PhD Project by Naomi Hammett (supervised by Nicola Spurling, Katie Oliver and Katarina Psaridikou)
Photo by Photo by Sunnie-Lee Davison on Unsplash
Naomi Hammett (current PhD student in Lancaster Sociology) is a recipient of an Economic and Social Research Council Case Studentship in partnership with the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (ADHB). Using a mixture of online interviews with various stakeholders, and walking interviews on dairy farms in North West England, she is exploring farming practices involving soils, grass, cows, technology, carbon and humans.
Naomi is interested in the attention that has been given to the level of greenhouse gas emissions by dairy farms, in the context of climate and ecological emergency. Cows bodies have become a site of contention and intervention within debates over how to reduce GHG emissions, for example, half of total agriculture emissions in the UK in 2018 were found to be from the digestive processes of livestock (CCC, 2020).
Within this context, Naomi is exploring the various, sometimes contradictory discourses and practices that are emerging as the dairy sector attempts to address these issues. Her work is developing an in-depth understanding of the complex interplay of cows, carbon and care in approaches which variously centre on the need to produce more milk, better milk, or less milk. The novelty of her project is its special interest in how these interventions do and will impact cow bodies, lives and futures.
Naomi will complete her project in 2024.
Nicola Spurling 