The winners of the 2017 Dissertation Prize are…

We are delighted to announce the winners of the 2017 undergraduate dissertation prize:

Winner: Anna Knowles-Smith, University College London

Refugees and theatre: an exploration of the basis of self-representation

Runner Up: Thomas Paulsen, University of Exeter

In Search of Danish Atmospheres

If you would like to read our winner’s dissertations, click on the titles above.

The winner receives £100 for the best Undergraduate dissertation while the both the winner and runner-up receive a year’s personal subscription to the journal Social and Cultural Geography, courtesy of the publisher, Taylor & Francis.

Congratulations to both of our winners!

SCGRG Sponsored sessions at the RGS-IBG 2017

The Social and Cultural Geography Research Group are sponsoring twelve sessions at the forthcoming Royal Geographical Society (with IBG) annual conference that will be held from 29th August – 1st September.

You can find when the conference sessions take place by searching for them here.

If you would like to read the abstracts for each of the sessions below, click here.

The list of sponsored sessions are as follows:

‘Placing’ knowledges in Social and Cultural geography: Postgraduate Snapshots
Conveners
Phil Emmerson (University of Birmingham, UK)
Maddy Thompson (Newcastle University, UK)

Educational Landscapes: Nature, Place and Moral Geographies
Conveners
Jo Hickman Dunne (Loughborough University, UK)
Sarah Mills (Loughborough University, UK)

Geographies of the body and technology
Conveners
Lizzie Richardson (University of Durham, UK)
Cordelia Freeman (University of Nottingham, UK)

Dance and the geographies of (de)coloniality
Convener
Sofie Narbed (Royal Holloway, University of London, UK)

Non-representational geographies: practices, pedagogies and writing
Convener
Andrew S. Maclaren (University of Aberdeen, UK)

(en)Countering change, (dis)Assembling placeness
Conveners
Marc Welsh (Aberystwyth University, UK)
Samantha Saville (Aberystwyth University, UK)

Muslim women’s geographies – decolonizing discourses, re-writing everyday lives
Conveners
Dr Christine Schenk (University of Oxford, UK)
Negar Elodie Behzadi (University of Oxford, UK)
Akanksha Awal (University of Oxford, UK)

Critical perspectives on transnational education and knowledge mobilities in the Global South
Conveners
Johanna Waters (University of Oxford, UK)
Maggi Leung (Utrecht University, The Netherlands)

For whom and what do we grieve, when and where: The geo-politics of diverse experiences of death, bereavement and remembrance: human and non-human
Conveners
Ruth Evans (University of Reading, UK)
Beth Greenhough (University of Oxford, UK)
Philip Howell (University of Cambridge, UK)
Avril Maddrell (University of Reading, UK)
Katie McClymont (University of the West of England, UK)

Valuing Heritage in the Postcolonial City
Conveners
Mark Boyle (National University of Ireland, Maynooth, Ireland)
Andrew McLelland (National University of Ireland, Maynooth, Ireland)

A geography of small things: geographies of architecture beyond the high rise
Conveners
Rachel Hunt (University of Durham, UK)
Julia Heslop (University of Durham, UK)

(Re)Engaging Geographies of Religions, Spiritualties, and Faith
Conveners
Stephanie Denning (University of Bristol, UK)
Richard Scriven (University College Cork, Ireland)

SCGRG Undergraduate Dissertation Prize 2017: Deadline for nominations Friday 7th July

The SCGRG offers an annual prize of £100 for the best Undergraduate Dissertation in Social and Cultural Geography. We also announce a runner-up prize. Both prize-winners also receive a year’s personal subscription to the journal Social & Cultural Geography published by Taylor & Francis. Please see the mission statement for our definition of what is considered social and cultural geography.

Nominated dissertations should be: an outstanding theoretical and/or empirical piece of work; usually over 10,000 words in length; submitted for formal assessment in the preceding academic year to a UK Higher Education Institution for a BA/BSc level degree programme in geography; written in English. We are looking to reward both excellent scholarship and innovation in the study of social and cultural geography. Please note that a department may not submit more than one entry and nominated dissertations should not be submitted for consideration for any other RGS prizes.

Nominations are requested from the Head of Department or Dissertation Convenor by the Friday 7th July. All dissertations should be submitted as a single pdf file of less than 5MB in size with a post-September email and contact address for the student.

Submissions and further queries about the SCGRG Undergraduate Dissertation Prize should be emailed to the Dissertation Convenor, Richard Scriven r.scriven@umail.ucc.ie Department of Geography, University College Cork, Cork, Ireland. 

Click here to see the list of previous winners of the award.

The RGS-IBG Postgraduate Mid-term conference, Cardiff University 19th – 21st April 2017: A reflective account

Jamie Halliwell, PhD candidate, Manchester Metropolitan University
Website Officer for the SCGRG

Its been a month since the RGS-IBG held its mid-term postgraduate forum which was held between 19th and 21st April. The honour of hosting the event went to Cardiff University and attracted over 100 international postgraduates and early career researchers. For me, this was my first RGS related event which gave me many opportunities to network with other postgraduates, researchers and academics in a relaxed and more intimate atmosphere. I thank the SCGRG for sponsoring my bursary to attend this excellent event.

My PhD Research and conference presentation

On the Friday morning of the conference, I presented my research which explores the construction of identities through Eurovision Song Contest fandom. I presented preliminary findings and data which I had collected through interviews with Eurovision fans at the contest in Vienna in 2015 and through interviews that I conducted over Skype. I also discussed my proposals on how I intend to continue my research. This will involve engaging with digital research methods, such as netnography, and use social media platforms such as Twitter, Facebook and WhatsApp to explore how Eurovision fans engage with the contest on an everyday level and how their identities are constructed through the contest. Fans also create their own fan websites and blogs, which also intersect with social media platforms such as Twitter and Facebook. This is as a result of the increased use and development of internet and smartphone technologies, which provide fans with greater spatial mobility in interacting with the contest and with other fans. Eurovision fan websites are an interesting research area, as they allow fans to accrue cultural and subcultural capital and assist in creating fan communities. As a member of a fan website, there are many opportunities to attend the Eurovision Song Contest and its spinoff events as a ‘fan journalist’. This involves meeting and greeting with Eurovision artists, interviewing them for fan websites and attending their press conferences. During the main Eurovision event, fan journalists also have access to country rehearsals and they occupy the same backstage spaces (known as the ‘press centre’) with other fan websites and official journalists from country state broadcasters, such as the BBC.

The press centre was the main space where I conducted my interviews in Vienna and one of my key arguments and questions is to deconstruct the contest’s perceived representation as a ‘gay event’, even though it is not constructed as such. Where contest organisers are increasingly acknowledging and producing narratives aimed at a gay audience, gay men that I interviewed explained how it causes internal conflicts with their identities. Some felt that gay narratives through the contest weren’t entirely representative but subjective, making them question their own gay identity. Gay men also identified the difference in atmosphere between the contest and inner city gay clubs. One respondent believed he felt other gay men constructed impressions of the way he dressed and looked. As opposed to Eurovision event spaces as appearing less sexualised and the collective interest in Eurovision helped break the ice when conversing with other fans. Moreover, there was evidence to suggest the negotiation of Eurovision fandom between Facebook and Twitter by heterosexual male fans. Fandom was seen to be restricted to Twitter which provided more freedom to produce Eurovision-related content and engage with other fans, whereas Facebook is seen as a platform where fandom is restricted. Facebook is seen to be used more for everyday social organisation and these fans believed that their families and friends who can view their Facebook profile would not be interested in their Eurovision fandom. This may also suggest a ‘closeting’ of fandom from Facebook, as their heterosexuality maybe challenged, given the common perception of the contest as a gay event.

The Postgraduate mid-term conference, Cardiff University 19th – 21st April 2017

The Glamorgan Building of Cardiff University, where the conference took place
The Glamorgan Building of Cardiff University, where the conference took place

The conference provided ideal opportunities to network with other delegates, academics and RGS-IBG research groups. On arrival, I met up with fellow social and cultural research geographers during the research social before attending the first keynote lecture by Dan Raven-Ellison. A keen guerrilla geographer and face of the National Geographic, he has explored how moving through different spatial environments impacts on his body and stress levels. He is also campaigning to designate London as a the first ‘National Park City’.

The Thursday morning saw another keynote lecture from Professor Mark Jayne of Cardiff University discussing his research into geographies of alcohol and violence and the socio-cultural underpinnings of drinking cultures. These activities were likely to take place on a ‘night out’ in the inner city to attend clubs, drink excessively and engage with binge drinking. Jayne showed the audience clips of these activities, some of which involved drunk working class males performing hyper-masculinity when getting into fights with other drunken males.

The postgraduate presentations took place across the Thursday and the Friday, which ran across parallel sessions. Luckily they all took place within the Glamorgan building within the geography department, so you didn’t have to travel far if you wanted to go to different sessions! Some postgraduates presented their proposals for their PhD research, share their ideas and feedback on their presentation or on how to develop their ideas. As well as the presentations, we also had workshops on a variety of topics; one that I attended was the thesis proofreading by Dr Bertie Dockerill. This was an excellent workshop and gave me insight into the proofreading process, Dr Dockerill was an effervescent and dynamic communicator and definitely perked the audience up! The conference also had a big social media presence which helped to promote everyone’s research and document the conference.

We also were treated to three presentations on Estonia, here’s one of them…!

I was the only postgraduate to represent my university (Manchester Metropolitan), but with all the social events associated with the conference (as well as the conference dinner on the Thursday evening, many of use went for food and drinks after the conference on the Wednesday and Friday!) it was easy to chat and share ideas with other delegates. From attending the American Association of Geographers conference in Boston, USA two weeks previously (which attracts around 4,000 delegates each year), it was nice to come back to the UK for a smaller and intimate conference. The Cardiff University and Postgraduate forum organisers were fantastic, everything ran smoothly and they were always happy to help! I would definitely recommend attending this conference to anyone and I will hopefully be there next year!

 

SCGRG call for sessions: RGS-IBG Annual Conference, London 2017

The RGS-IBG Social and Cultural Geography Research Group (SCGRG) would like to invite expressions of interest for sponsored sessions for the RGS-IBG 2017 Annual Conference, which will take place in London, between Tuesday 29th Aug – Friday 1st Sept 2017.

The theme for the 2017 Annual Conference, chaired by Professor Sarah Radcliffe, is Decolonizing geographical knowledges: opening geography out to the world.

SCGRG is keen to sponsor sessions that directly relate to the conference theme but also those sessions that engage with broader issues of contemporary concern to social and cultural geographers.

You can find out more about the theme at: http://www.rgs.org/WhatsOn/ConferencesAndSeminars/Annual+International+Conference/Conference+theme.htm

When designing your session proposals please take note of the following:

  • A session cannot occupy more than two timeslots on the conference programme unless this has been pre-arranged with the RGS team. Those seeking more than one timeslot should consider co-sponsorship (i.e. splitting sponsorship so as to have a sponsor for each slot).
  • Each attendee can only make two substantive contributions to the conference programme (eg. as paper presenter, panel member, discussant). A substantive contribution is defined as one where the individual concerned needs to be present in the session room, and so can include session organiser if attendance is necessary. For individuals proposing multiple co-authored papers, an alternative presenter must be clearly nominated at the time of submitting the session/paper.

SCGRG is able to sponsor 12 timeslots and you are welcome to propose joint sessions to be co-sponsored by another research group.

Please send expressions of interest including the below information by Wednesday 14th December at 6pm. We will inform applicants of the outcome by 22nd December.

(i) Title of session;

(ii) Name of Co-sponsoring groups, if applicable

(iii) Name and Contact Details for Session Convenors

(iv) Abstract, outlining scope of session – 200 words max.

(v) Number of session timeslots that are sought – please note:  this year a session may not occupy more than 2 time slots unless this has been pre-agreed with the RGS.

(vi) Indication of session format

Proposals for, or questions about, SCGRG sponsored sessions should be sent to Dr Laura Prazeres:  Laura.Prazeres@st-andrews.ac.uk

AHRC Midlands3Cities funding for UK/EU students

The Midlands3Cities Doctoral Training Partnership (M3C DTP) is a collaboration between the University of Birmingham, Birmingham City University, De Montfort University, University of Leicester, Nottingham Trent University and the University of Nottingham. M3C is awarding up to 87 PhD Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) studentships for UK/EU applicants for 2017 entry. M3C provides research candidates with expert supervision (including opportunities for cross-institutional supervision), research training and access to a wide range of facilities, cohort events and placement opportunities with regional, national and international partners in the creative and cultural sectors.

The School of Geography at the University of Nottingham (see here) invites applications from students whose research interests include:

  • Environmental humanities and landscape studies
  • Animal geographies
  • Cultural economy
  • Geographies of empire, militarism and internationalism
  • Epidemic spaces and cultural-historical geographies of health
  • Heritage sites and legacies of enslavement and colonialism
  • Histories of geographical and environmental thought

For more information please follow the following links for the cultural and historical geography research theme.

The deadline for M3C funding applications is 16 January 2017, by which time students must have applied for a place to study and have ensured that two academic references are submitted to the home university on the correct M3C form.

For full details of eligibility, funding, proposal-writing workshops and research supervision areas (including use of the supervision search tool) please visit www.midlands3cities.ac.uk or contact enquiries@midlands3cities.ac.uk

Please contact Dr Adam Algar at Adam.Algar@nottingham.ac.uk if you have any questions related to doctoral study in geography at the University of Nottingham.

Cambridge Film Festival Microcinema programme

microcinema

In the next moth, the Alchemical Landscape Project are hosting several events at Cambridge University.

Yvonne Salmon who is co-hosting the experimental/microcinema strand of the Cambridge Film Festival with James Mackay who will speak on 18th October regarding the work of producer Derek Jarman. Click here for more information.

Yvonne will also be performing at an experimental lecture event at the Festival of Ideas, click here for more information.

On the 24th October there will be a gallery exhibition of Steve Farrer’s work at the Heong Gallery at Downing College which also references the 50th anniversary of the London Film-makers Coop.

Click on the image above to view the programme.

The winners of the 2016 Dissertation Prize are…

After many deliberations, we are pleased to announce the winners of the 2016 Dissertation Prize. They are:

Runner-up

Megan O’Kane, Queens University Belfast

“Geographies of Suicide and the Representation of Self-Sacrifice in Japanese Popular Culture and Media”

Winner

Imogen Fox, University of Brighton

“Meltdowns in the mud: A spatial, emotional and relational approach to the experience of ‘care’ in the micro-spatialities of Glastonbury Festival”

The winner receives £100 for the best Undergraduate dissertation while the runner-up and winner both receive a year’s personal subscription to the journal Social and Cultural Geography, published by Taylor & Francis.

Congratulations to both our winners!

Event: The Alchemical Landscape, Symposium II – 7th July

THE ALCHEMICAL LANDSCAPE,  SYMPOSIUM II:

Screen Media, Occulture and the Geographic Turn

Girton College, University of Cambridge

7th July 2016.

An interdisciplinary symposium presented by the Cambridge University Counterculture Research Group

Following the success of our first symposium in March 2015, we are pleased to announce The Alchemical Landscape II. This second event will focus on occultural visions of the landscape across film, television, video and associated media.

We will be presenting a programme featuring a wide range of excellent speakers: academics, writers, artists and film-makers. We will also be welcoming Jo Melvin (Chelsea College of Art) and Marc Atkins & Rod Mengham (Sounding Pole Films) to deliver keynote addresses.

Do join us for what promises to be a fascinating day of talks and discussion.

Tickets are £39 and include entry to all the talks, lunch and refreshments during the day.

Full details relating to ticket purchase and venue as well as a draft programme can be found on the website:

http://thealchemicallandscape.blogspot.co.uk/

Any questions, please e-mail: thealchemicallandscape@gmail.com

Conveners

Yvonne Salmon FRSA FRGS FRAI
Lecturer (Affiliated), University of Cambridge

James Riley FRSA
Fellow of English, Girton College, University of Cambridge