We have been shortlisted in the Research and Discovery Award for ‘Borders, Mobility, and Livelihoods’, led by Professor Naohiko Omata, Dr Yotam Gidron, and Madison Bakewell. This project explores the significantly understudied issue of refugees’ cross-border movements in three East Africa border regions, and has made policy impacts at multiple levels. The research shows that these movements are rarely hopeful repatriation, but a dangerous coping strategy forced by extreme poverty, shrinking humanitarian aid, and a lack of livelihood opportunities in exile. 

The project has significantly changed how cross-border refugee mobility is understood and made differences in real-world decisions in East and Central Africa. Crucially, refugee communities were involved throughout the research process. Their participation ensured that findings reflected lived realities and increased local ownership of the research.

Together with the Social Sciences Division’s Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) team, we have also been shortlisted in the Commitment to EDI Award for ‘Inclusive Classrooms: Workshop on Identity and Collaborative Learning’. 

MPhil in Development Studies academic staff at ODID developed an induction workshop for their incoming students designed to:

• foster awareness among students about their own and others’ identities affecting classroom interactions;
• enable students from diverse backgrounds and with different, even opposing, views to engage constructively in exchange of ideas and exploring common ground;
• promote an intellectually rewarding classroom culture of collaborative peer learning through productive discussion;
• ensure every student’s contribution is valued in the class.

With the aim of empowering other departments to adapt and run the workshop to fit their disciplinary context and particular student demographics, ODID staff secured a grant from the University Diversity Fund and worked with the Social Sciences Division’s EDI team to produce a short film of the workshop and facilitation notes. These have been widely disseminated by the SSD EDI team. Interested teaching staff in various departments have been offered individualised support to run the workshop by Professor Nandini Gooptu (ODID), who led the filming project with Catherine Goodwin (Social Sciences Division).

There were nearly 170 award entries this year from across the University. An Awards Showcase will be held in the Schwarzman Centre for the Humanities on Tuesday 2 June. Winners and highly commended nominees will be announced at a ceremony hosted by the Vice-Chancellor on Thursday 4 June.