Join us for a brand new episode to bring in the new year! This month, we sit down with Shivanka Gautam to discuss her research on ecological grief.  Shivanka recently completed her MSc in Global Mental Health and Society from the University of Edinburgh. Her research focused on experiences of ecological grief and the politics of mourning beyond the human. She is interested and passionate about the climate change - mental health nexus as well biodiversity conservation, climate resilience and...

This month, we delve into the unsettling evolution of 'incel' philosophy with Dr. Filipa Melo Lopes, a respected lecturer of Sociology and Political Philosophy at the University of Edinburgh. Filipa grew up in Portugal and received her B.A. from Simon Fraser University, in Canada. She completed her PhD at the University of Michigan and joined the University of Edinburgh as a lecturer in 2019. Filipa’s areas of research include feminist philosophy, social theory, sexual ethics and the work of...

In this episode, we sit down with Dr. Hannah Allen, an Assistant Professor at the University of Mississippi, in the Department of Health, Exercise Science, and Recreation Management. Dr. Allen is also Director of the Substance Use & Mental Health Research Lab.  We discuss her research which is broadly focused on substance use in a developmental context, examining the relationship between substance use and both mental health and achievement throughout college and young adulthood. She looks...

In this episode, we chat with Otilia Meden to discuss her research on peace. Otilia looks at the relationship between inner peace and geopolitical peace, surveying young people from across the world about their exposure to the concept throughout their schooling. We explore definitions of peace beyond the absence of violence, and peace practice through both self-awareness and activism.  Otilia is currently a research fellow at the Laidlaw Foundation with the University of St. Andrews where...

This month, we sit down with Dr. Kathy Dodworth to discuss emotional expression in research. We explore various types of emotional expression; which emotions are often seen as are welcome or unwelcome, accepted or unacceptable; how to navigate emotionally taxing subject material; and the emotional toll that such fieldwork takes on researchers and their collaborators. Kathy is a Wellcome Trust research fellow at the University of Edinburgh's centre for African studies and her current...

In this episode, we speak with Jens Augspurger, PhD candidate in Religious Studies at SOAS and a doctoral fellow of the Studienstiftung des Deutschen Volkes (German Academic Foundation).  Jens takes us through his curvy research journey looking at ‘spiritual tourists’. He speaks about why we connect to certain places; self-discovery and ‘belonging’; the complexities of ‘cultural appropriation’ and acknowledging privilege; the challenges of researching your own communities; when research leads...

This month, we have *two* very special guests—Lois Shaw and Mary Lou Keller—with whom we discuss the pains and gains of being a ‘mature student’ and returning to higher education later in life. After 30 years as a family welfare attorney in Colorado, Mary Lou chose to pursue a Master’s in Human Rights and Democratization at the Global Campus of Human Rights in Venice, Italy. Lois trained as a journalist before moving to Kenya with her family and, at the age of 70, finished her PhD in...

The PhD Defence: Staying Well Before, During, and After the Viva This month, we're joined by Dr. Kamua Wairuri.  Kamau is a Kenyan researcher, educator and policy consultant with expertise in the politics of policing, violence and criminal justice in Africa. Presently, he is a lecturer in criminology at Edinburgh Napier University and a Research Fellow at the Institute of Public Policy and Governance at the Strathmore University Business School (Nairobi, Kenya).   We discuss anxieties around...

This month, Daillen and Megan share some key takeaways from BeDo's latest digital course Successful Relationships with Academic Supervisors, available now on Udemy! In this conversation, Daillen and Megan divulge more about their own experiences with academic supervisors; common challenges to supervisory relationships; the importance of managing expectations for both supervisors and supervisees; strategies for maintaining clear channels of communication; how to set healthy boundaries. They...

This month, we're joined by Axolile Ntsika Mandaba Qina, or ‘Ax’ as he also goes by. Ax is a South African researcher currently doing his PhD at the University of Edinburgh; among many other achievements, he was the first African Black Male President of the Student Representative Council and received the  Mandela Rhodes Scholarship in 2016. We cover a lot of topics in this episode, including colonial legacies; the politics of language in university settings; pressure to be a revolutionary;...

This month, we're joined by Lisa Abramson for an illuminating conversation around the pitfalls of perfectionism. Lisa is a speaker, coach, and leading authority on mindfulness, burnout prevention, and developing a resilient mindset. Her book Permission to Fail: The Overachiever’s Guide To Becoming Unstoppable breaks down the challenges facing overachievers and introduces five key strategies for developing a resilient mindset. We chat with Lisa about the pressure to succeed for academics and...

Something special for the holidays! In this December's two bonus mini episodes, Daillen and Megan reflect on BeDo's recent workshops delivered in partnership with the Scottish Graduate School of Social Sciences (SGSSS). What does it mean to build rapport with research participants? In this episode, we explore academic and practical understandings of the rapport-building process, and the ethical dilemmas embedded therein. Our original workshop curriculum on Building Rapport proposes a...

Something special for the holidays! In this December's two bonus mini episodes, Daillen and Megan reflect on BeDo's recent workshops delivered in partnership with the Scottish Graduate School of Social Sciences (SGSSS). Research shows that climate change poses a credible challenge to global mental health. 'Climate distress' encompasses a vast range of challenging feelings and psychological responses to our rapidly changing environment—from eco-anxiety, to climate doom, to solastalgia, and...

This month, we chat with Dr. Alex Gapud, a cultural and organisational anthropologist, who received his doctorate in Social Anthropology from the University of Edinburgh, where he was also a Teaching Fellow. Alex is a two-time, University-wide, award-winning tutor, and his mission statement is 'to make work not suck for people.' In our conversation with Alex, we use the emergent term 'quiet quitting' as a jumping off point for broader discussion around work-life balance within academia. We...

This month, our guest is Purbita Sengupta, an analyst at  Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED). She works with the international team at the artificial intelligence (AI) hub that supports Canada's global engagement, both bilateral and multilateral, on AI governance. She is also completing a PhD at the University of Toronto, studying the political economy of policymaking in liberalized India by examining three national urban renewal missions. Purbita and Megan met as...

What is resilience anyways? And why does it matter for researchers? In this episode, your hosts Daillen and Megan chat through the concept of emotional resilience and its relevance for social science researchers. We discuss academic definitions versus practical application; types of adversity that researchers face, in the field and at home; the challenges of defining resilience across cultural contexts; other shortcomings of resilience-based discourse; and the importance of both asset- and...

Hope you guys enjoy this episode, featuring our very own Media & Communications Specialist Poppy Jeffery! Poppy, Megan, and Daillen discuss the experiences of 'working class' students at elite universities in the UK. We elaborate on definitions of social class and variations across cultural contexts; ongoing structural inequalities within UK higher education and specifically Poppy's study at the University of Edinburgh; myths and realities of social mobility; and the method known as...

Catherine (Kati) Maternowska is a research practitioner and lecturer at the University of Edinburgh, where she co-founded the End Violence Lab—a collaborative knowledge sharing platform aiming to improve the lives of children by harnessing data, evidence, and learning. Trained in economics, public health, and medical anthropology, her research spans Asia, Africa, and the Americas. She has worked with a variety of nonprofits, multilateral organizations including UNICEF, and held various...

Jerike Loren Heinze is a cultural anthropologist and founder of The Fieldwork Initiative, a grassroots network dedicated to the safety of researchers during fieldwork. In this episode, we dive into the toxicity of trial-by-fire culture in academia; the need to shed light on the dangers and trauma of fieldwork; and auto-reflexivity as a framework for documenting how researchers are transformed by the research process. Note: this episode alludes to sexual assault and sexual harassment, and may...

Sepiso (Seppy) Mwamelo is a Tanzanian researcher currently working for Opportunity International, where she leads agricultural finance projects across Uganda and East Africa. She completed her MSc in Africa & International Development at the University of Edinburgh, where she studied the nature of transformational leadership and burdens facing African scholarship recipients attending UK universities. In this episode, Seppy discusses the responsibility of leadership; community...

Welcome to The Resilient Researcher! We're your hosts, Daillen Culver and Megan Douglas,  co-founders of BeDo. Join us on our journey to discover definitions of and strategies for resilience among social science researchers. Whether you're a student or a seasoned academic, tune in for insightful, unfiltered conversations about the mental health challenges of field research. New episodes will be released on the first of every month, and show notes will include relevant resources. Subscribe...