Sound, spatial justice and social infrastructures: participatory listening research for public engagement and policy mobilisation

Through this post-doctoral project, Bethan Prosser is developing, with Mary Darking, an innovative and creative toolbox, called participatory listening research, for researchers and practitioners to engage local communities in social policy issues.

Participatory listening research is a way of listening with others to the environment to generate new knowledge and discoveries whilst embracing different listening experiences, practices and positionalities. In Bethan Prosser's PhD research project, she used these listening methods to generate findings about residents’ experiences of urban seaside gentrification on the UK south coast.

There are three strands to the current project.
Firstly, Dr Prosser will extend the potential impact of my participatory listening research approach by co-designing creative outputs that disseminate her PhD findings. Working with local community music organisation, Brighton & Hove Music for Connection (BHMC), Dr Prosser will consult with residential advisory and community groups to co-create a series of interactive listening walks and digital media outputs.
Secondly, Dr Prosser will apply and embed the participatory listening methods within public engagement around hyperlocal socio-environmental and social infrastructure changes through a series of knowledge exchange symposia. Thirdly, she will deepen the academic significance of the methodology through a series of publications, presentations and proposals.