Home means something to everyone. More than just bricks and mortar, it’s about security and belonging, citizenship and exclusion. Michaela Benson has researched it all: from the UK’s self-build communities, to people seeking a new lifestyle abroad. She tells Alexis and Rosie about this and her own experience of home, including her mother’s relationship to her place of birth: Hong Kong.Plus, Kwame Lowe and Alice Grahame introduce us to the Rural Urban Synthesis Society in London. What does it take to build your own “Grand Design” and why would anyone want to do that? What happens when areas become known as “problem places” and what’s gentrification got to do with it? And who is to blame for the housing crisis?Guests: Michaela Benson, Kwame Lowe, Alice GrahameHosts: Rosie Hancock, Alexis Hieu TruongExecutive Producer: Alice BlochSound Engineer: David CracklesMusic: Joe GardnerArtwork: Erin AnikerSpecial thanks to: Kirsteen Paton, Lisa Dikomitis, RUSSEpisode ResourcesMichaela, Rosie and Alexis recommend:“Fragile Monsters” (2021) by Catherine Menon“Unsheltered” (2018) by Barbara Kingsolver“Foundation” (1942) by Isaac AsimovFrom The Sociological Review:“Unhomely Homes: A visual study of Airbnb” (2020) by Kenneth Kajoranta and Anna PechurinaOn older New Zealanders and the role of home for feeling secure in an uncertain world (1998) by Ann Dupuis and David ThornsA critical review of the existing literature on “home” (2004) by Shelley MallettFurther readings:On being middle-class in contemporary London (2017) by Michaela Benson and Emma JacksonOn Brexit’s hidden costs for Britons living in the EU (2021) by Michaela BensonThe Rural Urban Synthesis Society (RUSS) Lewisham, London“Gentrification: A Working-Class Perspective” (2014) by Kirsteen Paton“Your Life Chances Affect Where You Live: A Critique of the ‘Cottage Industry’ of Neighbourhood Effects Research” (2013) by Tom Slater“Cyprus and Its Places of Desire: Cultures of Displacement Among Greek and Turkish Cypriot Refugees” (2012) edited by Lisa Dikomitis“Walters Way and Segal Close: The Architect Walter Segal and London's Self-Build Community” (2017) by Alice GrahameThe film “Minari” (2020) directed by Lee Isaac ChungChris Leslie’s work on demolition and regeneration in GlasgowRead our acknowledgement of the indigenous lands that both Rosie and Alexis work upon.Find more at The Sociological Review.Support our work. Make a one-off or regular donation to help fund future episodes of Uncommon Sense: donorbox.org/uncommon-sense

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