Engaging Spaces: People, Place and Space from an Irish Perspective

The world around us is changing more rapidly than at any previous point in the history of humankind. Even a casual recollection of the world we lived in one, two or more decades ago, highlights the profound changes which have been wrought in a short time-span. Space and time have been compressed and globalisation has become a by-word for many of the processes and patterns in economic, political and cultural change. Ireland has been a major beneficiary of shrinking global distances but there have also been downsides to the types and degrees of change we have experienced. Engaging Spaces explores the nature of space in our lives. It looks at how we engage space and are engaged by it. It is particularly pressing that we understand as fully as possible the increasing pressures on space in our urban and rural areas and at all levels, from the local to the global.

JIM HOURIHANE lectures in Geography in St. Patrick’s College, Drumcondra, Dublin. He devised and acted as consulting editor of the Thomas Davis radio series – Engaging Spaces – that was broadcast by RTÉ in Ireland and by National Public Radio (NPR) in America. He has written extensively in the area of geographic education and is author and editor of more than forty books. He is President of the Geographical Society of Ireland, 2004-06