Current SWWDTP research clusters

Our research cluster themes are student-led to enable cross-disciplinary dialogue and knowledge exchange beyond immediate research fields.

• Rethinking Eurocentrism
• Memory Studies
• Creativity in Research
• Space, Community and Culture
• Health Humanities Research Cluster
• Early Modern studies (details to follow)
• Early Modern studies (details to follow)
• Queer studies (details to follow)

Rethinking Eurocentrism

The Rethinking Eurocentrism research cluster provides knowledge-sharing, learning, and solidarity for those whose research, interests or identities reflect the world beyond Europe. Rethinking Eurocentrism offers participants across various disciplines a space to centre ways of thinking, being, and doing from the Global South and Indigenous Nations.

Cluster co-leads

• Desiree Acholla, D.Acholla@soton.ac.uk
• Jane Dawson, Jane2.Dawson@live.uwe.ac.uk
• Abeera Zishan, a.zishan@pgr.reading.ac.uk

Back to top

Memory Studies

Created by our students, this interdisciplinary cluster brings together scholars across the arts and humanities to analyse how events are remembered and memorialised.

The research cluster seeks to understand the impact of memory on culture, society and politics through the exploration of topics including, but not limited to:

• history versus memory
• collective memory
• memoryscapes
• trauma
• national identity
• counter-memory
• commemoration
• museum studies
• decolonisation and postcolonialism

Cluster leads

• Martina Biavati (University of Reading)
• Luke Walters (University of Reading)

Read more about Visit Memory Studies

Follow on Twitter: @MemoryStudiesSW

Back to top

Creativity in Research

This cluster explore all forms of creativity in academic research, working across multiple disciplines. It is particularly interested in examining the following questions:

• How can creativity be used to develop original ideas or to enhance critical thinking?
• How can creativity be analysed and studied?
• How can creativity be encouraged and integrated into research and society?

The cluster believes that practice-based and creative research methodologies, as fairly new branches in academia, still need to unleash their potential and shape the research landscape. For this reason, the Creativity in Research cluster encourages the dialogue between practice-based projects and more traditional research: the objective is to provide people with tools to look at problems and questions from more nuanced angles and perspectives.

The cluster looks for, discusses, and promotes approaches and methodologies that can be borrowed from creative practices and the arts, and be applied to other fields and forms of research.

Cluster lead

• Rachel Carney (Cardiff University)

Read more about Creativity in Research

Follow on Twitter:  @creativity_dtp

Back to top

Space, Community and Culture

Cluster lead

• Katy Humberstone (University of Exeter)

Back to top

Health Humanities Research Cluster

How can the arts & humanities contribute to the life sciences, medical practice, and our understanding of health, both in theory and in practice?

The Health Humanities Cluster brings together researchers from across both the sciences and the arts and humanities to discuss, collaborate on, and investigate a wide range of questions on the theme of health, including:

• How do we define health, and what features differentiate health from illness?
• How can the arts and humanities contribute to the field of health research?
• How can creative practice play a role in healthcare?

Cluster leads

• Joanna Nissel (University of Southampton)
• Kathryn Body (University of Bristol)
• Liam Livesley (University of Southampton)

Email: Health.SWWDTP@gmail.com

Follow on Twitter: @HealthClusterSW

Back to top