COV(ID) RESIDENCY

Under the moniker of SPECT.ANON. George Saxon and Ryan Sehmar worked with Vivid Projects as part of a year-long residency to re-imagine worlds under curfew during a shared self-isolation. A series of events, referred to as interludes and intervals, were developed within the environment of an empty space. The audience was beckoned into a wooden structure, where potential action and intervention were recorded at given intervals, as the artists deciphered the interior world (inner space) of this existence together with the fragile tensions and antagonisms presented by the exterior world (outer space).


John Devane: Paintings at 60 Threadneedle St. London

John Devane: Paintings is a solo exhibition of fourteen paintings on canvas, which resulted from practice research into ‘imagination’ as a synthesis of iconography and the material in painting. The exhibition, at 60 Threadneedle St, London ran from 12th January 2018 until mid-May 2018 and was selected and curated by VJB ARTS.


Understanding motivations, barriers and enablers for participation in community food activities

The aim of this project is to further our understanding of the motivations, barriers and enablers of diverse communities’ participation in community food activities.


The Interplay between Transitional Justice and Reconciliation in Peacebuilding

This project focuses on how transitional justice and reconciliation mechanisms and processes interplay and how this interrelationship works in practice across different contexts.


Democratising Agricultural Research in Europe (DARE)

Democratising Agricultural Research in Europe, or D.A.R.E., is a project that brought together food producers, researchers and activists from Europe to share knowledge on participatory and transdisciplinary approaches to research in agriculture. The project focused specifically on agroecological initiatives in Europe, and explored how research can help to realise the potential of these approaches to enable sustainable and just food systems.


The ‘Prosper’ programme – researching business support for cultural and creative organisations

The Prosper programme aims to strengthen the resilience and investment readiness of arts organisations, museums and libraries in England.


From the Grounds Up: The Coffee Shop Industry and the Circular Economy

This study aims to explore how businesses and consumers can engage in the circular economy, the facilitators and inhibitors for doing so, and the importance of these actions for sustainable economies and societies. The UK and Germany are used as two case studies for exploring how and why the coffee shop industry takes part in the circular economy.


Breaking Educational Barriers with Contextualised, Pervasive and Gameful Learning (BEACONING)

BEACONING sets a forefront in multifaceted education technologies through large-scale piloting of a digital learning platform that blend physical and digital spaces.


Water quality performance of permeable pavements

Permeable pavements (PPS) are often the most appropriate sustainable drainage (SuDS) device for highly urbanised areas and can be used for parking areas, low speed roads and landscaped areas.


Quantum Thinking for Agroecology

This research programme aims to explore the Principle of Complementarity or Wave-Particle Duality as it applies to agriculture


EDUHACK – Hacking Education by improving open e-learning teacher competencies

Participants in this capacity building programme for university educators will learn how to produce digitally-supported learning experiences and will have the opportunity to experiment with innovative models and approaches to teaching and learning; with a focus on fostering collaborative learning and enhanced student engagement.


JOVITAL: Jordan Opportunity for Virtual Innovative Teaching And Learning

The overall objective of JOVITAL is to improve quality of teaching in Jordanian Higher Education Institutions by introducing innovative collaborative tools and methodologies and fostering academic international exchange.


Managing the migration crisis? Undocumented migrants and refugees at Europe’s southern border

Over recent years, hundreds of thousands of people have crossed the Mediterranean to Italy as part of what has come to be known as Europe’s ‘migration crisis’. An intensification of controls on international population movements has taken place both at sea and after arrival. This project seeks to better understand what the impact of attempts by EU institutions and national governments to manage the crisis has been on migrants’ status and journeys. It serves to document the ongoing crisis through the experiences of newly arrived migrants and refugees.


Migrants and the media: examining migrant voices in Britain’s political debate

This project explored the engagement and representation of migrant voices within the 2015 pre-election debate, asking how the voices and experiences of migrants were represented in media reporting and whether migrants themselves were able to have a say.


Promoting ethical flowers for improved working conditions in supply chains: The disconnect between increased certification and poor purchaser knowledge

This project examined how the promotion of ethical flowers can contribute to improved working conditions in supply chains.


Amongst the last to leave: Understanding the Journeys of Muslim Children in the Care System in the Midlands

According to research evidence, Muslim children experience significant delay in finding a permanent home. This research project will analyse the social, cultural and religious reasons for the small number of Muslim parents coming forward to adopt or foster.


On Behalf of the People: Work and Community in the Nationalised British Coal Industry, 1947-1994

This 3 year study will conduct a revised history of the nationalised British coal industry (1947-1994), examining this from a macro-, meso-, and micro-, perspective.  


Innovative designs of sustainable agro-hydro-health systems

Under the Researcher Links scheme offered within the Newton Fund, the British Council and Akademi Sains Malaysia will be holding a 5-day workshop in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia commencing on 31 July 2017. The workshop is being coordinated by Professor Sue Charlesworth (Centre for Agroecology, Water and Resilience, Coventry University) and Associate Professor Dr. Abdul Halim Ghazali (Universiti Putra Malaysia), and will have contributions from other leading researchers. The workshop will explore the following research topics in relation to ‘off-grid’ communities.


Power to Change

This project aims to assess the social impact of small-scale agroecological businesses and food producing enterprises in the UK.


Performing Empowerment: Disability, Dance & Inclusive Development in Post Conflict Sri Lanka

This project examined an innovative way of empowering persons with conflict-related disabilities in Sri Lanka through a combination of dance and law that was pioneered and piloted by VisAbility, a Sri Lankan/ German association, in mid-2015.