Welcome to Decolonising Geography
Burnout and renewal of the Decolonising Geography project
It is difficult to describe what we have witnessed in the Palestinian territories, including Gaza and the West Bank, over the last eight months. The loss of life and destruction of landscape caused by Israel’s military campaign is painful to observe. Our solidarity with the Palestinian people is more important than ever to resist the normalisation of colonial violence. During this same period, the Decolonising Geography collective has faced significant challenges, including emotional and physical burnout, amidst severe underfunding in UK schools and broader austerity impacts. This blog post explains our recent work and reaffirms our commitment to the decolonising geography project.
23 Jun
A Journey for #GAConf23
Our annual guide to sessions at the Geographical Association conference, this time with a reflective log too
10 Apr 2023
Vote YES in the school strike ballots
The Decolonising Geography collective argue for education workers to vote YES in the current ballots for strike action. Education's working conditions are student's learning conditions
9 Dec 2022
Housing Rights: An Essential Component of Climate Justice
In this letter to the UN Secretary General, Pakistani housing activist group Karachi Bachao Tereek make clear the inter-relationships between the climate emergency and urban inequalities in the wake of the Pakistani floods of 2022
16 Oct 2022
Decolonised water: lessons from Pakistan
Having previously outlined a decolonial approach to water management, Daanish Mustafa draws out the specific lessons to be learned from the floods in Pakistan and South Asia in 2022
9 Oct 2022
Decolonising water
In the first of two articles on flood management in Pakistan, Daanish Mustafa argues that there is a need to decolonise the politics of knowledge around water.
10 Sep 2022
Indonesia's palm oil export ban
In this short interview, designed for use in schools and accompanied by a classroom worksheet, Tania Murray Li explains some basic elements of Indonesia's palm oil export ban
1 May 2022
Everyday geographies of racial capitalism: An interview with Gargi Bhattacharyya
Continuing our series on the theme of everyday geographies, in this interview Gargi Bhattacharyya reflects on how an understanding of the everyday can shape and inform our awareness of the structures of racial capitalism
23 Apr 2022
The everyday spaces of Black history and historical geography
In the sixth of our everyday geographies series, Caroline Bressey explores everyday spaces of Black history, and makes a case for the value of historical geography in the school curriculum
12 Apr 2022
Everyday geographies of austerity: On the stories not told
All knowledge, even disciplinary knowledge, is fundamentally shaped by everyday experiences. In our latest everyday geographies feature, Sarah Marie Hall writes personally and profoundly about how everyday experiences of austerity can impact on researchers, educators, families and young people
9 Apr 2022
Everyday experiences of racism in English secondary schools
In the latest of our 'everyday geographies' series, Remi Joseph-Salisbury reflects on the everyday nature of racism in secondary schools, outlines continuing challenges and suggests how the system could be improved
7 Apr 2022
Everyday atrocity
In this extract from her book Experiments in Imagining Otherwise, Lola Olufemi explores the gap between the universalising rhetoric of global governance and human rights, and the localised, everyday violence of racialised lived experience.
30 Mar 2022
A Journey for #GAConf22
The theme for the Geographical Association Conference 2021 is 'Everyday Geographies'! The Decolonising Geography educators group have collated sessions of interest. (Image credit: The GA)
17 Mar 2022
Azeezat Johnson: In memoriam
In common with so many, Decolonising Geography mourns the passing of Azeezat Johnson. Group member Iram Sammar writes on the inspirational legacy Azeezat has bequeathed to us.
14 Mar 2022
Everyday Racism and the Violence of Borders
In the second piece in our series on everyday geographies, Luke de Noronha explores the relationship between everyday racism and structural violence, and argues for an anti-racism that channels everyday experiences into the task of dismantling racist structures and institutions..
12 Mar 2022
Contesting everyday geographies of empire and apartheid: The Non-Stop Picket of the South African Embassy in 1980s London
In the first piece of a new mini-series looking at 'everyday geographies' from decolonial and anti-racist perspectives, Gavin Brown asks what the historical experiences of the Non-Stop Picket can teach us about both picketing and geography today.
18 Feb 2022
Decolonising Geography educators statement of solidarity with UCU
As university management seek to impose a significant worsening of pay, pensions and conditions at many Higher Education institutions, Decolonising Geography educators make a statement of solidarity with our HE colleagues on the eve of UCU strike action.
13 Feb 2022
Deforestation and development: A decolonial perspective from Indonesia
'Development' is a much-used term in school geography. But, as Tania Murray Li argues, the current model of corporate-led development is doing more harm than good in Indonesia
10 Feb 2022
Parody tests for anti-racist and decolonial geography school teaching
Practical activities for meaningfully anti-racist classroom praxis
6 Feb 2022
How Getting Your Students To Teach Can Increase Their Success And Support Decolonising Your Classroom
Let’s approach learning as something we do with our students rather than to our students. My work at an international school in Germany has demonstrated to me how we can decolonise our Geography lessons with less work by trusting our students more.
30 Jan 2022
Carbon Colonialism
How the UK Hides its Carbon Emissions and Environmental Impacts in the Global South
2 Nov 2021
Against Academic Investment Capitalism
Responding to Dylan Riley's thoughts on decolonising the curriculum
21 Oct 2021
Why the word ‘slum’ should not be used in geography classrooms
Taking a lead from low income urban dwellers themselves
7 Aug 2021
Key Recommendations for Formal Meetings Where You Are Concerned About Bias or Discrimination
Formal meetings are a natural part of a teaching career. Whatever your stage in your career, you may find yourself facing a formal meeting you are concerned about.
14 Jul 2021
Grime and Black British Identity Reading and Materials List
An introduction to resources that can be used in celebrating Grime and Black British history across the curriculum
7 Jul 2021
GeogChatLive: How I Teach: Changing Economic World
Catherine Owen shares strategies for teaching Changing Economic World Unit at GCSE
22 Jun 2021
Beatriz Nascimento: Quilombo and geographies of liberation
An introduction to the geographical thought of the radical Black Brazilian thinker and political organiser Beatriz Nascimento.
7 Jun 2021
The Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities Report and the geography curriculum
The CRED Report proposes that the geography curriculum be used to teach a “unifying sense of Britishness”. Here, Decolonising Geography educators argue that we should focus instead on how places have been shaped by competing dynamics of power, resistance and agency
9 Apr 2021
Teaching About a Place? Stop and Think First!
This post seeks to provide teachers with a set of questions to ask before attempting to introduce a new location to children
9 Apr 2021
Racial Battle Fatigue and the CRED Report
Researchers Kaveri Qureshi and Nasar Meer respond to last week’s report by the Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities by providing much-needed context for geography teachers and other educators seeking a better grasp of the scholarship around how outcomes in the areas of health, family dynamics, and the labour market become racialised
7 Apr 2021
Comments on the Report of the Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities
Alan Lester, Professor of Historical Geography at the University of Sussex, responds to the report of the commission on race and ethnic disparities
1 Apr 2021
International Transgender Day of Visibility (TDOV)
TDOV, occuring on 31st March each year, aims to raise awareness of discrimination faced by transgender people worldwide, but also celebrate their contributions to society. We take a look from a decolonisation perspective.
31 Mar 2021
East London Geog Hub Webinar: Practical ideas to decolonise the curriculum
Members of the DG group introduce the website, quick 'first steps' that can be taken and a deeper look into ideas for curriculum change.
20 Mar 2021
Music as Method
Music challenges single story narratives. It welcomes the messiness of the world, as well as it’s multiplicity and unpredictability. It is a powerful tool in decolonising geography.
18 Mar 2021
Challenging white GCSE Geography: global development
GCSE Global Development constructs whiteness
16 Mar 2021
A Journey for #GAConf21
The theme for the Geographical Association Conference 2021 is 'Compassionate Geographies' - To reflect that, the programme is quite diverse! So the Decolonising Geography educators group have collated sessions of interest. (Image credit: The GA)
6 Mar 2021
Why Do We Need to Decolonise Geography?
Geography Education needs to step up to the challenge of decolonising curriculum. We can use our students’ enquiry to inspire this process and look to scholars in Black Geography, Indigenous Geography and Decolonial Geography to guide us.
10 Feb 2021
What Is Decolonisation and Postcolonialism?
This post will explain what decolonisation and postcolonialism are and where they come from
20 Sep 2020