University of Kent, 11th-12th July 2019
We are delighted to announce that CHASE Encounters is returning to University of Kent this summer on July 11th and 12th.
Encounters is the chance for CHASE-funded doctoral researchers to meet up to share experiences and ideas. This programme offers opportunities to expand your perspectives, explore new skills, and learn more about how CHASE can support your research.
Encounters is generously supported by the Arts and Humanities Research Council and CHASE member institutions.
Please note, you will be able to sign up to workshops and activities on the day.
We are offering overnight accommodation on the night of the 11th July, but please contact us (enquiries@chase.ac.uk) if you have additional accommodation requirements.
If you cannot attend Encounters July 2019, please click “Register” on the Eventbrite page and fill out a short form to explain why you cannot attend.
PhrienDs
The PhrienDs system is designed to create connections that cross both geographical and disciplinary boundaries, to create meaningful networks and friendships that alleviate the pressure of formal networking, and enrich the intellectual activities/conversations within the consortium.
PhrienDs will be paired up and put in touch prior to the conference. We will also operate a special PhrienDs registration desk that can serve as a convenient meeting point for you at the start of the conference.
A list of the delegates in attendance can be found here: Encounters July 2019 Delegate List
[bg_collapse view=”button-green” color=”#4a4949″ expand_text=”Programme” collapse_text=”Show Less” ]
Thursday 11th July
10.00-10.30: Registration and refreshments — Sibson foyer
10.30-11.00: Welcome and announcements — Lecture theatre 1, Sibson building
Prof. Paul Allain (Dean of the Graduate School, University of Kent)
Dr Denise deCaires Narain (CHASE Director)
Dr Emily Bartlett (University of Kent / CHASE alumna)
11.00-12.30: Student presentations – Lecture theatre 1, Sibson building
Olivia Arigho-Stiles (University of Essex): Towards a Politics of Landscape in the Bolivian Andes
Giacomo Damiani (University of Kent): The philosophical-mathematical paradigm of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries Italy, focusing on three works by Luca Pacioli’
Jacob Rollinson (University of East Anglia): Herbert A. Giles and Xu Yuanchong
Chair: Dr Denise deCaires Narain (CHASE Director)
Followed by student announcements
12.30-13.30: Networking lunch — Sibson foyer
13.30-17.15: Cohort building activities. Choose from:
Visit to Canterbury Cathedral — Offsite
Visit to Eastbridge Hospital — Offsite
Visit to the Beaney Museum — Offsite
Visit to British Cartoon Archive — Templeman library, University of Kent
A sense of place — Drawing workshop with Frances Stanfield – University of Kent campus
Guided tour of Canterbury — Offsite
Punting on River Stour — Offsite
Open access escape room with the Office for Scholarly Communications at University of Kent — Seminar room 6, Sibson building
17.15-18.30: Free time/travel back to campus/check into accommodation
18.30 onwards: BBQ and drinks reception – Keynes college (K-Bar and K-Bar courtyard), University of Kent
Friday 12th July
09.00-09.30: Registration and refreshments — Sibson foyer
09.30-11.00: Student presentations — Lecture theatre 1, Sibson building
Jack Manzi (University of East Anglia): Thinking At One’s Own Pace: Socrates and the Importance of Leisure in Academic Research
Effie Makepeace (University of Sussex): Designing a Collaborative Research Process: Considerations and Possibilities
Emily Walker (University of East Anglia): Final Draft and the TV Archive
Chair: Prof. Paul Allain (Dean of the Graduate School, University of Kent)
Followed by student announcements
11.00-11.30: Break and refreshments — Sibson foyer
11.30-13.00: Professional development workshops. Choose from:
Researching distressing topics — Seminar room 2, Sibson building
Reading for speed and retention — Seminar room 6, Sibson building
Turbo charge your writing with Scrivener with Catherine Pope — Computer room 1, Sibson building
Creative networking with Scriptor Cube — Lecture theatre 2, Sibson building
An introduction to The Brilliant Club and presenting your research to non-expert audiences — Lecture theatre 1, Sibson building
The funding landscape and the essentials of a good application with Phil Ward (University of Kent) — Lecture theatre 3, Sibson building
Decolonising the curriculum: Action within and action without the institution — Seminar room 4, Sibson building
CHASE Feminist Network meeting — Seminar room 3, Sibson building
Quiet room — Seminar room 5, Sibson building
13.00-14.00: Networking lunch — Sibson foyer
14.00-15.30: Professional development workshops. Choose from:
Chi Kung with Prof. Paul Allain (Dean of the University of Kent Graduate School) — outdoors/Jarman studio 1, University of Kent
Diversity in body and mind — Seminar room 4, Sibson building
Emotional wellbeing with Self Space — Seminar room 6, Sibson building
How to shut up and write with Catherine Pope — Seminar room 2, Sibson building
How to tame your supervisor with Dr Julie Anderson and Dr Emily Bartlett — Lecture theatre 1, Sibson building
The art of mindfulness with Frances Stanfield — outside, University of Kent grounds
Brief Encounters — Seminar room 3, Sibson building
Mindfulness walk with Mind It — outside, University of Kent grounds
Pets as Therapy — tbc
Quiet room — Seminar room 5, Sibson building
Computer room available as a workspace — Computer room 1, Sibson building
15.30-16.30: Keynote ‘Decolonise! The life and times of an idea’ – Dr Priyamvada Gopal (University of Cambridge) — Lecture theatre 1, Sibson building
Dr Priyamvada Gopal is author of Literary Radicalism in India (2005), The Indian English Novel: Nation, History and Narration (2009) and Insurgent Empire (2019) and Reader in Anglophone and Related Literatures, Faculty of English, University of Cambridge and Fellow, Churchill College.
16.30-16.45: Closing remarks
Dr Denise deCaires Narain (CHASE Director)
Prof. Gordana Fontana Giusti (CHASE Academic Lead for University of Kent)
Please note: timings and sessions subject to change.
[/bg_collapse]
[bg_collapse view=”button-green” color=”#4a4949″ expand_text=”Breakout Session Day 1″ collapse_text=”Show Less” ]
Guide to Breakout Sessions
Day one
Cohort Building Activities (13.30 to 17.15)
Visit to Canterbury Cathedral (14.30-16.30)
To participate in this session, please report to meeting point A promptly for 13.30.
This session at Canterbury Cathedral will include a visit to the Archives and Library, which holds highly important written collections dating from Anglo-Saxon to modern times. The medieval archive of the Cathedral is inscribed on the UNESCO UK Memory of the World register; the Library collection has particular strengths in the subject areas of religion, travel, natural history and early modern literature. As part of The Canterbury Journey Graffiti Research Project, a group of trained volunteers have been identifying and recording some of the Cathedral’s extraordinary historic graffiti. Delegates will also be able to discover this lost art with our volunteers and learn more about these marks and the people who made them.
Please note: This session is taking place offsite and will require a short coach journey (or walk) to Canterbury city centre. There is wheelchair access to the Archives building and to the Library building, although we cannot accommodate larger motorised wheelchairs in the Library because of the historic nature of the buildings. One part of the cathedral (Trinity Chapel) is inaccessible for wheelchairs because of medieval steps.
Visit to Eastbridge Hospital (14.30-16.45)
To participate in this session, please report to meeting point B promptly for 13.30.
This workshop takes you back to medieval Canterbury, and what it would have been like for many pilgrims who visited the city. Whilst paying homage to Saint Thomas the Martyr, Eastbridge Hospital became a haven for weary travellers. This session aims to give an insight into this unique building, by looking at those who built, lived and visited here. Surveying graffiti and medieval wall paintings, you will come to understand how those who came to medieval Canterbury left their mark, and why.
Please note: Space on this workshop is limited to 15 people. This session is taking place offsite and will require a short coach journey (or walk) to Canterbury city centre. Unfortunately, due to the age of the building, Eastbridge Hospital contains three flights of stairs and no lift, and may not be suitable for attendees with mobility issues.
Visit to the Beaney Museum (14.30-16.45)
(Beany Highlights Tour 14.30-15.30; Access to Galleries 15.30-16.45)
To participate in this session, please report to meeting point C promptly for 13.30.
The Beaney House of Art & Knowledge is a museum and art gallery in the heart of historic Canterbury. The building takes its name from, Dr James George Beaney, a Canterbury-born man of modest background who studied medicine before emigrating to Australia, where he found his success. Upon his death in 1891, Dr Beaney left money in his will to the city of Canterbury and his patronage was fundamental in building the Beaney Institute: a new home for the Canterbury Royal Museum and Free Library, now known as The Beaney House of Art & Knowledge. The museum tour will highlight important items from the collection; paintings, sculptures and artefacts, including archaeological finds from Canterbury and Kent as well as collections brought back from travels across Asia, Africa, India and South America by some of Kent’s great explorers.
Please note: This session is taking place offsite and will require a short coach journey (or walk) to Canterbury city centre.
Visit to the British Cartoon Archive (15.00-16.30)
To participate in this session, please report to meeting point D promptly for 13.30.
The University of Kent holds over 600 historical collections in its library, with one of the most well-known being the internationally renowned British Cartoon Archive. This workshop will introduce you to the British Cartoon Archive, how it was established and the various ways it is used today. You’ll get to view some of the collection’s most significant artwork and go on a tour of the areas where the archive is stored while staff discuss the importance of the material and its role within the University’s Special Collections & Archives department. Please note that space on this workshop is limited to 20 people.
Please note: there are no hearing loops available in the British Cartoon Archive.
A Sense of Place — Drawing Workshop with Frances Stanfield (14.30-17.00)
To participate in this session, please report to meeting point E promptly for 13.30.
Aside from achieving a sense of freedom whilst drawing, capturing what a place feels and looks like can be extremely satisfying. Drawing a scene from observation that is vast in scale and has immeasurable detail can be daunting – it’s hard to know where to start. Frances will be teaching practical drawing techniques that inspire confidence and tackle hindering thoughts that often creep up on us when making any kind of drawing, but particularly when drawing from life.
Punting on the River Stour (14.30-16.00)
To participate in this session, please report to meeting point F promptly for 13.30.
The premier way to see Canterbury, from the comfort of a classic hand built punt on our historic river Stour. Take a guided-tour through the heart of Canterbury and benefit from the beautiful views and history from within the comfort of a hand-made punt! Each tour runs through the heart of the historic city centre along a route not accessible by foot and your chauffeur will give you a historic commentary along the way.
Please note: This session will take place offsite and will require a short coach journey (or walk) to Canterbury City Centre. The boats are reached via a flight of steps with a handrail, there will be staff on hand to help people in and out of the boats.
Guided tour of Canterbury (14.30-16.00)
To participate in this session, please report to meeting point G promptly for 13.30.
Canterbury Guided Tours provide entertaining 90 minute trips around the historic city of Canterbury. The professional Green Badge Guides take you on a journey through the medieval lanes, Cathedral Precincts and remarkable King’s School. Taking in plenty of Canterbury’s charming character whilst regaling you with tales of murder and the famous historical figures who have lived or visit Canterbury in the past. The perfect introduction into Canterbury’s heritage to the vibrant, culture rich city that stands today.
Please note: This session is taking place offsite and will require a short coach journey (or walk) to Canterbury city centre. This tour will contain a considerable amount of walking and my not be suitable for students with mobility issues.
Open access escape room with the Office for Scholarly Communications at University of Kent (Session one 14.30-15.30; Session two 15.40-16.40)
To participate in this session, please report to seminar room 6 promptly for 13.30.
A villain has locked away all research, help us unlock it again! In this interactive escape room you’ll solve a range of puzzles to defeat a villain and make all research open again. In line with other escape rooms, you will have 60 minutes to solve the puzzles and complete the game. Team work will be essential to solving the puzzles! The Escape Room is open access themed, but you do not need any prior knowledge to be able to play the game. In addition, having previous knowledge will not give you any advantage.
Please Note: The escape room will run twice within the session, from 14.30-15.30 and from 15.40-16.40. Spaces for each session are limited to 10 people. As this is only a one hour commitment, you will have plenty of free time!
[/bg_collapse]
[bg_collapse view=”button-green” color=”#4a4949″ expand_text=”Breakout Sessions Day 2″ collapse_text=”Show Less” ]
Guide to breakout sessions
Day two
Professional development workshops (11.30 to 13.00)
Researching distressing topics (seminar room 2, Sibson building)
The idea that the researcher should be impartial, distant and objective still has some force in the humanities. However, adopting such a position in practice can be difficult. This panel brings together PhD candidates from across the Consortium to informally discuss their experiences of researching distressing subjects. It will bring together three CHASE student panellists to outline their research and how it can be distressing before initiating an open forum for the audience to ask questions on broad, interdisciplinary and practically focused solutions on how the researcher can overcome these obstacles.
Reading for speed and retention (seminar room 6, Sibson building)
This programme has been written to help you to develop your reading and retention skills, which means that you will be able to:
• Analyse your present way of reading
• Recognise and minimise any poor reading habits you may have developed
• Learn some new reading techniques
• Adapt your reading style to different documents.
By the end of the session, many delegates report an increased reading speed of up to 100%, without losing any depth or detail. Using some of the approaches we discuss, retention levels are vastly improved too.
Please note: All attendees should bring a pen and paper to the workshop.
Turbo charge your writing with Scrivener with Catherine Pope (computer room 1, Sibson building)
Scrivener is a powerful programme designed specifically for writers. It’s much more than a word processor, offering a sophisticated environment to manage all aspects of your writing project. You can keep your drafts, research notes, outlines, and synopses all in one place, and then organise your workspace to display exactly what you need. By the end of the session, you’ll have a clear sense of what Scrivener can do for you and what’s involved in getting started with the software.
Creative networking with Scriptor Cube (lecture theatre 2, Sibson building)
This 90 minute workshop for doctoral students focuses on creative approaches to enhancing multi-disciplinary thinking; how to harness new research ideas through multi-disciplinary engagement & creating opportunities by developing a multi-disciplinary academic networking seminar which includes national and international participation.
An introduction to The Brilliant Club and presenting your research to non-expert audiences (lecture theatre 1, Sibson building)
The Brilliant Club is an award-winning charity that exists to increase the number of pupils from under-represented backgrounds progressing to highly-selective universities. They do this by mobilising the PhD community to share its academic expertise with non-selective state schools through The Scholars Programme. As Scholars Programme tutors, researchers support local pupils from underrepresented backgrounds to access university, get expert training and real experience to develop their teaching skills, and earn £500 per placement (plus travel expenses). In this session, participants will hear from current CHASE-funded Scholars Programme tutors about their experiences and professional development on the programme, and have the opportunity to participate in a workshop to build their skills in communicating their research to non-expert audiences.
The funding landscape and the essentials of a good application with Phil Ward (University of Kent) (lecture theatre 3, Sibson building)
The research funding landscape can be confusing, with a bewildering diversity of funders and schemes, all with contrasting policies and procedures. This session aims to make sense of it all. Phil Ward, Deputy Director of Research Services at the University of Kent, will give an overview of the different types of funders out there, their objectives, the success rates of their schemes and what to watch out for with them. He will then move on to look at the five essential elements of a good funding application, which he’s gleaned from 20 years working on both sides of the funding fence: first, as a Senior Awards Officer at the AHRC, and then leading the Research Development Team at Kent.
Please note: This workshop will be most suitable for final year students who are considering their next career steps. All students are, however, very welcome.
Decolonising the curriculum: Action within and action without the institution (seminar room 4, Sibson building)
Since 2015 Decolonising the Curriculum has experienced a powerful groundswell across many institutions. But how do we convert this interest into action? And what do we do when institutions obstruct or limit our ability to effect change? This workshop will look at successful decolonisation action in universities and develop ways of thinking about and organising action both within and without our own institutions.
CHASE Feminist Network meeting (seminar room 3, Sibson building)
The CHASE Feminist Network is working to provide spaces of resistance in what continues to be a patriarchal higher education sector, with ongoing and intersectional discrimination happening at all levels. We are aiming to create links with inspirational people inside and outside of CHASE that are challenging this environment and ensure we have space for discussion, and networks that provide both professional and personal support. The network places a strong emphasis on the importance of considering intersectionality and interdisciplinarity, as well as valuing the personal, political and creative, alongside and as integral to the academic. We would like to invite you to our discussion event at Encounters, where we will bring together people interested in getting involved in the network. This will be a great opportunity to meet others from the CHASE network and share your ideas and experiences. The network is trans-inclusive and welcomes people regardless of gender identity who support the aims of the network. There will be opportunities for women only spaces (for those that identify as women as all or part of their gender identity) at future events.
Chi Kung with Prof. Paul Allain (Dean of the University of Kent Graduate School) (outdoors, Jarman 1)
To participate in this session, please report to meeting point A promptly for 13.50.
Chi Kung is a sequence of exercises that promotes wellbeing. Simple movements encourage the circulation of energy in the body by releasing blockages in the joints. It also allows the participants to focus on breathing, leading to a heightened, concentrated and calm state. Chi Kung is suitable for everyone, irrespective of any previous experience in bodywork: Paul Allain is Dean of the Graduate School and Professor of Theatre and Performance at Kent. He has used Chi Kung in his own professional actor training practice as well as with students.
Please Note: Participants should bring loose clothes (not jeans) and water to drink.
Diversity in body and mind (seminar room 4, Sibson building)
The Diversity (in Body and Mind) group was created in November 2018 to offer an alternative space for CHASE students and academics. The group, proposed as a creative hub, to reach out to – but is not limited to – those with physical and mental diversity, including mental health issues. All are welcome. It is the aim of this session to establish the purpose of the group going forward, facilitate links to other networks, and to offer a space that is an open and inclusive feature of CHASE Encounters.
Emotional wellbeing with Self Space (seminar room 6, Sibson building)
This workshop with Self Space will provide an opportunity for participants to pause, connect and reflect on feelings and emotional wellbeing. We will spend time thinking about and discussing how we manage stress, identify burnout, stay nourished, and take care of ourselves. There will be a focus on personal process and self reflection. Expect an open, supportive and informal environment.
How to shut up and write with Catherine Pope (seminar room 2, Sibson building)
Are you struggling to make progress with your academic writing? Does your thesis keep ending up at the bottom of your to-do list? Do you find yourself easily distracted? If so, this session can help you get back on track. Through group discussion and exercises, we’ll cover: Identifying and protesting your writing time; Minimising distractions and improving focus; Silencing your inner critic and making progress; Monitoring and motivating yourself; Developing your own writing process.
How to tame your supervisor with Dr Julie Anderson and Dr Emily Bartlett (lecture theatre 1, Sibson building)
Supervisory relationships are an integral aspect of completing a PhD. Whilst the supervisor-postgraduate relationship is often rewarding, like any relationship, challenges arise from time to time: students may disagree with their supervisors’ opinions, or struggle to communicate their needs to their supervisory team. This session provides a supportive space where PhD candidates can discuss their concerns, and learn how to address these in a constructive manner. By the end of the session attendees will: feel more confident communicating their questions, comments and concerns to their supervisors; understand the basics of ‘managing upward’, and receive feedback on concerns specific to their PhD and supervisory relationship.
The art of mindfulness with Frances Stanfield (outdoors)
To participate in this session, please report to meeting point B promptly for 13.45.
The act of drawing is a mindful activity in itself and can have many benefits to our health and well-being. It naturally helps concentrate and centre our mind especially when we approach drawing as a process free from expectation. Frances Stanfield from London Drawing Group will be guiding you through a number of drawing exercises that help bring awareness to your body, breath and thoughts. These will be mindful drawing techniques that you can take away with you and practice in your own time.
Brief Encounters (seminar room 3, Sibson building)
Join the Brief Encounters Editorial Board to find out more about the journal and its aims. The session will provide you with an overview of the journal, the various roles on the Editorial Board, and the types of submissions that the journal welcomes. The session will be valuable to anyone thinking of publishing in the journal or joining the Editorial Board in future.
Mindfulness walk with Mind It (outdoors)
To participate in this session, please report to meeting point C promptly for 13.45.
Join us for a mindful walk across campus! Discover a new way of walking mindfully and the wisdom of the sights and sounds around you. Get ready to see things you have never seen before while walking down the same path. On this one-hour guided walk, you will experience Mindfulness in different places and while walking. The short exercises we do awaken the Heart (emotional energy), Mind (mental energy), Body (physical energy) and Soul (creative energy). You will begin to let go of being busy Doing and discover instead a new way of Being, just by walking and being in the moment.
Please note: This session will include some walking and may not be suitable for students with mobility issues.
Pets as Therapy (outdoors/gazebo)
To participate in this session, please report to meeting point D promptly for 13.45.
Since it was established in 1983, Pets As Therapy has been at the forefront of community based Animal Assisted Therapy across the length and breadth of the UK. Today, Pets As Therapy is the largest organisation of its kind in Europe enhancing thousands of lives every single day. Join some of our friendly therapy dogs and their handlers to decompress from the stresses of academic life and learn about the benefits of Animal Assisted Therapy.
Please note: This session will involve close contact with dogs. Participants should be considerate about the needs of the animals and follow instructions from handlers at all times.
[/bg_collapse]
