culture for suitable
development of the local population. The area is important for its value imparting intentional
cohousing concept on which the community living people is based and the place consists of
around and approximately twenty four people. I found the idea of Common House very
interesting. The idea of having a common house is very vital as because it not only saves a lot
of house and architectural spacing which are required for individual people, under the most
ideal circumstances. The community people do not live in separate houses and but in a
common house thus adjusting their life systems and processes towards a greater harmony,
understanding and compassion and on the bioregionalism grounds, the saving of timber,
metals and the woods as well as the other resources needed for using the houses – has been
done which is huge ecological conservation and bioregionalism importance. The community
resilience is promoted as in the community co-existing parameters, the behavioral and the
community collaboration plus the community harmony parameters are promoted as well.
Moreover, there is a common dining and kitchen area, there is a common office, and there is
a common meeting room, a common laundry and a common guest room as well. More than
anything, the best part is that the community member living together not only share meals
about two to three times a week, the food that they cook themselves but they also eat around
a communal fire which is symbolic of their culture. This is a very vital cultural and
bioregionalism process that significantly improves individualistic and collective efforts or
rather pursuits towards a very holistic community resilience and thus growing towards a
common non-violence, co-operation, ecological sustainability, environmental responsibility,
tenant participation, social justice and having a compassionate, kind and respectful

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interrationships, whereby the community members promotes social, cultural and
environmental, ecological conservation through a collective imagination and interpersonal
risk taking that sustains the principal aspects of the bioregionalism. The aspects of non-
violence and social cooperation in relation to ecological and biodiversity conservation also
reduces the chances for conflicts and heals the various personal and social problems that is
presentable at an individual or a cultural level. In this case, I understood that the idea of
common house that can solve a lot of social issues as well the environmental problems
associated with the ecological, habitat, resources and biodiversity conservation. As their
community lifestyle has been rooted in the Pinakkari ‘common house’ – it certainly forms a
very exciting and strong example of the bioregionalism where the indigenous community
culture is promoted and the environmental problems are addressed in a very imperative
manner.
Day 2
On day 2, which was a very important tour traversed by the bus, we started with first
excursion activity that is replants. We adhered to the working principles of the replants
organisation and understand the very importance of surviving the indigenous resources that is
the local plants, trees and the other form of animals from getting removed or eliminated from
a local area. The various types of important areas that I learned about was the prevention of
deforestation by the application by right interventions (both social and cultural as well as
ecological). Along with the employees of the replant organisation, I learned about their ways
of integrating cultural values by selling the indigenous local type of grasses to the people
outside and of the local community – thus contributing to the sustainable use of biodiversity
and bioregionalism as well as to the sustainable development of the cultural and ecological
resources. It was interesting to know that the activities of the organisation helps to salvage the

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grasses and vegetation as well as the shrubs of the concerned area. Then went to a place that
was referred to as the ‘white gum valley’ by the early European people who settled in this
place. The area is productive and ideal for cultivation for certain fruit trees and given the
bioregion being concentrated with grasses and grass cover, which grow resiliently all over the
place, can be used by the locals in order to sustain both the natural resources and the survival
in the local area. I found the open spaces and the fig trees which can be used by the local
people for both settlements and the societal developments as well as to be used as food
resources. The area receives rainfall and the water is filtered through the rocks and the
pebbles into the groundwater that is then transferred to the lake – thus water is fresh and can
be used for fishing. Then, we went to the Booyembarra Park which is known for its
sustainable practices that not only is targeted towards safeguarding of the natural indigenous
resources such as rocks, timber, fishing, crops and lakes and irrigation, sustainable water
sources and I found the area, given its diversity and sociocultural implications which is of
great ecological usage and cultural value. With proper legal and social policies, the area
which is currently suffering a number of challenges such as new soil conditions which is not
turning out to be fertile for the existing plant cover and hence, plans should be made around
the growth of new plants, which should be encouraged in a very pertinent manner to support
both the aspects of resilience and bioregionalism. I found another huge problem that we
found out was that this place attracts a lot of birds who feeds on the nectar that again, in turn,
do not allow the smaller sized birds to come and interact with the ecology of Booyembarra
Park. Thus, according to me, that I shared with the other members of the team and the
educators as well, that planting a new species of the plant that actually attracts insects would
also encourage the other birds to gather around the place, thus adding to the biodiversity of
the place. Booyembarra Park has a fertile place and it can be used to full potential to develop

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the resilience and diversity of the place. The park has stream and provides opportunity for
fishing and irrigation which helps in enriching in the resources of the natural park.
Day 3
On day 3, we went to Freemantle arts centre where the arts and the music is
empowered and the centre had a rich collection of arts – acrylic ceramics, hand build crafts,
watercolour paintings and there were students who were undertaking courses in the
Freemantle arts centre and I found them quite immersed in the arts and crafts and there were
proper guidance by the art educators. The best part of the Freemantle arts centre is that the
courses offered by the centre are applicable for both adult and culture and this in a very
pertinent manner, increases the sociocultural knowledge of the public as well as the
sociocultural implications of the community are bettered. The community participation of the
community members is involving and the art centre provides various ways of interactions
between the communities and the societies, in collaboration with the stakeholders of the local
community. This, to me, has a great impact on the culture and bioregionalism. The important
facets on this visit to the art centre was that the centre not only provides opportunities to
children and adults in increase their cultural competence but use also to use their art to
portray resilience and cultural respect that would again help in development of cultural
competence plus the compassionate interpersonal relationship plus sharing habits with each
other. Then lastly, we went to Sustainable Tradies that use the recycles materials from the
waste products that helps in the promotion of bioregionalism and it also provides the products
to the community at very affordable process. I understood and learned how recycling of
materials helps to improve not only the cultural resilience but also attributes to sustainable
development of society and culture with respect to sociocultural and ecological plus
environmental that is biodiversity resources. The nature is sustained in such a way that if
prevents the misuse and misuse of materials that again creates a very vital part of the

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sustainable development undertaken with respect to and for the Freemantle region being
resilient; and that the region is based on bioregionalism.
Hence it can be concluded saying that the very important aspects of the regions such
as the social systems, the ethnic systems and how it covers the geographical, ecological
systems plus the biodiversity in the concerned region, forms the chief context of a
bioregionalism study. Nature along with its various living life forms or rather the elements of
the nature – both living plus non-living, tangible and intangible, culture and heritage, realism
and politics, the socio cultural and psychosocial elements, food and lifestyle, values and
beliefs attributes to the Freemantle region being both resilient and bioregionalism competent.
There are diverse ranges of natural and social resources that supports the sustainable
development of the local culture but counselling and more guidance is required towards a
more positive bioregionalism sustenance.

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Bibliography
Evanoff, Richard M. "Bioregionalism." In Companion to Environmental Studies, vol. 13, no.
16, pp. 13-16. ROUTLEDGE in association with GSE Research, 2018.
Cook, H., Benson, D., & Couldrick, L. (2016). Partnering for bioregionalism in England: a
case study of the Westcountry Rivers Trust. Ecology and Society-A journal of integrative
science for resilience and sustainability (Formerly Conservation Ecology), 21(2), 38.
Sarkar, Ipsita, and Ajit Behura. "Bioregionalism: Practical Environmental Ethics with an
Underlying Pragmatic Ideal." Problemy Ekorozwoju 13, no. 2 (2018).
Joseph, Mathew P., and RIYA SUSAN Scariah. "Bioregionalism and Eco-consciousness in
Amitav Ghosh’s novel The Hungry Tide." Research Journal Of English Language And
Literature (RJELAL) A Peer Reviewed (Refereed) International Journal 5, no. 2 (2017): 239-
242.
Jerome, Jenitha. "Urban Ecological Balance and Planning by Applying the Methods of
Bioregionalism." International Journal of Advanced Remote Sensing and GIS 6, no. 1 (2017):
2001-2005.

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