LINCS is not only about languages; it
stands for Languages and INterCultural Studies
and our core
purpose is to create multilingual,
multicultural, global citizens. To achieve this, the “INCS” in LINCS specialises in (inter)cultural studies such as
living cultural heritage, language policy and intercultural communication.
Our Cultural Studies section
manages the cultural studies courses and programmes we deliver. Courses include
Global Heritage, Cross-Cultural perspectives on Society, Intercultural
perspectives on Sustainable Development, as well as the Global Courses (taught in all HWU campuses)
Intercultural Issues in Business and Management (Undergraduate), and Intercultural
Communication in the Workplace (Postgraduate). It also manages our MSc Cultural
Heritages programme family, which includes our MSc
in Tourism and Heritage Management. Cultural Studies staff and
students are also members of our Intercultural Research Centre (IRC).
People
Staff
Katerina
Strani is the Head of the Cultural Studies section. She has a
background in Languages and Political Theory and her PhD thesis (2011) focused
on communicative rationality in the public sphere. Her research is
interdisciplinary and she is interested in how multilingualism and
multiculturalism shape contemporary society and
politics at all levels. Following an EU-funded project on hate speech and
racism (RADAR), Katerina has developed a keen research interest in the
concept of race, particularly race relations and the language of race. She
teaches International Politics, Society and Institutions in Contemporary
Europe, Intercultural Issues in Business and Management and Conference
Interpreting. For a list of publications, please click here; for a list of funded projects, please click here.
Katerina is a Member of the
Political Studies Association, the International Communications Association,
the University Association of Contemporary European Studies and the Chartered
Institute of Linguists. A.Strani@hw.ac.uk Twitter:
@KaterinaStrani
Máiréad
Nic Craith is Professor of European Culture and Heritage and she
previously held a Chair in the School of Social Sciences and Applied Social
Studies at the University of Ulster, as well as honorary professorships in
other institutions in the UK and abroad. She has received many accolades for
her publications, including the Ruth Michaelis-Jena Ratcliff research prize for
folklife (joint winner), which was awarded at the University of Edinburgh in
2004. In 2009 she was elected to the Royal Irish Academy. Máiréad has served on
numerous research evaluation panels in Europe, Canada and Australia. In 2011,
she was invited by the United Nations as an expert on access to heritage as a
human right. In 2013, she was invited by the European Centre on Minority Issues
as an expert on (linguistic) minorities.
Máiréad’s research focuses
on different aspects of living heritage including literary heritage (from the
Great Blasket Island), intercultural heritage (Cork), World Heritage sites
(Skellig Michael), heritage and conflict (Northern Ireland) and heritage and
law in a European context. For a complete
list of Máiréad’s publications, please click here.
M.NicCraith@hw.ac.uk
Twitter: @mairead_nc
Ullrich Kockel
is Professor of Cultural Ecology and Sustainability at HWU, as well as Emeritus
Professor of Ethnology at the University of Ulster and Visiting Professor in
Vytautas Magnus University, Kaunas. He has a diverse academic and professional background,
switching from a career in industrial management (Shell) to academic positions
in Economics, Political Science, Sociology, and later Irish Studies and
Ethnology. In 2003 he was elected to the Academy of Social Sciences and in 2012
he was elected to the Royal Irish Academy.
Ullrich’s overarching research
interest is in sustainable local and regional development, especially the
appraisal, planning and management of heritage and other cultural resources,
approached from an interdisciplinary perspective rooted in anthropology,
cultural ecology and political economy. He has conducted fieldwork and led
projects throughout Europe. He is currently leading a work package in a €2.5m
Horizon2020 project, CoHERE, on cultural forms
and expressions of identity in Europe. For a complete list of Ullrich’s
publications, please click here. U.Kockel@hw.ac.uk Twitter: @KockelU
Kerstin
Pfeiffer is the Director of Undergraduate Teaching Programmes in
LINCS and is a member of several committees at School and University level. She
also represents the School of Social Sciences on Subject Panel B (Design,
Visual Arts, Architecture, Creative Writing, Film, Drama & Theatre
Studies, Cultural Policy (Policy, Arts Management & Creative Industries),
Music, Television Studies) of the Scottish Graduate School for the Arts and
Humanities. She teaches courses in German language, history and
culture at UG and PG level.
Kerstin’s research interests lie
in the area of theatre and performance studies and particularly in the
investigation of the afterlives of older dramatic forms and the role of drama
in shaping, maintaining and challenging notions of identity and community. She
has published on these topics and presented her research at many international
conferences.
For a list of Kerstin’s
publications, please click here.
K.Pfeiffer@hw.ac.uk
Twitter: @DrKPfeiffer
Cristina Clopot is Research Associate at the IRC, contributing to the Horizon2020 project, CoHERE: Critical Heritages: Performing and Representing Identities in Europe. Cristina’s work explores the intersection of heritage studies, folklore and anthropology, with a particular interest for themes such as: intangible heritage, festivals, tradition, rituals, ethnic and religious heritage. In 2014, she received the Estella Cranziani Post-Graduate Bursary for Research. Cristina is a member of the board and newsletter coordinator of the Intangible Cultural Heritage network of the Association of Critical Heritage Studies and a founding member of its new Early Career Researchers’ network. She also acts as Associate Editor (Social Media) for the Anthropological Journal of European Cultures. For a list of Cristina’s publications, please click here. C.Clopot@hw.ac.uk Twitter: @cris_clopot
Claudia V.
Angelelli is Professor and Chair in Multilingualism and
Communication. She is also Professor Emerita at San Diego State
University and Visiting Professor at Beijing University of Foreign Studies. Her
research sits at the intersection of sociolinguistics, applied linguistics and
translation and interpreting studies. She designed the first empirically-driven
language proficiency and interpreter readiness tests for The California
Endowment and Hablamos Juntos (Robert Wood Johnson Foundation). She has been PI
in research projects in Argentina, Australia, the European Union, and the
United States. She has also led ISO 13611: Standards on Community
Interpreting and co-authored The California Standards for Health Care
Interpreters. Ethical Principles, Protocols, and Guidance on Interpreter Roles
and Interventions. She teaches Intercultural Communication in the Workplace and
Translation and Interpreting Studies. For a full list of publications, please
click here.
C.Angelelli@hw.ac.uk
John Clearyis Associate Professor and Director of
Studies for Exchange Programmes. With a background in Applied Linguistics,
English and TESOL, John teaches British Culture & Society, Film Studies,
Introduction to Languages and Intercultural Studies, and Society and
Institutions in Contemporary Europe. He has coordinated many projects on
internationalisation, pedagogy and intercultural communication in Europe,
Turkmenistan and South-East Asia. For a list of John’s publications, please
click here. J.A.Cleary@hw.ac.uk
PhD students
Chiara Cocco – Cc80@hw.ac.uk
Thesis topic: Festivals and folklore through the lens of
affect and emotions: the case study of Sant’Efisio in Sardinia, supervised
by Máiréad
Nic Craithand Kerstin
Pfeiffer
Chiara’s research explores the
relationship between cultural heritage performance and collective identity
construction. Drawing upon previous studies and theories which analysed
national and cultural identity construction in sites of heritage and memory
(Knudsen, 2011; Arnold-de Simine, 2013; Wight, 2016), in this research the
focus shifts from museums to ceremonies. The thesis suggests that dynamic
heritage avenues, such as folklore and festivals, could be also considered
“places” of identity construction. It also explores the dynamics of identity
construction and representation in festivals, through the lens of emotion and
affect (Smith, 2006). For this purpose,
the research adopts the Festival of Sant’Efisio in Sardinia as its case study,
mainly because of its popularity among Sardinian population and visitors, and
its longevity (it has been celebrated in the island every year since 1656).
Moreover, as a Sardinian woman who has been living in Scotland for over five
years, Chiara considers this festival as part of her cultural heritage and
Sardinian belonging. Her research is, therefore, also a means through which she
can keep connected to her original home despite the physical distance. Twitter:
@ChiaraCocco88
Jos Collins – jc120@hw.ac.uk
Thesis topic: Living
Tradition and Cultural Revival: Scottish Folk Drama in the 21st Century,
supervised by Kerstin
Pfeiffer, Gary West, Neill
Martin and Donald Smith.
Jos’s research project results
from a partnership between the IRC, Celtic and Scottish Studies (University of
Edinburgh) and Traditional Arts and Culture Scotland (TRACS, Scottish
Storytelling Centre). It examines the reasons behind the resurgence of interest
in this old art form and folk custom and its cultural implications. It seeks to
investigate the motivations for participants and what these can tell us about
modern attitudes to concepts like tradition and authenticity. The main aim of
the project is to explore the place of revived folk drama in contemporary
Scottish society through the following objectives: to produce a survey of
Scottish folk drama activities today; to examine community-led performances and
related activities ethnographically; to evaluate the motivations and
aspirations of participants and organisers and to assess their contribution to
aspects of local identity, ideas of tradition, and community dynamics; to
investigate how folk drama as a living practice contributes to developing
conceptualisations of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Scotland; and to
contribute to the newly emerging ‘Creative Ethnology’ movement led by the three
institutions involved.
Naomi Harvey – neh1@hw.ac.uk
Thesis topic: Collecting and preserving access to
Intangible Cultural Heritage within the digital environment: Evaluating New
Models for Scotland, supervised by Máiréad
Nic Craith and Ullrich Kockel.
Co-supervision from heritage specialists is provided by Alistair Bell, Sound
Curator, National Library of Scotland and Scotland’s Sounds Project Manager,
and Dr Hugh Hagan, National Records of Scotland, whose expertise includes oral
history and community heritage.
This research is funded by the
AHRC through the Scottish Cultural Heritage Consortium Scholarship, 2016-19. It
critically examines issues surrounding digital preservation and access to ICH
in Scotland, through the case study of Scotland’s Sounds. The project will
examine how Scotland’s Sounds can ensure the sustainability of ICH sound
collections, encompassing issues of: (1) collecting sound in a digital
environment (2) digital access and preservation of sound material; (3)
sustainable relationships between creators, community organisations and public
institutions. The aim is to provide a theoretically informed critical analysis
of the opportunities and challenges that advances in digital technology present
for heritage organisations seeking to enhance the value, profile and
understanding of ICH. Twitter: @ArchiveGnome
Alastair Mackie – am279@hw.ac.uk
Thesis topic: ‘Becoming a smaller part of a larger whole:
changing perceptions of European identity in the Scottish independence
movement’, supervised by Katerina
Strani and Ullrich Kockel.
This thesis explores how the
perception and understanding of European identity has changed in Scotland since
2014. Is the adaptation of European identity for the purposes of supporting
independence merely a poltiical, strategic use of collective identity, or has
the debate on EU membership resulted in a wider transformation of the role of
Europe in identity formation in Scotland? By means of ethnographic fieldwork,
this project aims form a better understanding of the function of Europe within
the identity formation of people in Scotland since the Brexit referendum. The thesis
aims to link the ethnological study of European identity to concepts of
vulnerability and shelter from small state studies. If Scotland were to become
an independent state it would be considered a small state in Europe. Due to
their size, small states have less resources than larger states, making them
more vulnerable to their external environment. Small states may seek ‘shelter’
with larger states or international organisations to counteract their
vulnerability. The thesis will ask how perceived vulnerability influences the
formation of European identity and whether European identity offers a form of
shelter by being conceptualised as a support for Scottish independence. Twitter: @asbmackie
Catherine McCullagh –
cjm5@hw.ac.uk
Thesis
topic: ‘Curating Heritage for
Sustainable Communities in Highly Vulnerable Environments: The Case of Scotland’s
Northern Isles’, supervised by Ullrich Kockel,
Donna
Heddle and Ian
Tait.
Catherine
is undertaking practice-based research with people in the archipelagos of
Orkney and Shetland. Her research is funded through an SGSAH ARC Studentship. The research practice is a project to co-curate
a virtual museum of the Northern Isles, and
is funded by Museums Galleries Scotland, the Hugh Fraser Foundation and
Shetland Museum and Archives. Catherine’s interests include creative ethnology;
exploring the radical politics of co-curation as a mode for communities
mobilising shared authority and cultural democracy towards more socially just
and sustainable futures; collaborative deliberation of value formation and
social learning for sustainable development; identity-work; and developing new
ways of knowing and working through praxis. For more information on Catherine’s
background and research, click here. Twitter: @kittyjmac
Michael Richardson – mr38@hw.ac.uk
Thesis topic: Deaf people’s participation in theatre, supervised by Kerstin
Pfeiffer and Svenja Wurm
Michael does research in Deaf
people and the Performing Arts. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in medicine, but
has also spent much of his career as a theatre practitioner, making a
particular contribution to youth theatre. His book Youth
Theatre, Drama for Life (Routledge) was published in 2015. His PhD
thesis is exploring the participation of Deaf people in theatre. He has
presented papers drawing on his research in conferences in events in Scotland,
Ireland and France. For a list of Michael’s publications, please click here.
Twitter: @mr38_richardson
Marc Romano – mhr7@hw.ac.uk
Thesis topic: Brexit
and Heritage Futures in Scotland: The Auld Alliance – Establishing a
Counter-Heritage, supervised by Katerina
Strani andMáiréad
Nic Craith
As one of the longest
relationship in the history, the Auld Alliance challenges the recent Brexit
discourse, which seeks to establish a new geography outside of Europe. In its
pursuit of a separatist utopia free from bonds of European policy, Brexit
offers a fictionalised geography that denies Scotland’s seven centuries of
European cultural belonging. Marc’s PhD research is an exploration of the Auld
Alliance as a re-reading of Scotland’s heritage discourse with a view to
establishing a counter-heritage (to that which lies in the wings post-Brexit),
one that establishes an identity that cannot readily disentangle itself from
European culture. In a country where almost 20% of its population are in fact
from foreign origin and in which 5% of the total population came from European
Union, such political discourse endangers its multicultural stability. Perhaps
it is reflection of why Scotland voted to remain at 63%.
Ozge Yalinay – oy30@hw.ac.uk
Thesis topic: Interpreting Istanbul Grand Bazaar as a traditional marketplace:
contemporary cultural discourse, supervised by Babak
Taheri and Máiréad
Nic Craith
This research is intrigued by work of cultural discourse scholars, including Foucault, Said and Bakhtin, whose theory of cultural consumption space provides with the conceptual vocabularies such as ‘orientalism’ and the ‘third space’. These spaces are unusual, anti-structured and exceptional. Framed within such notions, the material and imaginary landscape of Istanbul Bazaar offers such venue for cultural consumption experience in non-Western context. The primary aim of this study is to bring together contemporary cultural discourse in a traditional marketplace, with particular focus on the Istanbul Bazaar, testing the usefulness of such theory as an interpretive framework in a specific exceptional space in non-Western context. More specifically, this study aims to offer insight into an understanding of Western consumers’ journey and experience, examining the dynamic process that flows from pre-visit to post-visit. The mixed-method approach is used to collect data from both visitors and locals in order to answer the aim of this study. The qualitative approach is applied using observation, netnography and interviews, while the quantitative approach is applied using questionnaires. For a list of Ozge’s publications, please click here.
By Katerina Strani
