Hosted by Abi O’Connor, and co-produced by Ronnie Hughes, both PhD students in Sociology, these podcasts explore the work being carried out by PhD researchers during the COVID19 pandemic.
This second series broadly focuses on ‘Doing a PhD during the global pandemic’. We are talking to students about how they’re adapting their research to the current climate - including discussions about changes to research methods, writing during lockdown and life beyond the PhD.
Our is that the upcoming series will be part of helping to bridge the current gap left by a continuing limited access to our physical universities, in developing conversations with current students at various stages of their research.
Series One: Emerging from Covid-19 stronger
This first series highlights how many in the PhD community are carrying out research that will help respond to and inform policies being rolled out across the City Region to mitigate the consequences of the pandemic.
Listen to Series One: Emerging from Covid-19 stronger here
Series two: episode one with Emily McIndoe
From El Salvador to Skype, shifts in research methods during COVID19
In this episode Emily McIndoe, PhD student in History, joins Abi and Ronnie to talk about how travel restrictions have impacted her research. Emily’s research explores British aid to El Salvador between 1970-2009, which was originally being conducted through a combination of archival research and oral history interviews in both Britain and El Salvador.
Emily discusses the changes she’s made in recent months, having started fieldwork in October 2019 before everything moved online. Emily tells us about both the benefits and difficulties which have arisen from this, before going on to discuss the uses of snowball sampling in the context of her research and experiences of finding alternative sources of data, from unexpected places.
You can get in touch with Emily via Twitter @mcindoeee or via email hsemcind@student.liverpool.ac.uk
The History Work In Progress seminar series (discussed in the episode) meets regularly throughout the semester and is an opportunity to present papers, problems and ideas in a friendly informal environment and receive feedback from fellow PGRs. The next meeting is Wednesday 2nd December (2.30 - 3pm), email emily.warrilow@liverpool.ac.uk for information on how to get involved - all welcome!
You can get in touch with Abi via Twitter: @abioconnor_ or email: aoconnor@liverpool.ac.uk & Ronnie @asenseofplace1 or R.D.Hughes@liv.ac.uk
Series two: episode two with Cameron Byron
The (im)material politics of death in the context of COVID19
Abi and Ronnie are joined by Cameron Byron, a PhD student in the Geography and Planning Department at the University of Liverpool. Cameron’s research explores the historical and political geographies of Wirral cemeteries. His work is looking to identify how (im)material and volumetric practices of territory are mobilising deathscapes.
Cameron discusses his research in relation to the COVID19 pandemic, both in terms of how COVID19 related deaths may have an influence on the politics of the (dead) body specifically within urban spaces, but also in relation to how lockdown has altered his research methods.
You can get in touch with Cameron via Twitter @ccameronbyron or via email C.Byron@liverpool.ac.uk
Get in touch with us if you'd like to be involved with the podcast! Contact Abi via Twitter: @abioconnor_ or email: aoconnor@liverpool.ac.uk & Ronnie @asenseofplace1 or R.D.Hughes@liv.ac.uk
Series two: episode three with Emily Kearon-Warrilow
Moving from doing research in Bombay’s High Court Archives to working online & reshaping the PhD
Emily Kearon-Warrilow, a History & Law PhD student and Graduate Teaching Fellow, joins us to discuss the changes she’s made to her research as a result of the travel restrictions imposed since March 2020. Emily’s work explores the legal history of colonial India, examining sexual crimes involving children. Initially, her methods involved travelling to Bombay High Court’s extensive yet under-utilised archives, to uncover unpublished records, but COVID19’s impact on global travel meant her research and methods had to change.
In this episode we discuss how Emily has navigated these unforeseen circumstances, including some fundamental shifts she has made to her research questions/aims and some barriers she is facing due to the current political debate regarding academic freedom in India. We go on to chat about the highs and lows of working (and writing!) from home, being isolated from colleagues and the move to online teaching. Before asking Emily what her advice would be to new and current PhD students.
You can get in touch with Emily via Twitter @WarrilowEmily
Contact us if you'd like to be involved with the podcast! Reach Abi via Twitter: @abioconnor_ or email: aoconnor@liverpool.ac.uk & Ronnie @asenseofplace1 or R.D.Hughes@liv.ac.uk
Series two: episode four with Gavin Daly
Exploring the role of planners as political subjects in cities
Gavin Daly, a PhD student at the Heseltine Institute, joins Abi & Ronnie in today’s episode. Gavin currently works as a Senior Project Expert at the European Spatial Planning Observatory Network. His research explores the role that alternative planning discourses can have in the context of global environmental challenges, seeking to identify the place that grass-roots community movements can play in institutional change.
In the episode we discuss how he came to be involved in this research, the influence that his previous career in planning has on his work, and how the crises of the last decade (including the financial crash of 2008/9, austerity and the COVID19 pandemic) make visible some of th detrimental consequences that capital-led growth projects have on urban spaces and their populations.
You can read some of Gavin’s recent work here and you can contact him via Twitter: @gavinjdaly or via email: gdaly@liverpool.ac.uk
Get in touch with us if you'd like to be involved! Contact Abi via Twitter: @abioconnor_ or email: aoconnor@liverpool.ac.uk & Ronnie @asenseofplace1or R.D.Hughes@liv.ac.uk
Series two: episode five (pt 1) with Adele Moore & Leah Molyneux
Starting a PhD during a global pandemic
In this episode Abi and Ronnie are joined by Adele and Leah, two CASE PhD students in the department of Sociology, Social Policy and Criminology. Adele’s research is a feminist exploration of contraception and reproductive rights, in collaboration with a local clinic in Liverpool. Leah’s work is a ethnographic study of discretion, working with the College of Policing.
Both Adele & Leah started their studentships in October, 2020 – so in this episode we talk to them about how they’ve found their first few months, whether they’ve had to make any methodological changes to their research already, and how they’re adapting to writing and working from home.
You can get in touch with them via email hsamoor3@student.liverpool.ac.uk / Leah.Molyneux@liverpool.ac.uk
Series two: episode five (pt 2) with Adele Moore & Leah Molyneux
Quizzing Abi & Ronnie on life as a PhD student
In Part 2 of our conversation with Adele & Leah, we gave them the opportunity to ask us any questions they have about life as a PhD students, things we wish we’d have known when we started, tips for staying on top of our workloads and combatting loneliness – amongst much more!
You can get in touch with Adele via hsamoor3@student.liverpool.ac.uk and Leah via Leah.Molyneux@liverpool.ac.uk
Get in touch with us if you'd like to be involved in upcoming episodes, we’d love to hear from you about life as a PhD student, your research, new projects you’re involved in or changes to your work resulting from COVID19 (this list is not exhaustive!) Contact Abi via Twitter: @abioconnor_ or email: aoconnor@liverpool.ac.uk & Ronnie @asenseofplace1or R.D.Hughes@liv.ac.uk
Series two: episode six with Pat Ballantyne
Moving the lab home: changes to data and research resulting from COVID19
In this episode Abi & Ronnie talk to Patrick Ballantyne, a PhD student in the Geographic Data Science Lab, based in the Department of Geography & Planning.
Pat’s research, centred around Retail Geography, employs methods both quantitative and spatial in nature, which come under the umbrella of 'Geographic Data Science'. The primary aim of his PhD is to gain a deeper understanding of the geography of retail centre space, demonstrating how such an understanding can be used to respond to external pressures in the retail sector, such as changing consumer behaviours and the growth of online shopping.
When lockdown began in March, Pat’s access to the shared laboratory – and therefore his research – became restricted. He discusses how he’s adjusted to these challenges, giving an overview of his experience of working from home, whilst also highlighting the opportunities COVID-19 has presented in terms of consumer data and changing research agendas.
You can get in touch with Pat via email P.J.Ballantyne@liverpool.ac.uk or via Twitter @pj_ballantyne
For code and updates on his projects visit: https://github.com/patrickballantyne
Get in touch with us if you'd like to be involved in upcoming episodes, we’d love to hear from you about life as a PhD student, your research, new projects you’re involved in or changes to your work resulting from COVID19 (this list is not exhaustive!) Contact Abi via Twitter: @abioconnor_ or email: aoconnor@liverpool.ac.uk & Ronnie @asenseofplace1or R.D.Hughes@liv.ac.uk
Series two: episode seven with Liam Markey
Inaccessible data sets & discussing the politics of funding
In this episode Abi and Ronnie are joined by fellow Sociology, Social Policy and Criminology PGR student Liam Markey. Liam’s PhD is a collaborate project with the British Library, which looks to chronicle the last 100 years of British ‘military victimhood’ following the First World War, through both print and digital cultural artefacts in the British Library collection.
Liam’s research involved monthly visits to the British Library in London to access hard copies of datasets, which inevitably changed as a result of the initial lockdown in March and on-going restrictions since. In this episode we talk through the difficulties this has caused Liam in terms of his academic work and how he’s adapted to these changes.
Later in the episode we open up a discussion around the financial implications of the COVID19 pandemic, first through reference to Liam’s experience before talking about the difficulties currently faced by PhD students more widely, and the ongoing issues around funding.
Find out more about his research via his blog. Liam can be contacted via email Liam.markey@liverpool.ac.uk or Twitter: @Liam_Markey94.
Get in touch with us if you'd like to be involved with the podcast! Contact Abi via Twitter: @abioconnor_ or email: aoconnor@liverpool.ac.uk & Ronnie @asenseofplace1 or R.D.Hughes@liv.ac.uk
*This episode was recorded in early December 2020, before the third national lockdown*
Series two: episode eight - Talking about Writing
As students we’re all too aware of the fractious relationship that can develop with writing when doing a PhD. How difficult it can be to just ‘get writing’ and the fear of the blank page is something we have spoken about with PhD friends near and far. Something which may have become much more difficult in the past year.
So, inspired by Ronnie’s recent Methods North West workshop ‘Writing methods beyond the academy’, this episode is Abi talking to Ronnie about all things related to writing, what he’s learnt in his career as a writer – and how this helps him with his PhD. We talk through trying to make sense of academic writing, walking to get you writing, writing with friends and much more, in the hope that Ronnie’s expertise can help move even more of us move away from the blank page!
We refer to Ronnie’s paper throughout the episode, a version of which can be found here on his blog. And Ronnie’s highly recommended book if you want to read more about writing for pleasure is "Writing Down the Bones" by Natalie Goldberg.