https://at-ceu.studyguide.timeedit.net/modules/ENVS5240?type=COREIn environmental research, we use various methods of gathering data to expand our knowledge of environmental issues and problems, and different ways of representing this data in written text. In this course, we will focus on two qualitative data collection approaches that are especially useful in gaining detailed insights on socio-ecological perspectives and dynamics: ethnographic observation and in-depth interviewing. We will also read some examples of ethnographic texts in order to get a sense of how qualitative data is woven into narratives about what we have observed in the field and understood from our interviewees. We will practice data gathering, analysis, and ethnographic writing. Ethnographic observation provides an opportunity to observe environmental dynamics including what people (and other beings) do, and how they interact. Interviewing gives us access to how others perceive, articulate and experience environmental phenomena based on asking questions and listening about how they conceptualize a given issue or problem and why they do things the way that they do in a given context at a given time. Both of these data collection approaches, especially when combined, provide rich and detailed insights into the specific dynamics, opportunities and challenges of environmental issues informed by the research setting and the perspectives of the research participants. Ethnographic writing seeks to capture the voices of participants, and weave them with the observers' own reflections to present an interpretive narrative related to chosen theories.