Our Story
We envision being in the field as a deep qualitative entanglement that is embodied, experiential, emplaced and interpretive of the world of meaning construction and lived experience. We want to share the ways in which we conceptualize these entanglements and the means by which we attempt to design studies meant to understand the world of natural and human phenomenon. Here you will find ideas and suggestions for collaborative and participatory qualitative research design and ways of conceptualizing how research can be a force for community good and individual creative expression.
Along the way, we’ll also share those places in which we have found ourselves entangled and immersed. This is what we mean by describing our time in the field and how primary experiences with unique people in particular places lead not only to deeper connections, but, also, to greater understanding and awareness of what it means to be human. Being in the field assumes that we are committed to in-depth and sustained inquiry with people and in emplacing ourselves within the larger story of a place. Being in the field necessitates active engagement and research design that are highly collaborative and participatory, cognizant of localized norms and truths. Also attentive to our own emplacement and embodied understanding of where we are, the sensory awareness we develop and how we share what is often a co-construction of meaning with a larger audience. Through prose, poetry, film and art these experiences can find a wider audience who find shared ideas and awareness and common ground and purpose with participants in the field. This is the great value of field research-by exploring the great diversity of people we may come to understand the human species more holistically and universally.
We’re glad you’re here to explore the site and hopefully find nuggets of inspiration or ideas to nurture as you follow your own path in the field. We see the great possibilities of qualitative research that is passionate, engaged, intuitive and imaginative.
introductions
Cheryl Hunter
Hello! I am Cheryl Hunter and I am a field-based qualitative researcher and Professor at the University of North Dakota.
​
My research areas include: field-based qualitative methodology and design; gender, education and the environment; place-based and nature-based pedagogy; and experiential education. I have published in the areas of: qualitative research methods, research pedagogy, curriculum and instruction, naturalist interpretation, nature-based and experiential education, environmental studies, medical education, and educational leadership. My publications span research journals, practitioner journals, books, edited volumes, book chapters, as well as federally funded grants.
​
In collaboration with my partner, Joshua Hunter, we established GRO Learning Gardens (on the campus of UND) to develop ecological literacy and a sense of place in our schools and communities through sustainable and regenerative garden education. Learning gardens and place-based practices create a vehicle for community engaged stewardship and sustainability while addressing the social, economic and ecological needs of our community.
​
We initiated our first learning garden project in 2008 in Cleveland, OH at our children's elementary school. We drew upon our expertise as qualitative researchers in the areas of experiential and embodied education both in formal and informal settings. Being outside surrounded by nature, as well as gardening and providing food for others, is a passion for us as individuals. We also believe that being outside and working together is what connects all of us, as humans on this planet. We live in a time when personally connecting to the earth by working alongside each other is even more necessary than ever before - and there is no place better than in the garden or outside in nature.
​
I received my PhD in History, Philosophy and Policy Studies at Indiana University with an emphasis in qualitative research methodologies. As a Spencer Foundation Fellow at Indiana University, I worked closely with Sociology faculty exploring education policy as well as the use of narrative methodologies. I was a Post-Doctoral Research Fellow at Cleveland Clinic College of Medicine where I focused on the areas of curriculum design and instruction, research design, and the use qualitative assessment within the framework of medical education.
Joshua Hunter
Hi. My name is Joshua Hunter and I am an associate professor at the University of North Dakota.
I am a field-based qualitative researcher, with extensive experience in ethnography, phenomenology and narrative inquiry. I earned my PhD from Indiana University in History, Philosophy and Policy Studies with a focus on ethnography, sense of place and place-based education.
Additionally I have worked in the field of Outdoor and Environmental Education for over twenty years, across multiple educational settings, both formal and nonformal, and with diverse populations and multigenerational groups. I spent several years in Cleveland developing and building learning gardens and outdoor natural areas for elementary schools to foster outdoor experiences for children. I hold certifications as an Interpretive Guide and Interpretive Guide Trainer with the National Association for Interpretation.
​
My research concerns place-based education, outdoor experiences and play for children and wilderness experiences for young adults in remote, wilderness settings. I continue to work with regional nonprofit organizations dedicated to outdoor education for children and adults and conservation oriented projects.