Hey there!
I’m using this site as a way to put down some of my thoughts and interests. It’s a mix of personal and professional; sometimes a reflection on past experiences and other times anticipation of future outcomes.
I’ll start with a quick post about my PhD.
The journey started during my Master’s degree. I was part of a research lab on urban sound and we were collecting data from design interventions in the Plateau. If you’re not familiar with the Montreal borough, it’s known to be vibrant and dynamic with an attractive mix of residential and commercial areas. The neighbourhood is also above the Montreal average in terms of wealth and has been heavily gentrified over the past few decades.
As a research lab, we were conducting research where we were able, and I think that a lot of what we did was good and innovative. But there were other areas of the city that needed attention - areas with noise problems. So, I quickly became interested in questions of social injustice about noise exposure. My interest was in understanding to what extent people from certain backgrounds would be more exposed to noise and what factors led to this outcome.
Coping with noise can be difficult and requires a space that we can escape to. These spaces can be either quiet or vibrant, but always allow you to take a break from the daily routine and de-stress. But what if the same systemic issues that lead to inequalities in noise exposure also reduce access to spaces to escape noise problems. In other words, do certain groups have a double inequality: exposed to higher levels of noise and have less access to outdoor space they can escape to?
I continued my work as a research assistant, collecting data from people on site. This meant that I would approach people and ask them to participate in a study on the “sounds in the space we were in”. I was surprised at the number of people who would mention that noise was normal because we lived in a city. To me, this was akin to saying that it was normal to have lead in our drinking water because we have pipes. Noise is recognized as a health risk by experts - there is very solid evidence for this. But is this reflected in popular attitudes toward noise? Do people think of noise as an environmental risk and how does it compare with other risks (e.g. lead in drinking water)?
In the end, my PhD looked at both of these questions using a combination of survey data and noise level measurements.
What’s next?
I’m still publishing some of the findings. You’ll find them available through the Projects or Publications pages as I update this website.