Transforming rural light and dark under planetary urbanisation: Comparing ordinary countrysides in India and the UK

Abstract

Contemporary global lightscapes are becoming increasingly complex and varied, creating an unusual geography of technological development and diffusion that defies many easy narratives of global interconnectivity. Specifically, new LED lighting technologies are being created through rural experimentation in both Global North and Global South. This makes lighting, and darkness, an interesting lens through which to intervene in debates on the relationship between city, countryside, and planet, specifically addressing the theoretical developments of comparative urbanism and planetary urbanisation. Heading calls to develop conceptual material from both Global North and Global South, we use case studies from Bihar (India) and the North Pennines (UK) to argue that the changing lighting technologies and practices show how “ordinary countrysides” are contributing to new planetary ways of living. We argue that while there are differences in how darkness and the implementation of artificial lighting are perceived in these sites, there are similarities that reveal an ongoing rural form of planetary living, outside the claims of urbanisation. Particularly, rural lives are marked by a closer connection to the planet, as expressed through experiences of rural darkness. Furthermore, in both sites the tenuous grasp on infrastructure and state services seems to reveal a shared rural experience. These findings suggest shared rural experiences of globalisation, but that the socio‐spatial contexts of places remain important in understanding their location within global systems. Furthermore, we join recent calls to suggest that further exploration of the difference between “global” and “planetary” might add nuance to theoretical trends in urban studies, rural studies, and geography.

Beyond the metropolis: Street tree densities and resident perceptions on ecosystem services in small urban centers in India

“…However, we documented high cultural value for trees and strong, place-based narratives of the importance of trees. While the rapid scale and change of planetary urbanization has gained much attention, combining this top-down approach with understanding of socio-spatial contexts of places is imperative and requires further attention (Kumar & Shaw, 2020).…”

A Postcolonial Critique of Community Energy: Searching for Community as Solidarity in India and Scotland

“…According to Robinson (2011), the basis for comparison is variation finding, which we have not done. Following Robinson, we look to “stimulate theory cultures alert to the local, while also staying open to learning from other places and scholarly traditions” (Kumar and Shaw 2020:156). We note, following Lowe (2005) and Weber that comparison is oft “an institutionalized method for producing modern knowledge through the ideal‐type of Western rationality and deviations from it” (Hart 2018:372).…”

Energy geographies in/of the Anthropocene: Where now?

“…Similarly, thinking through the question of caste, Balls and Fischer (2019, p. 472) report how private companies in India choose people with the "right caste and social position" to manage and maintain microgrids in villages (see also , Sharma, 2020;Singh et al, 2017). Kumar (2018Kumar ( , 2021 and Kumar and Shaw (2020) discuss how caste-based social, cultural, and economic histories mediate access to energy and the benefits of energy projects in Indian villages.…”

“…Similarly, thinking through the question of caste, Balls and Fischer (2019, p. 472) report how private companies in India choose people with the “right caste and social position” to manage and maintain microgrids in villages (see also, Sharma, 2020; Singh et al., 2017). Kumar (2018, 2021) and Kumar and Shaw (2020) discuss how caste‐based social, cultural, and economic histories mediate access to energy and the benefits of energy projects in Indian villages. On the question of indigeneity in India, Lakhanpal (2019, p. 59) challenges the normative idea of renewable energy being always good showing that “by affecting the access to development for Adivasi communities, renewable energy development can further marginalize and exacerbate the living conditions of already disadvantaged groups”.…”