Acknowledging and reflecting: A response to Daya (2012) and Lawhon (2012)

摘要

I read with interest the responses submitted to Geoforum relating to my recent (2012a) article and am grateful to the editors for an opportunity to respond. My response is neither a mea culpa nor a rejection in toto of the points raised by Daya (2012) and Lawhon (2012): in writing the original article I was aware that it might prompt critical responses. That is the nature of healthy academic debate. Both Daya and Lawhon offer counter-arguments to and critiques of aspects of my paper while acknowledging that they shared certain of the frustrations and concerns raised. Whether or not we are in agreement on all of the points raised, the opening up of these discussions in a constructive manner was one of the motivating factors behind the original article. In this spirit, my response will address a number of specific comments made by Daya and Lawhon while reflecting upon how these exchanges themselves relate to specific concerns raised in the original paper.