Last day of fieldwork was wonderful!

Policyworkers are expected to use public transport as much as possible. I took trains from one end of the Western suburbs to another to conduct interviews. I have conducted all interviews in a quiet, but public place of the participants’ choosing, often in public libraries, parks and community centres. See a visual sociology below.

We discussed the difficulties of finding services for people who have drug dependencies and co-occurring issues with mental health, homelessness, legal issues and other life instabilities.

I then flew to Melbourne, where I’ll be joining a panel for the Tech Inclusion conference. I will talk about intersectionality, a concept describing how race and gender inequalities are interconnected with other social disadvantages related to sexuality, class, age and beyond. Our discussion seeks to move beyond current approaches to equity and diversity, which tend to leave minorities behind.

It’s been around a dozen years since I came to Southern Cross Station, or as I knew it growing up, Spencer Street Station. The slick design arranges space to keep the public flowing towards the trains. There is nowhere to sit and therefore nowhere to congregate. The former is difficult for people with chronic illness and the elderly, while the latter is to discourage youth. Public spaces reflect social norms about belonging and exclusion. At least the clouds were beautiful today.

Below is a visual sociology of the trip.