Staff Spotlight: Kawtar Najib
The GDSL are thriled to announce a number of new staff members. To provide you with an understanding of their background, expertise and their experiences in their new roles, we will be introducing two new staff members each week.
We are thrilled to introduce Geographic Data Science Lecturer Dr. Kawtar Najib! Here is what they had to say.
Did you always intend to go into academia? If not, what made you pursue a career in this field?
I always wanted to work in academia even though it was not an accessible institution for me. Coming from a disadvantaged background where residents mainly from postcolonial immigration do not access higher education, I knew that my trajectory would not be the most common. But I discovered geography in the first year of my university studies, and I never abandoned it. My research interests have an obvious link with the desire to reach greater equality and justice in our contemporary societies, and I am happy to be able to convey this to my students who may also come from diverse background. The world we live in highlights significant structural inequalities (such as sexism, racism, Islamophobia, sizeism, disability…) that it is important to face and combat in all spaces and sometimes even within academia. Therefore, I did not choose such a research topic to develop an important academic career but rather to make an impact on our real-world problems. All inequalities based on personal characteristics are unacceptable, and that is why I study these systems of domination and oppression with both quantitative and qualitative data in order not only to better understand their functioning but also to try to find lasting solutions. I do not see myself doing any other job because the real purpose of my work (and my life) can be found in the title of my position as Lecturer in Human Geography, Social & Spatial Inequalities.
Where is your favourite place to eat on campus?
I like to eat in the staff common room in the Roxby building. The view is wonderful and you can meet colleagues with whom you do not really work and with whom you do not really have the opportunity to talk to. Even though I do not go there as often as I would like, it is still my favourite place to eat on campus. We can bring our lunch already prepared or go buy a takeaway meal from the local restaurants near the building and then join our colleague in the top floor. Very often, we can spend a pleasant time there and even share our meals. There will always be fruits, cakes or other food that colleagues bring for everyone. It is very pleasant and this helps improve connections between colleagues in a collegial atmosphere.