We are delighted to award funding to six new projects following the first round of Signature Research Theme seed funding applications, following very strong applications from colleagues from across the University.
Migrant Homelessness in Herefordshire
Carin Tunåker, School of Social Policy, Sociology and Social Research
‘This project, led by Dr Carin Tunåker in collaboration with Professor Helen Carr, University of Southampton, will examine current issues in England for people experiencing homelessness in rural locations. Funding from the Migration and Movement theme will allow us to look at a specific area where migrant homelessness is prominent. We will examine a range of factors that cause homelessness, and learn more about the daily lives of people who experience homelessness in the countryside.
Find out more about the project, which builds on the ‘Homelessness in the Countryside: A Hidden Crisis‘ project.
Understanding the social, cultural, and economic barriers to digital access and use among Cameroonian refugees in Nigeria
Chidi Ogbonnaya, Department of Leadership and Management, Kent Business School
‘Our project brings together an interdisciplinary team of United Kingdom and Nigeria-based researchers to better understand the social, cultural, and economic barriers to digital access and use among Nigerian refugees. These refugees were forced to flee their homes due to the ongoing “Anglophone Crisis” and risk missing out on vital digital aid (e.g., mobile money and electronic vouchers) as part of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) ‘Connectivity for Refugees’ initiative. Our research will generate new evidence-based insights to help develop more effective digital connectivity policies for refugee settings’
The impact of gaining Higher Education Academy Fellowship for academics in exile: Perceptions of Syrian Academics
Julia Hope, Centre for the Study of Higher Education
‘This project will gather perceptions of the impact of a United Kingdom academic’s remote support to gain Higher Education Academy (HEA) Fellowship, for Syrian refugee academics who have been forced to migrate to Turkey, but wish to contribute to the future rebuilding of higher education in their home country.’
Musical Migration: Establishing New Paradigms for Intercultural Music-making
Rich Perks, Centre for Music and Audio Technology
‘Intercultural musical collaboration presents many practical, aesthetic and ethical challenges. Not only are there significant differences to navigate between musical practices, systems and performance traditions, but social factors, such as each participant’s perception of their function within the ensemble, play an integral role. As part of an ongoing collaboration between Dr Rich Perks (University of Kent) and Prof. Dr. Tolgahan Çoğulu (Istanbul Technical University), Musical Migration will comprise a pilot case-study, designed specifically to explore the nuanced differences in use, application and transfer of microtonality between and across different music-cultures. This work aims to corroborate utility and practicality in advance of external funding applications to support a second, large-scale interdisciplinary iteration of this project.’
Migration and Movement in Ecology
Daniel Bearup, Eleni Matechou, Eduard Campillo-Funolet and Bruno Santos
‘The study of movement and migration is a major component of work in ecology. We will run a short conference focusing on mathematical and statistical approaches to understanding movement and migration in ecology. As part of this event, we will facilitate opportunities to explore how these approaches can be extended to broader problems within the movement and migration theme.’
Social Work, Activism, Asylum Seekers and Refugees
Bridget Ng’andu, School of Social Policy, Sociology and Social Research
‘This research project is on the experiences of local authority social work practitioners volunteering with Social Workers Without Borders, a Charity supporting asylum seekers, refugees, and those affected borders. It further explores working from a radical social work practice, aimed at changing the negative narrative about asylum seekers and refugees, through collective activism.’